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Custodians and trades staff—members of Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) 1483—reached a tentative contract deal with the Dufferin-Peel District Catholic School Board (DPDCSB) in the early morning today (May 9, 2007).

Negotiations began in November 2006 under a cloud, when a provincially imposed supervisor indicated contract talks with board employees could be a vehicle for budget cuts. Throughout the negotiations, CUPE questioned the authority of the school board’s negotiating team to reach a settlement since all financial decisions must be approved by the McGuinty government imposed supervisor.

CUPE 1483 members will be voting on the tentative contract on Tuesday, May 15 at 3:00 p.m. The vote will take place at St. Joseph’s Secondary School, 5555 Creditview Road, Mississauga.

Details of the settlement will not be made available until after the vote by CUPE 1483 members and pending ratification by the provincial supervisor,” says CUPE 1483 president Larry Stevenson.

Our members’ goals included protecting and enhancing workplace protections for custodians and trades staff under the current cost-cutting climate that’s fueled by a flawed education funding formula. We believe this settlement achieves those goals,” says Stevenson. 

The DPDCSB elected trustees will not be voting on the settlement. Only ratification from the board’s provincial supervisor is required. Based on available information, he will be announcing his decision at the May 22 board meeting.

Heading into this October’s provincial election, Stevenson says CUPE 1483 members will continue to push for a fix to education funding for support services along with the more than 45,000 CUPE school board sector members in Ontario.