CUPE proudly presented the 2025 National Health and Safety Award to Jason Ramsey of CUPE 4400, recognizing over a decade of outstanding leadership in making workplaces safer for tens of thousands of education workers in his local and across the sector.
“Health and safety means different things to different people,” Jason said. “Employers see it as a legal standard that they need to meet. Supervisors see it as a hurdle that they need to overcome. But workers see it as one of the few lifelines that they have for protection.”
As a steward and health and safety committee member, Jason has worked tirelessly to strengthen education, communication, and joint action on safety issues. His leadership has led to more effective hazard identification, inspections, and injury investigations at more than 600 worksites across Canada’s largest school board.
Jason was also instrumental in negotiating the Terms of Reference for a multi-site Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committee, covering over 41,000 workers. His work ensures a consistent, equitable approach to health and safety implementation across vastly different school environments.
Beyond his local, Jason serves as a certified instructor with the Workers Health and Safety Centre (WHSC) and a CUPE health and safety facilitator. He’s also played a vital role in regional campaigns through the Toronto and York Region Labour Council, fighting for stronger protections and reforms to workers’ compensation systems.
In accepting the award, Jason shared a message of solidarity and strength: “This is for every union rep who has challenged the status quo, for every steward who filed that grievance, and for every member who stood up and refused to accept unsafe working conditions as just part of the job.”