Five-year agreements follow successful information picket by school support staff.
Members of CUPE 3473 and 4642 have ratified new five-year collective agreements with the Louis Riel School Division (LRSD) covering educational assistants (EAs), custodians, bus drivers, and other support staff.
The settlements come on the heels of an information picket organized by CUPE 3473 and 4642 members, who took to the picket lines to send a clear message to the employer that their members deserved a fair deal. The pressure worked.
“Our members stood firm together and made it clear we weren’t going to settle for less than what this work is worth,” said Leanne Gregorchuk, President of CUPE 3473. “These agreements show the strength and determination of every EA, custodian, bus driver, and support staff who walked the picket line. We are proud of these deals.”
The new agreements deliver a number of key wins: a 2.5% wage increase in year one, 2.75% in each of the next three years, and 2.25% in the final year. Additionally, positions across both agreements received flat-rate increases ranging from $1.75 to $6.00 per hour over the life of the agreements. Bargaining unit members also secured improvements such as the removal of the lowest pay band for some positions, considerably boosting wages for some of the Division’s lowest-paid workers.
Members also secured major improvements to paid sick leave provisions, bereavement leave, and a new Supplemental Unemployment Benefit (SUB) plan for maternity leave.
Crucially, union members achieved a major win by rejecting all employer concession demands, protecting vacation, union leave, and strike notice provisions in both agreements. Members made zero concessions.
“This is what collective bargaining looks like when workers are organized and unified,” said
Dwight Lavallee, President of CUPE 4642. “We came to the table, held the line, and gained improvements across the board with zero concessions. That’s a win.”
