Ontario government announces plans to support parents in the event of a CUPE strike

CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) education workers strike on the picket line in Kingston, Ont., Friday, Nov. 4, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lars Hagberg

Frontline healthcare workers and staff in licensed childcare settings will be given access to free childcare for their elementary-aged children in the event of a strike by school support staff, Education Minister Stephen Lecce has announced.

Approximately 55,000 CUPE members will be in a legal strike position as of Monday and most boards in the GTA have indicated that schools will close for in-person learning should the workers walk off the job for the second time this month.

In a statement issued on Friday morning, Lecce said that the government is committed to remaining at the table and getting an agreement.

But he said that if CUPE opts to strike, the government will provide free childcare to both eligible healthcare workers and childcare workers “for the duration” of any work stoppage.

He said that the government will also ensure that licensed before- and after-school programs “can easily pivot to full-day programs” by “expediting licence revision requests and relocation approvals.”

“We remain on the side of all parents who just want to see their children in the classroom learning,” he said. “We’ll continue to be at the table to make that happen.”

CUPE has said that it plans to participate in talks with the government throughout the weekend, however it has set a soft deadline of 5 p.m. on Sunday to reach a deal and avert a strike the following day.

The union has maintained that money is no longer the primary road block to an agreement, however Lecce has cast doubt on that claim, calling it the “fundamental fault line.”

The Ford government has offered CUPE members a raise that would equal out to about 3.59 per cent annually, according to CUPE.

The Ford government says that the list of healthcare workers eligible for free childcare includes doctors, nurses, personal support workers, other health care providers and those who work in hospitals, long-term care, retirement homes, and applicable congregate care settings.