CUPE slams bargaining bill for Ontario schools / Alberta’s labour shortage not as bad as it seems
Union slams Ontario’s collective bargaining bill for schools
TORONTO — The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) has come out swinging against the Ontario government’s plan to overhaul the way it negotiates contracts in schools.
The School Boards Collective Bargaining Act, otherwise known as Bill 122, passed second reading late last year, and should it become law, would create a two-tiered bargaining system.
That means trustee associations and school boards (such as the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation) would join unions and the provincial government at the bargaining table. Whereas school boards and unions would negotiate local issues, the government would negotiate province-wide provisions. Under this new centralized model, a collective agreement could only be ratified if it had support from all three parties.
CUPE vehemently opposed the legislation during a press conference on Jan. 13. The government’s failure to honour a previous contract with CUPE has cost them support for Bill 122, according to the union.
Last year, the now-repealed Bill 115 (which imposed labour contracts on public school teachers and limited their ability to strike) soured the relationship between staff and the government.
"The government is producing inequality in schools — the very opposite of what central agreements achieve," said Terri Preston, chair of CUPE’s school board co-ordinating committee. "Support workers doing the same jobs, working just down the road from one another but employed by different boards, are receiving differential treatment."
But education minister Liz Sandals said the new legislation will streamline the collective bargaining process.
"We developed this legislation after extensive consultations with our education partners," she said. "This legislation will help bring more clarity and consistency to future rounds of bargaining and allow us to move forward together."
Should Bill 122 pass, it would take effect early this year. Most existing collective agreements for school staff expire in August 2014.
Alberta’s labour shortage not as bad as originally projected: Report
CALGARY — Initial projections of an impending labour shortage in Alberta have been significantly reduced, according to a new report from the provincial government.
Released on Jan. 15, the Alberta Occupational Demand and Supply Outlook indicated the projected worker shortage over the next decade has dropped from 114,000 to 96,000 workers. The new statistics now forecast a shortage of 96,000 workers by 2023.
Thomas Lukaszuk, minister of the newly-formed Ministry of Jobs, Skills, Training and Labour, said the forecasted numbers set a baseline for his new department by which it can determine what labour gaps need to be filled.
"With this information, we can see what areas of our economy may face shortages and ensure we have a skilled workforce to help get our products to global markets for years to come," Lukaszuk said.
For instance, the outlook has identified the need for post-secondary education for engineering professions.
The government cited Alberta’s booming youth workforce, which has shrunk the previous imbalance between labour supply and demand, as one major factor. As well, the lower shortage numbers can be attributed to high participation rates and new industry-led workforce strategies, such as the Alberta Forest Products Association’s Work Wild program and the Wood Buffalo Retail Employer Network.
Occupations facing the highest worker shortages include physicians, dentists, veterinarians, heavy equipment operators, trades helpers and labourers and food and beverage service staff.
