More than 5,500 school support workers in Nova Scotia closer to strike after latest breakdown in talks

School support staff in Nova Scotia are one step closer to going on strike after another breakdown in negotiations with the province’s education administrators.

The conciliator assisting in the talks between the parties has reported an impasse to the minister of labour, skills and immigration, positioning Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) members for possible job action.

“We are running out of time to reach agreements that protect the quality of public education in Nova Scotia,” Nelson Scott, chair of the Nova Scotia School Board Council of Unions, said in a news release.

“For 10 months, we have been telling our employers what it takes to keep our schools running. They know the problems. They know what needs to change. But we’re still waiting for them to take those concerns seriously at the bargaining table.”

More than 5,500 CUPE members from eight different locals would be affected by a work stoppage, which the union says would put a tremendous strain on school programs and services.

“Parents and kids across Nova Scotia see every day what happens when there are not enough resources to meet standards: classrooms get dirty, students go without the supports they need, the learning environment is disrupted, and some kids don’t even make it to class because their bus run has been cancelled,” Scott said in the release.

Steve Gallagher, regional executive director for the Halifax Regional Centre for Education (HRCE), circulated a letter to parents Thursday explaining what they could expect now and in the event of a strike.

“Our priority is to reach fair agreements at the bargaining table and avoid any disruption to students and families,” Gallagher wrote. “At the same time, we have a responsibility to be prepared for the possibility of job action.

“Recent CUPE labour action in the long-term care sector demonstrated that we cannot assume services will continue while negotiations remain unresolved. While the circumstances and bargaining processes are different, that experience reinforces the importance of preparing now for the possibility of job action in our schools.

“We are developing contingency plans and assessing what different forms of job action could mean for students, families, and school operations.”

Teachers and EXCEL staff from the Conseil Scolaire Acadien Provincial and Nova Scotia’s various regional centres for education are not part of these CUPE bargaining units so their job status will not be affected by any labour disruption.

HRCE provided the following list of employees who would be included in any job action: educational program assistants (EPA), lead early childhood educators, support early childhood educators, library support specialists, SchoolsPlus community outreach workers, child and youth care practitioners, Mi’kmaw-Indigenous student support workers, African Nova Scotian student support workers, assistive technology support workers, and substitutes for the classifications, where applicable.

The HRCE communication also said pre-Primary programs will be paused if there is a strike.

“I recognize that this is unsettling news,” Gallagher said in the letter.

“I want to assure you that teams at HRCE have been working closely with school principals in recent weeks to determine how to best support students in the event of any labour disruption. We are making plans to ensure that students who require the support of EPAs will continue to be able to access educational services reasonably and safely. Principals will begin reaching out to families who will be impacted to discuss these plans.

“We remain hopeful that there will soon be a resolution and that these plans won’t be necessary. CUPE has not yet provided the 48-hours’ notice as required by the Trade Union Act. As a reminder, we do not expect any potential strike action by CUPE until Monday, October 26. We value and respect our employees who are part of CUPE. We know their work is critically important to children, students, families, teachers and staff, and hope to reach a fair deal before any action that affects our classrooms.”

School support staff in the Halifax Regional Municipality went on strike for roughly five weeks in 2023. But representatives from CUPE said it is never their goal to go on strike and characterized any potential job action this time as another unfortunate last resort.

“Nobody wants a strike,” Scott said. “But we cannot keep accepting working conditions that undermine the very services our students depend on. The problems we are trying to solve at the bargaining table are already affecting families across Nova Scotia.

“Every student deserves a good school, and every school support worker deserves good working conditions. Those two things go hand in hand. We are asking families to stand with us and tell their school administrators that good schools for all must be the priority. There are still 10 days to avoid a potential strike. Our employers need to use them.”