Nova Scotia school support staff headed to impasse, CUPE members frustrated with Province

[Link] Tired of negotiations being dragged out, thousands of workers across Nova Scotia are demanding the provincial government respect the collective bargaining process. Almost a year into negotiations and progress has been repeatedly stalled by the Houston administration.

All bargaining meetings were cancelled in November due to the snap-election. Negotiations briefly resumed before the holiday break and now talks are stalled by a mandate from the Province which has prevented employers from discussing wage proposals.

"Everyone is hearing the same thing from employers at the table: They say they have a mandate for wages and can't deviate from it," said Nelson Scott, Nova Scotia School Board Council of Unions, NSSBCU, Chair and CUPE 5050 President. "There is no discussion, there is no negotiation. All we want is to be able to fairly negotiate our collective agreement."

CUPE urges the new Minister for Education and Early Childhood Development, Brendan Maguire, to empower employers-the seven Regional Centres for Education and the Conseil scolaire acadien provincial-to actually negotiate with school support staff.

The NSSBCU has also asked for the Department to meet at a central table to negotiate wages and other common proposals. The Province has so far been unwilling to come together at a central table, despite this being the process in previous rounds of negotiations. The NSSBCU is led by the presidents of all eight CUPE locals in this sector.

"The department has decided not to meet CUPE members at a central table to negotiate the proposals common to all eight locals, including wages, but they also have employers handcuffed at local tables," said Nan McFadgen, CUPE Nova Scotia President.

"We can't negotiate wages at a central table, and we can't negotiate wages at the local tables. Basically, we have thousands of members on the verge of job action and the government will not even fairly negotiate key terms."

Other common proposals still on the table include items proposing improvements to understaffing, to occupational health and safety protocols, and other risk factors for violence in public schools. School support staff experience the majority of violent incidents, leading to high levels of stress and negative impacts to the physical and mental health of workers. Workers have been pushing back against government inaction on this front since the last round of negotiations.

CUPE Nova Scotia represents over 5,000 school support staff across the province. Contracts for CUPE school support staff expired at the end of March 2024. In October, province-wide strike votes were held, with 94% of votes in favour of possible job action.