Signs, Everywhere

Has your job become more challenging over the past few years? Mine too!
Stressed out? Me too!
Would you like a raise to help deal with the rising cost of living? Me too!
There’s an election coming up. This means that parties are going to campaign on the issues that are important to us. So let’s tell Alberta what we need in Education.
Come and make some signs with us. Signs for your lawns. Signs for your balconies. Signs for your windows. Signs for upcoming picketing events.
Come and learn about what we are doing as a union, and what we can do to make a difference in our working conditions, and in the lives of the students we care for.
When: April 21 & April 28, 1-4pm*
Where: CUPE Local 1825 Office**
* Only have a half hour? That’s fine! This is a drop-in event. Stay as long as you would like.
** 3305 18 Ave N. Lethbridge (Plenty of parking in the North lot; North entrance takes you to our office the quickest)
Email 1825vicepresident@gmail.com or text 403-360-5752 if you have any questions about this event.

CUPE Activist Network Meeting

We have a chance on May 29th to elect an NDP government that supports workers, but we can’t do it alone.

CUPE is launching an Activist Network for members to get involved in CUPE’s election member outreach. The Activist Network will also provide picket line and bargaining support, support campaigns, and build solidarity with community allies.

Join us for the first meeting of the Activist Network with CUPE President Rory Gill and special guest Laura Walton, President of the Ontario Council of School Board Unions.

Topic: CUPE AB Activist Network

Time: Thursday, April 13, 2023 6:30 PM Mountain Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89231060772

Meeting ID: 892 3106 0772

It’s About D@mn Time!

We are going to get a raise.
We will NOT ASK for it. We will DEMAND: an increase of $2/hr, every year, for 4 years, for every single CUPE Education Worker in Alberta!
 
…Because Education Workers have been too long without a raise.
 
…Because Education Workers have been using food banks, and working 2-3 other jobs in order to make ends meet.
 
…Because nobody wants to replace us in our low-wage jobs.
 
…Because we’re tired.
 
…Because we’ve been kicked, spit on, threatened with weapons, and insulted on a regular basis.
 
               …Because we’ve been the lowest-paid workers in education in the province for too long.
 
                                                        …Because we NEED a raise.
 

                                  …Because we DESERVE a raise!

Alberta Budget 2023

from CUPE Alberta

Premier Danielle Smith produced a cynical, ineffective pre-election budget

February 28, 2023

Edmonton – “Danielle Smith’s budget pretends to provide help for families, but every penny offered up is taken away the day after the next election,” said CUPE Alberta President Rory Gill.

“Support for big business carries on, but support for power bills, gas bills and other affordability measures are over June 1st, one day after Danielle Smith needs support from voters.”

Gill says that with the chaos in health care, more funding is needed to make up for cuts in previous years. “The amount Smith has offered doesn’t even cover inflation and population growth. This means less health care, more chaos.”

“Cutting $100 million from the drug program is the same kind of cruelty Danielle Smith showed when she blamed cancer victims for their diagnosis. How are they supposed to recover if they can’t pay the bills Premier?”

Gill was particularly upset that the budget offered little for K-12 education, coming up $1.6 billion short of what is needed to hold the line.

“Education workers in this province have not seen a wage increase in eight years,” said Gill. “We can’t expect students to learn when staff are abandoning the field due to poverty-level wages. The average Educational Assistant in Alberta makes less than $28,000 annually.

Gill noted that Danielle Smith has allocated more funding to build private and charter schools than Public, Catholic and Francophone schools combined.

If this is the best Danielle Smith can offer, it’s more clear than ever that we need to Fire the UCP and put Rachel Notley into the Premier’s office. We need a Premier in touch with the real concerns of Albertans.

Why CUPE supports the NDP

… in short, because we kind of ARE the NDP.

Did you know that the New Democratic Party was formed in 1961 when the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) and the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) united to form one, worker-focused political party?

I think every Canadian knows the name of Tommy Douglas. He’s famous for being the founder of medicare in Canada, and the first leader of the NDP

We are inextricably linked to the NDP. To this day, the values of our unions, and the values of the Alberta NDP, and the federal NDP, are all in alignment.

You can read more about it in this Canadian Encyclopedia entry.

Alberta’s Union History

Did you know that our province was once actually an incredibly union-proud province? But now, it seems that our current government, and its many corporate friends, consider us (the people of Alberta) enemies of the state.

Find out what happened by reading this great article from Alberta Views:

Alberta’s Hostility Towards Labour

Please Note: This article is was originally published over 20 years ago. Unfortunately, the relationship between us and our government has become even more strained.

Courage, Friends!

A Message from CUPE Alberta President, Rory Gill:How long can CUPE afford the education worker walkout? - The Globe and Mail

 Friends,

Yesterday was a historic moment that saw CUPE’s 55,000 education members in Ontario, ably and inspirationally represented by their President Laura Walton, achieve a victory that seemed impossible a week ago.

These brave workers, the vast majority of whom are women, put everything on the line to fight for all of us and our rights against a conservative government that was contemptuous of working people and intent on keeping workers poor and powerless.

Their courage and unwavering dedication to the protection of children and the public education system left Doug Ford no choice but to repeal Bill 28 and return to the bargaining table.

This is important. If the conservatives had succeeded in using the constitution’s ‘notwithstanding’ clause to force a contract on CUPE members, free collective bargaining would have been virtually over in Canada. Other provinces, in particular those with conservative governments, would have done the same anytime workers disagreed with an employer’s wage offer. Having defeated Doug Ford’s attempt to quash our rights, other governments will think twice before trying that tactic again.

The victory is momentous, we should be proud of it, and enjoy it. But is not the end of our struggle. In Ontario, our members must now press the conservatives for a fair and decent contract. And in the rest of the country, we need to build on this success.

This recognition is especially important here in Alberta. The rallying slogan of the strike in Ontario was ‘$39,000.00 is Not Enough.’ There is no doubt it isn’t, but it is $12,000 more than the average education worker makes in Alberta. Our K-12 members have not seen a wage increase in eight years.

Instead of addressing this shameful situation in Alberta schools, our premier encourages disunity in our country, offers no relief for inflation and peddles ridiculous and dangerous conspiracy theories. 

We don’t have to put up with this any longer. We know that worker power is real, the people are with us and change is coming.

I promise you I will work with everything I have to make things better for our members and the people of Alberta.

In times of trouble and set back Tommy Douglas’ words; ‘Courage friends; tis not too late to build a better world’ have given me hope. In this time of victory, they are also with me and have never been more true.

Our members, our union and our movement are building that better world right this minute and I am so happy and proud to be with you while we do it. 

All the very best and Solidarity Forever!

Rory Gill

President, CUPE Alberta

Rally @ LaGrange’s Office

Early in October, a handful of our members trekked to Red Deer to attend a rally, conference, and meeting with AEEC (Alberta Education Employees Committee) of CUPE Alberta. Katey gave an impassioned speech at the rally. We met many people from all over Alberta who work in the Education sector, and learned about lobbying, the current state of politics and the economy here in Alberta. We’re all frustrated about the lack of wage increases over the past 8 years, and we renewed our pact to work together as a provincial education sector within CUPE.

 

Check out the link to the article written by the Red Deer Advocate:

Albertans rally for education in Red Deer

 

And here are a few random pics from the weekend:

May be an image of 3 people, people standing, sky and road

May be an image of 4 people, people standing and outdoors

May be an image of 4 people, people standing and outdoors

Union Education For All

CUPE offers all sorts of education opportunities for you and your fellow members. Here are some upcoming opportunities for Union Education.

Before you sign up, contact your executive cupe1825@gmail.com to see if wage replacement is available.

All CUPE Education courses are FREE! Follow the links to register:

October 22 – Introduction to Health & Safety – Part 1 and Part 2 – 9am to 4pm

October 25 – Bill 32: Dealing with Difficult People – 6pm to 9pm

October 27 – Challenging Racism – 6pm to 9pm

November 3 – SLS – Notetaking – 6pm to 9pm

November 15 – SLS – Grievance Handling – 6pm to 9pm

** SLS is an abbreviation for Steward Learning Series. It is recommended that you first complete Introduction to Stewarding before enrolling in any SLS courses.

April 2022 Member of the Month

Rita Nigro is a stylish, fun, no-nonsense lady who brings joy to a difficult day by singing Broadway Musicals and humorous quips that never fail to make you laugh.

Rita is currently an Education Assistant for Kindergarten at Children of Saint Martha Elementary School in Lethbridge, Alberta. She has been an E.A. for the last 8 years and worked with children for the last 25! Her experience in Early Childhood Education is valued at CSM and her creative skills in and out of the classroom have made her a superstar within her school.

You can see Rita’s handiwork on classroom doors, windows, and walls in the form of curtains and stitched organizational tools. E.As in many schools sport her totes, lanyards, lunch bags, lunch kits, and placemats as well as her Educational half aprons for holding kleenex, sanitizer, keys, pencils, and every essential item needed to support young students on a daily basis.

Recently this creative genius has stepped out of her comfort zone and started her own company, Cose Belle by Rita. Her website and Facebook page offer environmentally sustainable items created from beautiful fabrics.

Check out her amazing eye for patterns and original designs at:

http://cose-belle-by-rita.square.site or on Facebook at Cose Belle by Rita. Don’t forget to check out her shoelace designs- my personal favorite.

—Nomination submitted by Kristina Orenstein

1825 Members of the Month

Nominations are now open! Recognize your amazing coworkers!

How to nominate someone:

Step 1: Choose one of your favourite coworkers

Step 2: Write up a short bio (1-2 paragraphs). Tell us what makes that person so interesting. Snag a pic of them (with their permission of course)

Step 3: Submit your nomination to christy.storrs@gmail.com

Step 4: Invite your nominee to the next General Membership Meeting. Their bio & picture will be published on the website and Facebook page the next day.