HWDSB to keep schools open 'as long as possible' amid CUPE strike
Hamilton's Catholic school board pivots to online learning, city says numerous services impacted
While Hamilton's Catholic school board has closed its schools to in-person learning, as education workers who are part of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) strike, Hamilton's public school board says it plans to keep schools open "as long as possible. "
However, one of the public board's head caretakers says it will be a struggle to keep them open much longer without custodians and maintenance workers.
"I would imagine for the public board, they will be very, very hard pressed to keep the schools open past Monday or Tuesday … if that," Blake Corkill, head caretaker at Memorial Elementary School and president of CUPE 4153 which represents Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board workers, told CBC Hamilton on Friday.
"They may look at it today and say 'We just can't keep up with it.'"
The strike comes after the provincial government and CUPE couldn't come to terms while negotiating pay raises. In a controversial and unprecedented move, the province invoked the notwithstanding clause to make the CUPE strike illegal.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce said in a statement to CBC News the province will use "every tool available" to get schools running normally again.
"Nothing matters more right now than getting all students back in the classroom," Lecce said.
Corkill says Lecce does have the tools available to make it work, without trying to make a strike illegal.
"He does have a budget to work with. He's seen the numbers. He's heard from the people. He's going to see what the people have to say about it today and into next week and he has the ability to walk back Bill 28 and actually get to the bargaining table with a real offer," Corkill said.
'We cannot stay open for any sustained length of time'
HWDSB chair Dawn Danko said she was on the picket line this morning with education workers.
She said in an update on Thursday, the school board has a "contingency plan" to keep schools open for "as long as possible, while maintaining health and safety."
HWDSB said, in a letter to families on Thursday, the plan includes assigning "additional staff to keep schools open."
"Should the labour protests continue beyond Friday, we will notify you by this Sunday if we need to close schools to in‐person learning on Monday," reads the letter signed by Sheryl Robinson Petrazzini, the board's director of education.
Danko told CBC Hamilton on Friday, part of the decision to stay open factored in how CUPE members at the school only include caretakers and maintenance staff.
She said non-union members, management workers from the board office and administrators are being re-deployed to take on maintenance duties for the time being.
Danko also added, part of the decision to stay open is to balance the province's request that schools stay open for as long as possible.
"Our maintenance workers are critical players in our schools. We cannot stay open for any sustained length of time [without them]," she said in a phone interview.
"Today, ideally, will bridge a gap for families, provide some certainty for this week, but I think we would make a different decision going forward. I'm waiting to hear more about that from the team."
Danko said she's "disappointed" the government passed legislation to make CUPE's strike illegal and didn't reach a fair deal. She said the government is "trampling on worker's rights."
"This government has drawn a line in the sand and really is signalling workers' rights will not be respected, Charter rights will not be respected when it's not convenient."
Unlike the HWDSB, most school boards in the Hamilton and greater Toronto areas have chosen to close to in-person learning.
School boards that are closed include:
- The Toronto District School Board
- Toronto Catholic District School Board
- Peel District School Board
- Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board
- York Region District School Board
- York Catholic District School Board, Durham District School Board
- Durham Catholic District School Board
- Halton Catholic District School Board
- Niagara Catholic District School Board
- Niagara District School Board are all closed.
Many of those are opting for online learning.
Only the Halton District School Board, like the HWDSB, remains open to in-person learning.
The public board previously listed some ways its schools will operate, including:
- HWDSB schools will stay open for teaching and learning during the instructional day, including excursions.
- School doors will open 15 minutes before bell time and will close 15 minutes after bell time.
- Athletics and extra‐curricular activities will be cancelled, as well as all rental permits on any board property.
- Existing early learning and child care centres (Birth to age 3.8) will be open on a modified schedule to align with the school bell times.
- EarlyON Child and Family Centres, all licenced before‐and-after school programs, and all authorized recreation programs will be cancelled.
- Regular scheduled meetings offered after‐hours (board meetings, committee meetings of the board, school council, expulsion meetings, etc.) will move to, or continue to be offered in, remote using Microsoft Teams.
Catholic school board doing online learning
At Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board (HWCDSB), all elementary and secondary schools are closed.
After-hours programming is also shuttered, but high school athletic games will proceed as scheduled.
WATCH: 'I will not accept for one day a strike': Stephen Lecce
All in-school childcare centres and EarlyON Child and Family Centres are open on Friday during regular operating hours, but the regular before-and-after care will not be open.
St. Charles Adult and Continuing Education is still open and is operating as usual.
HWCDSB chair Pat Daly said he was disappointed the province and union couldn't come to an agreement.
"There's lots of blame to go around," said Daly
"We have to find better ways to collectively bargain and to resolve differences," said Daly, who is also president of the Ontario Catholic School Trustees' Association, which is one of the associations at the bargaining table.
Numerous city services impacted during strike
The city of Hamilton said numerous services and programs have been affected.
Vaccine clinics, dental health and vision screenings in schools will all be delayed during the strike.
There are modified hours for licensed child care centres for children aged 0-3.8 years old in the public board.
Before and after school care at HWDSB, HWCDSB and Mon Avenir Conseil Scolaire Catholique schools is cancelled.
Nine recreation centres with shared HWDSB gyms are also closed including:
- Ryerson Recreation Centre
- Dalewood Recreation Centre
- Norman Pinky Lewis Recreation Centre (Cathy Weaver School Gym)
- Hill Park Recreation Centre
- Sir Allan McNab Recreation Centre
- Sir Wilfrid Laurier Recreation Centre
- Beasley Recreation Centre
- Sir Winston Churchill Recreation Centre
- Dominic Agostino Riverdale Community Centre
The city also said public health inspections in schools may also be paused if inspectors can't get into the schools.
The city said if schools stay open, parenting groups and the Canadian Prenatal Nutrition Program will keep operating but if they close, the city will explore alternatives.
YWCA and Boys and Girls Club services impacted
YWCA Hamilton says some of its locations are closed. That includes:
- •All YWCA Hamilton before-and-after school programs in the city.
- •All YWePlay after school programs in the city.
- The Mapleview before-and-after school program in Dunnville.
The Ottawa Street Child Care Centre located at Memorial Elementary School and the West Mountain Child Care Centre located at Gordon Price Elementary School are operating on modified hours.
The Dunnville Child Care & Early Learning Centre, St. Mike's Before and After School Program in Dunnville and the Downtown Child Care Centre in Hamilton are operating normally.
Boys and Girls Club Hamilton-Halton says services at some locations are closed including:
- Parkdale (before-and-after school program and Let's Get Moving program
- Prince of Wales (before-and-after school program and Let's Get Moving program)
- Queen Mary (before-and-after school program and Let's Get Moving program)
- Strathcona (before-and-after school program and Let's Get Moving program)
- Viscount Montgomery (before-and-after school program and Let's Get Moving program)
- Hillcrest Elementary School (EarlyON, Woodland RedHill valley program and Let's Get Moving program)
- C.B. Stirling (Let's Get Moving program)
- Holy Name of Jesus (Let's Get Moving program)
- St. Agnes (Let's Get Moving program)
- St. Ann (Let's Get Moving program)
- St. Francis Xavier (Let's Get Moving program)
- St. Kateri Tekakwitha (Let's Get Moving program)
- W.H. Ballard (Let's Get Moving program)
The pre-school child care at Queen Mary will run between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.
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