SASKATOON – CUPE 3730 is reporting their members have voted to ratify a new collective agreement for education support workers in the Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools division.
The agreement was approved by the union in a ratification vote on May 30. The deal would cover close to 200 education service support workers who provide such services as caretaking, maintenance, and groundskeeping, among others.
Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools has yet to ratify the deal, according to CUPE.
According to CUPE the three-year agreement includes increases of 8.5 per cent over three years, improvements to paramedical benefits, strengthened health and safety language and new provisions addressing violence in the workplace and interpersonal violence.
The agreement comes after what the union describes as tough bargaining and mediation sessions over the last number of months, with talks having reached an impasse at one point.
“This result shows what we can achieve when we stand together,” said Gordon Laing, president of CUPE 3730, in a statement. “We stayed united, informed, and ready to act through a difficult round of bargaining – and that made the difference.”
“CUPE 3730 members showed real strength this round of bargaining,” said Kent Peterson, president of CUPE Saskatchewan, in a statement. “When workers are united and ready to act, we can push back and win real improvements.”
