Thousands of OPSEU/SEFPO Sector 3 Boards of Education workers walked off the job and went to protests at Queen’s Park and the offices of MPPs across the province today in solidarity with CUPE education workers, to protest the draconian and unconstitutional Bill 28 passed yesterday by the Ford government.
OPSEU/SEFPO boards of education workers are also in bargaining (at an earlier stage than CUPE/OSBCU), and have been raising the alarm about how low wages, drastic underfunding and understaffing are leading to violence and injuries in their workplace. (Click here to watch their short video, “Written in the Scars.”)
Their two bargaining team representatives, Sandra Cadeau (Sector 3 Chair) and Kelly Martin (Local 330 President) worked with the Sector 3 division executive and local executive committees across the province to organize today’s action.
OPSEU/SEFPO members were out in force at Queen’s Park, along with OPSEU/SEFPO President JP Hornick and First Vice-President/Treasurer Laurie Nancekivell and several OPSEU/SEFPO Executive Board Members. President JP Hornick told the crowd of thousands, “Doug Ford needs to know, when you punch down on a worker, you raise a movement. This is where it begins – and we will take this to the wall together, and we will break down that wall together!”
OPSEU/SEFPO members and their OPSEU/SEFPO Regional Vice Presidents and Executive Board Members were also present at picket locations across the province, including in Mississauga, Brampton, Brantford, Oshawa, Sudbury, St. Catharines, Barrie, Hamilton, Ottawa, Bowmanville, Niagara, Lindsay and many others.
Click here for dozens of pictures of OPSEU/SEFPO members rallying across the province!