Custodial workers in southern Manitoba school division hit picket line Monday

Custodial workers in a southern Manitoba school division began strike action and walked off the job on Monday, as they continue to battle with the division over wage increases, the union representing them said.

“Custodial staff work hard to ensure our kids have clean and safe learning environments,” Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union (MGEU) President Kyle Ross said in a media release.

“They are key players on the education team, and they should be treated with respect and fairness.”

MGEU says that Local 143 workers, who provide custodial services within the Seine River School Division (SRSD), served formal notice that they intended to begin strike action, and that at 8 a.m. on Monday morning those workers walked off the job, leaving schools in the rural Manitoba division without custodial staff.

MGEU says that 47 members who provide custodial services in SRSD have been working with an expired contract since July 2021.

According to MGEU, SRSD’s current wage offer would provide members with general wage increases of 9.8% over 4 years, which they said would amount to approximately a $2 increase over the life of the agreement.

Members voted to reject that offer on Dec. 9, and voted in favour of strike action on Dec. 23.

Ross said both sides returned to the negotiating table last week, but were unable to come to an agreement that would halt strike action.

According to Ross, the union and the school division have now agreed to engage a conciliator to help them try and reach an agreement and get custodial staff back on the job.

SRSD said it will now take steps to minimize the impact of the strike, including contracting workers to provide “temporary services.”

— Dave Baxter is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of the Winnipeg Sun. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.

Dave Baxter, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Sun

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