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Windsor

Windsor-Essex school support staff ratify CUPE deal

School support staff in Windsor-Essex have expressed their support for a new collective bargaining agreement.

Local members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) voted on the tentative deal Thursday night at the Ciociaro Club in Tecumseh. Darlene Sawchuk, president of CUPE Local 1358, confirmed to BlackburnNewsWindsor.com Friday that the local's two units each approved the agreement reached between the union's central bargaining unit and the province.

One group, consisting of educational assistants, accepted the agreement with 83 per cent of the vote, according to Sawchuk. The other group, which includes intervenors, speech pathologists, child youth workers, language specialists, and similar positions, approved the deal with 92 per cent of the vote. Local 1358 represents support staff with the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board.

Specific details were not immediately available but CUPE has reported that the deal addresses some of the cuts proposed by the Ontario government, as well as concerns over increased class sizes

CUPE, which represents 55,000 school support workers across Ontario, wrapped up a contentious contract negotiation hours before an October 6 deadline, averting a situation in which many school boards would have cancelled classes if a strike occurred.

A total of 109 CUPE locals across Ontario must approve the deal for it to take effect.

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