I am a student at Sir Allan Macnab Secondary School in Hamilton, Ontario. As a student, I see the hard work these CUPE workers do for our schools, and our schools simply cannot operate without them. We, the students in Ontario support the CUPE workers, and their right to strike for better wages and working conditions.

After two years of learning interruptions due to COVID-19, students want nothing more than to be in school, learning and socializing, but we cannot succeed in schools without the support of these workers who keep our schools running. It is even more prevalent now that we are recovering from the pandemic, to emphasize the importance of custodial staff who keep our schools sanitized in order to prevent outbreaks, and Educational Assistants, as well as other support staff who help a major deal with the mental health and wellness, and learning recovery of students. We want the Ford government to know that the students need these supports to succeed, and we stand with the Education workers who are essential to keeping schools open.

As young people, We fear for the future as our generation goes on to choose careers, that there will be a decrease in students choosing these careers, and that we will see a shortage of the essential workers such as custodians, EA'S, ECE's, Secretaries, as well as other unionized essential workers such as nurses and teachers ; as we see the mistreatment, low wages, and poor working conditions that these workers face from our own government. We fear that this may lead to these workers leaving their jobs for careers with better wages and working conditions. After the concerning actions of premier Doug Ford to legislate the now revoked Bill 28 which briefly removed the bargaining and striking rights of CUPE workers, this is not the example that our youth should be seeing. Our province's success entirely depends on essential workers such as those listed above, and we would suffer immensely, (as we are already seeing these effects) with a shortage of these workers.

THEIR working conditions are OUR learning conditions.

We urge the Ford government to take the neccesary steps to support these education workers, and give CUPE workers a deal that includes a wage that allows them to afford to live in this economy, and promises to ensure that the essential support staff are available in schools , in order to not only keep students in class, but keep us in class with the support that we need.

CUPE workers striking is not hurting the students and parents, the Ford government's refusal to ensure schools have enough support staff, and mistreating the support staff that we do have, is hurting the students and parents. 

To the Ford Government, We thank you for your efforts to keep schools open after the pandemic, but will you follow up with the action needed to keep these support staff in schools? 

 Sign this petition to show your support, and demand change for the CUPE workers who keep our schools running!