On June 11th and 13th, the Toronto Education Workers (CUPE 4400), representing 17,000 workers voted with a 97% majority in favor of adopting a "cost-of-living adjustment" clause (COLA) and “catch-up” as key demands for contract negotiations this fall. The motion was submitted by the CUPE 4400 Rank-and-File group. The aim of this petition is to arm other education unions and the labour movement as a whole with these demands, which are the only serious way to fight inflation.

As we enter the new school year, inflation is at a 39-year high of 8.1%. This cost-of-living crisis comes on the back of 11% in wage cuts education workers suffered over 10 years under Liberal (Bill 115) and Conservative (Bill 124) wage-restraint laws. Standing at an average of $39,000 annual wage, with most working 2 jobs, education workers cannot afford to move back an inch further. Now is the time to fight to catch-up on what was previously lost, while also keeping up with inflation by including a COLA clause in our collective agreement, which would tie wages to the rapidly rising inflation and protect workers’ living standards: if inflation goes up 8%, wages go up 8%.

During the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, when inflation was in the double digits, COLA clauses were a common feature in most collective bargaining settlements. Facing an even deeper economic crisis today, unions must once again adopt this demand and settle for nothing less at the bargaining table. The reelected Ford government will not concede without a fight; it's about time the union goes on the offensive.

At the beginning of the pandemic, frontline education workers were being praised as heroes by our government, but this dangerous rhetoric was quickly discarded. Afterall, how can one justify paying “heroes” poverty wages? We are not even out of the pandemic but it's back to business as usual for the government and that means attacks on workers. The Ford government has returned to the same heavy handed austerity and unwillingness to negotiate despite record-level inflation eating away at living-standards.

A perfect storm is brewing; education, one of the most important sectors, is going up against one of the most important issues, inflation. If we win a COLA clause, we will set an example for the rest of the labour movement, inspiring workers in all industries and showing them that they deserve the same and more!

The August 2nd bargaining update from the Ontario School Board Council of Unions (OSBCU) reported that their only proposal for wages to the Ford government was a $3.25/hour raise for 3 years. That amounts to an 11.7% raise per year. Where does that leave us in three years? The OSBCU projects a modest 15-17% inflation in the coming years, the real situation is likely a lot worse. Meaning that if this proposal is accepted, in three years, we will be even further back than we are today. From the point of view of rank-and-file workers, proposing a mere dollar amount which does not account for inflation is unacceptable.

We welcome a $3.25/hour raise, this would undo the impact of a decade of wage restraint laws. But without a COLA clause, any dollar figure simply melts away due to skyrocketing inflation. The OSBCU has taken the first step in demanding a modest raise for educators, but to protect our living standards and put food on the table, we need a COLA clause in addition to the $3.25.

We call on all education workers to follow the lead of CUPE Local 4400 and commit their union to the demands of COLA and “catch-up”. To this end, we have attached a model resolution, based on the one that passed overwhelmingly at CUPE 4400, that can be copy-edited to fit your own union. For non-education workers, we have also attached a general model resolution calling for COLA that you can submit in your locals as well.