CUPE 997, CUPE 1453 & the OSBCU Call for Early Bargaining as Underfunding and Staffing Crisis Deepens at PVNCCDSB and TLDSB Schools.
PETERBOROUGH, ON –The Ontario School Board Council of Unions (OSBCU), CUPE 997 and CUPE 1453, representing more than 1,700 education workers across the Trillium Lakelands District School Board and the Peterborough, Victoria, Northumberland and Clarington Catholic District School Board are urging the Ford government and Education Minister Paul Calandra to begin collective bargaining with unions as soon as possible, as severe underfunding and chronic staffing shortages continue to harm students and education workers across Ontario — including in the Peterborough and Kawartha Lakes areas.
“There can be no ‘business as usual’ while education workers and students bear the brunt of chronic underfunding,” said Joe Tigani, President of the OSBCU. “Early bargaining is critical to stabilizing our schools and addressing the staffing crisis before it becomes even more severe.”
CUPE-OSBCU is urging the government to come to the bargaining table prepared to increase staffing levels in schools across the province, improve supports for students, and make necessary investments in publicly funded and publicly delivered education in Ontario.
School boards are already warning CUPE locals that thousands of education workers could be laid off for September 2026 following the expiry of the current collective agreement in August. These potential cuts come at a time when schools are already struggling to meet students’ needs due to years of inadequate funding and chronic understaffing.
“We need to begin bargaining as soon as possible because the staffing crisis in our schools is already causing real harm,” said Lianne Barley, President of CUPE 997, representing education workers at the Trillium Lakelands District School Board. “There is a ‘Plan B’ in place so that when staff are absent, they are generally not replaced until the fourth day of absence. The lack of replacement workers means employees are coming to work sick, workloads are piling up, and violence in the workplace is increasing because schools are simply understaffed.”
“CUPE 1453 is ready to get to the table immediately, and we fully support the OSBCU’s call for the Ontario government to begin bargaining as soon as possible,” said Nora Shaughnessy, President of CUPE 1453, representing education workers at PVNCCDSB. “Right now, our schools are extremely underfunded, and it’s our students who are paying the price. Many are not getting the supports they need, and our staffing levels simply aren’t enough to meet growing demands. The chronic shortage of Educational Assistants has led to escalating physical and mental health issues among staff, many of whom are working through breaks and lunches just to meet the needs of students. Violence in schools is on the rise, and workers are telling us it’s becoming increasingly difficult to maintain safe, effective learning environments.”
The OSBCU, CUPE 997 and CUPE 1453 are ready to go to the bargaining table at any time. Early bargaining is essential to provide certainty for students, parents, and education workers — and to prevent yet another school year marked by a crisis of underfunding and understaffing of public education. Minister Calandra can issue a regulation to allow bargaining to start up to 180 days before the expiry of the current agreement at the end of August — as early as the beginning of March.
“Our members are burned out,” said Barley. “Custodians are working short-staffed for years, Education Assistants are forfeiting much needed breaks while being scheduled to support multiple high-needs students, and temporary workers are exhausted before they ever reach permanent status. Bargaining can’t wait. We need solutions now to protect workers, students, and the integrity of our schools.”
Key Stats:
- The Ford government has underfunded public education by $6.3 billion, according to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
- According to the OSBCU, the Ford government has cut per-pupil funding by $1.4 billion in the 2025- 2026 school year.
- CUPE education workers in Ontario are currently working the equivalent of 1,355.5 Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) jobs worth of unpaid work.
- 96 percent of CUPE Educational Assistants and Child and Youth Workers in Ontario experience violent or disruptive incidents in their workplace; 55 percent say it happens every day.
- Despite government claims about “historic funding” for schools, student to staff ratios have not improved since the Ford Conservative government took office in 2018. In fact, for some job classifications, student to staff ratios are worse now than in 2018.
- Agreements that limit school boards’ ability to cut education jobs expire on August 30, 2026, meaning there could be mass layoffs (as several boards have indicated will happen) for the start of the next school year in September – unless those agreements can be renewed through collective bargaining.
