HSD EAs hit the picket line

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This article was published 03/11/2023 (674 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The looming strike for Hanover School Division’s educational assistants became reality as the clock ticked down Tuesday night.

About 280 EAs walked off the job on Wednesday with the majority voting to strike weeks prior if a bargain couldn’t be reached by the deadline.

“CLAC (Christian Labour Association of Canada) prefers to represent our members in a partnership with employers, and we rarely strike. In this case, it’s the right thing to do. We hope to resolve this as quickly as possible and get these folks back to work with a wage they can live on and that respects their efforts,” said Geoff Dueck Thiessen, CLAC regional director and representative.

This is the second time the EAs have voted for a strike. The first time was in 2021 when they wanted wages that were in line with increases teachers and other school division support staff from around the province were receiving. That vote led to no strike action.

The main issue that the EAs are striking for is pay. Currently, the starting wage for an EA without a special education is $16.78 an hour and $17.73 an hour with a special education. EAs in neighbouring school divisions of Sunrise, Borderland, Seine River, and Winnipeg are making $3 more an hour without a special education and $2 to $4 more with a special education. Although Dueck Thiessen wouldn’t say how much more the union was asking for, a $3 increase is roughly 18 percent for those at the bottom of the scale.

HSD superintendent Shelly Amos received a 20 percent increase in her own salary. She made $152,832 in 2021 and $183,875 in 2022. Hanover has 485 employees who make more than $85,000 a year. The number of students who attend HSD is about 8,500. Funding for the division comes from property taxes and from the province. The province bases its funding model on the number of students who attend the division. For a returning student the division gets $6,732 and for a new enrolment that figure is $2,650.

Comparing school divisions to Hanover, Seine River School Division saw no increase in superintendent wages during 2021 and 2022 with 277 employees making more than $85,000 a year. That school division has about 4,600 students. Sunrise saw a two percent increase in superintendent salary with 327 employees making more than $85,000 a year. It has about 4,600 students. Borderland saw no increases to its superintendent’s salary, but it has 165 employees who make more than $85,000 a year and more than 2,000 students. Winnipeg School Division was the largest division with almost 30,000 students. It’s superintendent saw an 18 percent increase in salary from $188,527 in 2021 to $223,882 in 2022. It has 2,107 employees who make more than $85,000 a year.

“HSD strives to be student-centered; it’s in their mission statement,” said Hilda Hildebrand, an EA on the CLAC HSD bargaining committee. “But we EAs are a crucial, hands-on part of making ‘student-centered’ possible. If we aren’t taken care of, how are we supposed to show up to work every day with all the patience and calm needed to face the many intense challenges of our jobs?”

HSD indicated in its budget for 2023/24 that it had increased funding of only 1.8 percent over the previous year. It stated 83 percent of the budget went to staff wages and benefits. Further, the division had to cut $2.7 million from its budget by, among other things, cutting teaching positions by 10.5 to save $1.25 million.

The division did not respond to The Carillon’s request for comment by press time.