School District 63 (Saanich) has confirmed that all Saanich School District schools will remain closed on Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2019 due to the ongoing strike of CUPE 441.
Meanwhile, officials from both the Union and the School District traded barbs and blame in a proverbial he-said-she-said back-and-forth.
“At this point we are hoping the CUPE members will take another look at the offer that the board has made,” said Elsie McMurphy, Vice-Chair of the Saanich Board of Education. “It is certainly one of the best possible offers in the province.”
Dean Coates, President of CUPE Local 441, said the fault lies with the District. “Just as you we have children here,” said Coates. “We’re just as worried about their education but we’re frustrated with this employer for wasting opportunities to meet, to negotiate, to find a settlement, especially over this long weekend, this would have been the perfect opportunity, but the employer is refusing to even answer our emails.”
“No that’s not true,” McMurphy said. “We’ve not been invited back to the table, we’ve been hoping to hear from CUPE, we’ve told them we’re willing to come back at any time, we have to respect the mandate we’ve been given, but we’re certainly willing to look at anything within that framework.”
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