Dear Editor,
On April 13, a group of CUPE members rallied outside of Foothills Composite High School to be heard by the government. One doesn't need to be part of the union negotiations to know that when there's a rally, there's a communication issue.
One must wonder if Demetrios Nicolaides is using his "sweet talk" skills from his previous profession as a consultant to make the CUPE members feel "valued." As the minister of education with a consulting background, he must know that value often times is understood quantitatively more than qualitatively.
Education support staff are vital to the education system. That goes without saying. However, unlike the consulting world where the added value comes at a cost to a "for profit" company, the government isn't for profit.
If the government truly wants what's best for the "next generation," the government needs to make sure that, at the very least, it pays enough so that each EA can truly focus on their career. Instead, many are having to take up another job after school to pay for the necessities.
I'm guessing at a base pay of roughly $100,000 to $120,000 annually, MLAs don't have to work a night shift a few days a week at a local grocery store or maybe even become a barista at the neighborhood Starbucks. Is it because their job is important?
I'm wondering how they'd handle sitting next to a child who can't regulate their behaviour and teaching them how to read or next to a child with Down syndrome and helping them with math. This is an EA's every day and not just for a photo opp.
So, to the education minister and the premier, do what's right. Don't "hard ball." These are real people making a real difference in the lives of our communities’ most vulnerable students. For the government to act like CUPE members are "asking too much," this would be a weak argument from a province that boasts about wealth and prosperity.
For a government worker to be at such a base pay is bad business and clearly the government doesn't value the support staff or the children the staff are helping.
Jeffrey Blackford
Foothills County
