Calgary school boards reach tentative agreement with CUPE

After three weeks on the picket lines, support workers for Calgary’s Catholic and public school boards could be back to work by next week.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) has reached a tentative agreement with the Calgary Board of Education (CBE), Calgary Catholic Schools District and Parkland School Division.

According to a statement released Tuesday morning, the agreements are until August 2028 and include higher wages.

An electronic ratification vote will start for the around 800 CBE workers Tuesday evening. Results will be released Wednesday evening.

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In a statement on its website, the CBE said if the deal is ratified, CUPE Local 40 staff members would return to work on Monday.

The agreement must also be ratified by the CBE’s Board of Trustees.

The school board noted that Friday is a non-instructional day, and schools are closed for spring break next week.

The union represents around 800 CBE employees, including “cleaners, facility operators, heavy duty mechanic​s, locksmiths and members involved in snow removal, grounds maintenance and other lines of work.”

The CBE said CUPE indicated that picket lines have been suspended at schools and workplaces.

No details of the tentative deal will be released until after it has been ratified. The union has been on strike since Feb. 24.

On Tuesday afternoon, CUPE announced Local 520 reached a tentative agreement with the Calgary Catholic School District. The union said the wage settlement is higher than the provincial government mandate.

The deal is also a four-year agreement ending in August 2028. If the deal is ratified, workers will return to work on Monday.