National Indigenous Peoples Day is an annual opportunity to honour and celebrate the diverse cultures of First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples. Saskatchewan’s largest union is committed to making workplaces and our union inclusive, fair, and welcoming for our Indigenous and Métis members.

In the workplace, we have led the way with partnership agreements to improve job opportunities and collective agreement language that recognizes and accommodates cultural practices, guards against discrimination, and provides support for improving cultural understanding and respect for diversity at work.

In the community, we celebrate the diverse cultures of our Indigenous members.

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June is Pride month in many communities across Saskatchewan. While the marches and events that usually bring our communities together for Pride have either been cancelled or postponed with the impact of the COVID-19 crisis and restrictions on gatherings, we continue to celebrate Pride and stand in solidarity for equality.

As Saskatchewan’s community union, CUPE proudly celebrates diversity and the role unions play in making our country a fair and more inclusive place for everyone. In the workplace and in our communities, unions have been and continue to be at the forefront in protecting LGBTQ2S+ workers from discrimination and harassment, advancing human rights, promoting inclusion, and securing dignity and equality for all workers through collective bargaining and political action.

Click continue reading for a list of upcoming virtual (online) Pride events in Saskatchewan!

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The 2020-21 provincial budget from the Saskatchewan government does little to help families and working people that are struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic, says CUPE Saskatchewan.

“This budget seems to be all about helping corporations as there is actually little in it for Saskatchewan families,” said Judy Henley, president of CUPE Saskatchewan. “There is nothing to help workers who are struggling through the closures and economic lock downs we have faced. And there is nothing to ensure that Saskatchewan people are put to work first, before hiring out of province contractors.”

Many of the measures included in the budget have already been announced, and rely heavily on funding from the federal government, such as the Temporary Wage Supplement, the Accelerated Site Closure Program and the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance.

CUPE is also concerned about the funding allocated to municipalities, universities, libraries, community-based organizations, and other public services.

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Photo credit: Tria Donaldson

The Executive Board of Saskatchewan’s largest union met this week and adopted a resolution to publicly express its solidarity in challenging systemic racism and denouncing police brutality.

In its resolution, the union adds its voice to the growing call for all levels of government to invest in Black and Indigenous-led alternatives to policing.

CUPE Saskatchewan encourages Local Union members to circulate and support the resolution adopted as follows:

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Saskatchewan’s largest union is hoping that the upcoming provincial budget will include funding for public services that have been the hardest hit by COVID-19.

“The City of Saskatoon and City of Regina are facing revenue losses of $32 million and $21 million, respectively, due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Judy Henley, president of CUPE Saskatchewan. “We are calling for this budget to provide emergency operational funding for municipalities so Saskatchewan residents can continue to rely on municipal services.”

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CUPE, SEIU-West, and SGEU – three Saskatchewan unions representing health providers – are calling on the provincial government to provide a wage top-up for all health care workers, who are working hard to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. An online petition, expressing support for a wage top-up has been set up to send a message to Premier Scott Moe and Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs).

Take Action! Add your name to the online petition: www.skhealthproviders.ca

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Prairie South School Division has announced plans to start the 2020-21 school year off with a reduction in custodial services at six Moose Jaw schools and two other school board facilities.

“A pandemic is the wrong time to be cutting these services in our schools,” said Jackie Christianson, chair of the CUPE Education Workers’ Steering Committee. “Our collective experience is showing us how important sanitation and cleanliness is to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Prairie South is cutting corners on our schools hygiene which will leave students, staff and the community at risk.”

The total reduction equals 2.53 full time staff and is equivalent to 20.3 daily hours of custodial services.

“Our members will have significantly fewer hours and people power but will have the same area to clean with more stringent guidelines in place,” said Judy Henley, president of CUPE Saskatchewan. “We need to ensure proper staffing levels to keep students safe.”

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May is Asian Heritage Month, dedicated to recognizing and celebrating the diversity of our communities and within our union of our sisters, brothers and friends whose origins are connected to the many vibrant cultures of East Asia, Southern Asia, Central Asia, Western and Southeast Asia. It is also a time to recommit as fellow union members to the important role of speaking up against racism in our workplaces, online and our home communities.

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Canada’s largest union, the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), is launching a national campaign to fix Canada’s broken long-term care system, by making it a part of our public universal health care system.

• Get involved and add your voice to the campaign at FixLongTermCare.ca

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Public sector workers are the backbone of our communities. CUPE Saskatchewan wants to shed a light on the hard work our members are doing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As schools around the province are closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, CUPE education support workers are finding new and creative ways to meet the needs of students and communities.

In the Chinook School Division, bus drivers who are members of CUPE Local 4754 are being redeployed for a new purpose.

Omar Murray, president of CUPE Local 4754 and a member of the Education Workers’ Steering Committee, has been a bus driver in the Maple Creek area for over 30 years. Murray hasn’t experienced anything like the COVID-19 pandemic before.

Murray still drives his usual route, and an additional route in town. But instead of picking up students, Murray and other drivers are dropping off special packages for students to continue educational enrichment during the pandemic. However, instead of a daily run, the packages are sent out on a bi-weekly basis.

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