RESPECT Campaign description
CUPE members working in Manitoba’s social services and child care facilities are some of the lowest paid unionized workers in the Province. While they provide important supports for individuals in need, and therefore essential social support, they get very little recognition for the important work they perform. For example, bargaining for wage increases usually results in gains that are minimal, as employers often face funding constraints.
At the same time, the work load for these members is becoming more demanding. First, the number of people in need in increasing. Second, there are changing pressures on the supports provided due to the nature of domestic violence, the effects of poverty on youth, women being paid less than men, fewer secure jobs with benefits, and sky -rocketing costs of housing and transportation.
CUPE members know the problems well – and they want to be part of trying to solve them. In the last two years, there have been a number of efforts to address these issues, including: National Social Services Conference 2008, CUPE Manitoba Convention Resolutions, Strategic Directions Program focus on the $15 an hour wage and Social Services and Child Care Committee Conference (May 2008).
The ideas and action plans which came out of these initiatives need co-ordination in order to make sure that they are implemented. The Provincial Government is also looking for guidance on how to improve social services to the thousands of people in Manitoba unable to meet their daily needs. The All Aboard program was announced recently (note the attached information) and a consultation on homelessness will take place in the fall. These initiatives create an important opportunity for CUPE members to be heard on their concerns about accessibility and funding for services and appropriate wages and benefits for social services workers. In short, the time is right for a major coordinated effort in this sector to support both CUPE members and the people they serve in their communities.
This campaign will raise the profile of what CUPE members contribute to the people in their care and therefore for the community as a whole. This profile in turn is expected to help raise funding levels for Manitoba’s social services and child care, and strengthen CUPE bargaining for increased wages and benefits for support workers. Within the proposed timeframe, it will also be important for locals in this sector to use this opportunity to review various options for reorganizing in order to strengthen and enable the union to better represent front line social agency workers.
