Public childcare now!

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Below is a message from Karen Ranalletta president of CUPE BC

Dear Member,

I’m writing to ask you for your help.

As you know, CUPE BC is a strong supporter of quality, affordable and accessible childcare. The provincial government has been doing great work to address the serious lack of spaces and affordability for families, but there is so much work yet to be done.

(If you already know you support the campaign, you can save time and just click here to join the campaign.)

We began our childcare campaign advocating for the Seamless Day model of early learning childcare, and that advocacy has resulted in more than 20 pilot projects currently underway in schools around the province. (Here’s more about the work we’ve been doing.)

The federal government recently announced a significant investment in childcare for kids aged 0-5, and that’s good news, but it doesn’t do anything for one of the most critical childcare shortages—spaces for school-aged kids (ages 5-12.) People all over B.C. struggle to find affordable quality childcare for before and after school—and even if they can afford it, they often have to go to great lengths to get their kids to and from care.

Wouldn’t it be great if before and after school childcare was available at the school? Doesn’t that just make sense?

The most efficient and cost-effective way to get quality, accessible and universal school-aged childcare up and running quickly is to create spaces in public schools.

We have the facilities already—there’s almost no need for capital expenditures or construction.

We have the trained staff available—qualified Education Assistants already are in place, and most don’t currently receive full-time hours.

For parents, it couldn’t be more efficient—drop your kids at school in the morning and pick them up at the end of the day. No more running to multiple locations or juggling competing schedules.

And for kids this means high quality care with more stability and fewer transitions through their day – this is especially important for some children with special needs for whom these transitions can be very difficult.

Here’s how you can help

We’re asking supporters of our vision of public childcare to visit our action site and take 20 seconds to send an email to your local School Trustees asking them to advocate for their district to get on board.

We’ve already made significant progress toward building a public childcare system. Let’s keep the momentum going, and together we can make public childcare for school-aged kids a reality in B.C. schools.

Thanks for your support.

 

Karen Ranalletta

President
-=-=-CUPE BC · Canada

MMIWG2S Event | Red Dress Gathering | Oct 3

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A Red Dress Gathering will be held in Surrey’s Bear Creek Park on Sunday, October 3 in honour of the thousands of missing and murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2-Spirit People in Canada.  Please mark the event in your calendars, and additional information will be provided closer to the gathering date.

  

Date:  Sunday, October 3, 2021 

Time:  12:00-4:00pm

Location:  Bear Creek Park, 13750 88 Ave Surrey

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation – Resources

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Information about Orange Shirt Day and link to booklists to explore – https://www.surreylibraries.ca/news/take-make-orange-ribbon-kits

Information about residential school history – https://legacyofhope.ca/wherearethechildren/

Overdrive list of eBooks and eAudiobooks – https://surreyca.overdrive.com/collection/1119176

Truth and Reconciliation Report – https://nctr.ca/records/reports/

CUPE calls on all municipalities to recognize National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

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Below is a press release from CUPE:

September 13, 2021

CUPE calls on all municipalities to recognize National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

BURNABY—CUPE members across B.C. are applauding the many municipal governments that have stepped up to voluntarily recognize September 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, as a statutory holiday. Established by the federal government, the new holiday—while not proclaimed in time to allow the B.C. Legislature to make it universal for all employers in the province—is being applied in B.C. government and affiliated workplaces.

“We are so pleased to see municipal and library employers from all corners of B.C. doing the right thing and recognizing the importance of the reconciliation process,” said CUPE BC President Karan Ranalletta. “We are also very proud of our provincial government for declaring this date as a holiday for provincial and affiliated work sites – it was the right thing to do.”

Founded by Indigenous leaders in B.C. in 2013, Orange Shirt Day (September 30) recognizes the residential school experience and supports the healing of survivors. Canadians now recognize this date across the country, in workplaces and educational settings alike. Orange Shirt Day is represented by the slogan “every child matters”, a reference to the thousands of Indigenous children who were taken from their homes by the Canadian government, only to suffer serious trauma or never again return. Recent discoveries of 1,308 unmarked graves at residential school sites, with many more expected, underscore the need for such a day. Establishment of the National Day is one of the 94 calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

“A day for truth and reconciliation is a positive step towards confronting the horrific atrocities committed against Indigenous children and families in this country,” said Debra Merrier, CUPE National’s Diversity Vice President for Indigenous Workers. “The date has significance. It was selected on purpose to represent the time of year Indigenous children were taken from their homes.”

While most municipalities have recognized September 30 as a holiday, or are in the process of doing so, others have so far not acted. The City of Vancouver formally recognizes September 30 as Orange Shirt Day, but Council has yet to take the necessary steps to proclaim this date as a civic holiday. “We hope to see all municipalities recognize this important day and not wait for the B.C. Legislature to table legislation. We especially encourage the City of Vancouver, which in 2014 declared itself a City of Reconciliation, to continue its support for the 94 calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the implementation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” said Ranalletta.

“We need to see a strong commitment to this nationally declared holiday for truth and reconciliation. Waiting for provincial legislation seems representative of the sort of colonial thinking that the reconciliation process is meant to challenge,” added Merrier.

CUPE represents more than 100,000 workers across B.C., including more than 40,000 municipal workers. With more than 700,000 members coast-to-coast, CUPE is Canada’s largest union. For more on the union’s Reconciliation work, visit www.cupe.ca/indigenous .