Wednesday, November 22, 2023

Reflections on a Strike: Better Together!

While the recent strike at Hanover School Division pushed members into new spaces individually, it was together that the impact was experienced.

By Geoff Dueck Thiessen, Regional Director, Winnipeg Member Centre

CLAC changed its tag line to Better Together in 2014. Not everyone loved that switch from our previous tagline—A Union That Works—but from time to time its relevance to who we are as a union becomes abundantly clear. The strike this past November by educational assistants (EAs) working at Hanover School Division was just such a time.

Consider the following. The strike went on for three weeks. During that time, people who participated in the strike said they felt supported and that it was a positive experience. They also said that it was simultaneously quite difficult.

Members of the public who observed the strike were amazed at how positive it was, how the picketers brought the best of EA character to the picket line. Support came from all corners; even the parents of children who need EAs in order to be in school voiced their support!

CLAC staff from other provinces who participated in some form or another were amazed at the cohesiveness of the strike and the way people cared for each other. Those who watched from afar were entranced by almost unheard of positivity and community during what is normally regarded as a very negative activity: striking.

Back to our tag line. Better Together has layers. On the surface, it means we are stronger when we act as one.

Even more profoundly, it acknowledges that we each bring important gifts and abilities, and even leadership, to each situation. During the strike, some leaders were more visible than others, but leadership was shown by almost everyone.

10 Examples of Leadership During the Strike

Six members stepped forward immediately to form a strike committee and become strike captains. They never wavered in their enthusiasm, care, and positivity.
Groups of EAs organized financial assistance for picketers who otherwise would have had to return to work sooner.
Every day, EAs encouraged each other. They brought speakers and dance music to the picket lines, brought food and drinks for each other, and intentionally fostered morale even when they themselves were tired and weary.
EAs even encouraged the students and parents who showed up on the picket line. One young student in a wheelchair came almost every day!
CLAC representatives and administrative staff from every department from across the country came to Manitoba to support the EAs. Most admin staff have very little day-to-day interaction with members in the course of their work, yet they joined the strike action to offer practical assistance and connect with members. They ordered signs, edited and sent media releases, coached and guided representatives, conducted research, cut strike paycheques, ran errands, built signs, coordinated help, bought 300 breakfast sandwiches, worked evenings and weekends to send mass emails to striking members, coordinated the payment of benefits premiums . . . the list goes on.
Parents who were experiencing the consequences of EAs walking the picket lines contacted media, reached out to school trustees, and showed up on the picket lines to show their support.
Bargaining committee members put in full days picketing almost every day, encouraging picketers, answering questions, and all the while participated in ongoing negotiations to reach a settlement to end the strike.
EAs gave speeches at rallies through a megaphone! They shared stories and emotions while rallying their friends and coworkers to find the courage to continue.
Several EAs were willing to be interviewed by the media, and they did an amazing job!
Members of the public showed up every day with coffee, baking, snacks, and of course, words of encouragement.

While the strike pushed members into new spaces individually, it was together that the impact was experienced. The strike was a great example of everyone putting the needs of the group first.

The collective courage it took for EAs to go on strike cannot be understated. I firmly believe it is only together that this kind of amazing action can succeed. We are, in the end, better together!

Reflections on a Strike: Better Together!

10 Examples of Leadership During the Strike

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