With CUPE and the Ministry of Education working towards a showdown on Monday as educations workers go back on the picket line, schools around Ontario are having to make alternative plans. Next week, schools in Guelph and area under the two English school boards are taking a similar approach to keep in-person going as long as possible in the hopes that cooler heads might still prevail.

Upper Grand District School Board

UGDSB Schools with CUPE Custodial Staff:

*In-person learning Monday Nov. 21, Tuesday Nov. 22, and Wednesday Nov. 23.
Switch to remote learning for Thursday Nov. 24.

*PA Day on Friday Nov. 25 – no school for students.

**PLEASE NOTE: Students in our Life Skills class placements, Youth Options, and Education and Community Partnership Programs (ECPP) will continue with in-person learning throughout the strike.

Schools without CUPE Custodial Staff:

*In-person learning on Monday Nov. 21, Tuesday Nov. 22, Wednesday Nov. 23, and Thursday Nov. 24.

*PA Day on Friday Nov. 25 – no school for students.

Changes at ALL UGDSB schools/sites:

*Community Use of Schools permits will be paused/cancelled at all UGDSB sites.
Child Care Centres will remain open throughout the week.

*Before and/or After School (BASP) Programs will operate only on the days a school is open for in-person learning.

*All Adult ESL classes offered through Continuing Education will be cancelled. This includes the Adult ESL classes located at St. George’s Centre, Tytler Public School and the Wellington Centre for Continuing Education.

Other Notes:

*Maintenance issues with no qualified staff to tend to the work. CUPE maintenance staff work in ALL UGDSB schools/sites.

*Weather conditions putting a further strain on the system and staffing resources due to required snow and ice clearing, salting, mopping floors to ensure safety, etc.

*Inclement weather: Typical to every winter, inclement weather might mean that schools must close and we would have to notify families of the shift to remote learning that morning.

Wellington Catholic District School Board

If strike action were to occur on Monday, November 21, all Wellington Catholic District School Board schools and before and after school programs will remain open.

If the strike were to continue past November 21, it is anticipated that we will not be able to maintain our CUPE-Staffed schools to the level required and we will need to move these schools (i.e., All Wellington Catholic DSB schools in Guelph, Erin, and Rockwood) to remote, online learning.

St. John Bosco and Wellington Catholic DSB schools in Fergus, Arthur, Elora, and Mount Forest will not be impacted.