Ontario community, social workers enter third week of strike over underfunding

It has been three weeks since thousands of community and social workers across Ontario walked off the job to protest underfunding and understaffing.

Locally, the job action includes more than 130 employees at the Lynwood Charlton Centre on Hamilton Mountain.

Kathryn Staley, whose son has used the services at the centre for more than six years, says staff are not getting paid enough for what they deal with daily. She believes better funding could also impact other city issues.

“I can tell you they are not getting the money for the work they do,” Staley said. “They put in a lot more than they get recognition for.”

The Lynwood Charlton Centre is a child and youth mental health service.

“He has been in respite here where he learned life skills, things he was not able to learn at home,” Staley said.

Staley says she was on waitlists for years before getting her son into the centre. She called it a major weight off her shoulders, thanks to the staff.

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“I don’t know how there’s days that they stay as positive as they do, and come into work everyday like they do,” Staley said. “The children’s behaviours range. They could be anywhere from depression and anxiety, as they present they could be physical behaviours, they could be verbal behaviours.”

But right now, those staff members are not on the job. More than 4,500 Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) members at community agencies are on strike.

On Wednesday, dozens rallied outside the office of MPP Donna Skelly, saying years of underfunding have left agencies short-staffed.

The workers want retroactive pay after a 2019 bill capped annual salary and compensation increases for most provincial public and broader public sector workers at one per cent for three years.

“Our sector never sought remedy, never received remedy for Bill 124,” says Aimie Kovacsik, an employee of Lynwood Charlton Centre. “We’ve been left behind time and time again, we’re so far behind our staff can’t keep up anymore.”

The union says talks with employers are ongoing, but members want to hear from the provincial government.

“We just want to keep the services open, we want the funds coming in, our wait lists are growing longer, people need our services,” says Jennifer Vanden Hengel. “Services are being cut left right and centre, they’re being privatized, and we want to take a stand against that because we are the people who love and care for the most vulnerable in the area.”

Staley says she is afraid that if places like the Lynwood centre do not get proper funding, vulnerable children and youth like her son won’t get the help they need, causing a domino effect.

“Youth crime increasing … I question how many parents or caregivers have tried to get support for their children and have hit nothing but roadblocks and red tape,” says Staley. “Would these 11, 12, 13-year-olds be making these choices if the supports were more available?”

The province did not provide a specific response regarding worker concerns about underfunding when contacted for comment, but sent a statement highlighting investments into the sector.

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