As poverty deepens and more people in Northumberland County need support to navigate the cost-of-living crisis, community social services are more in demand than ever. Now those same workers who help the most vulnerable are facing a crisis of their own as management has trampled on their work-life balance and imposed wages that push them further behind inflation.
Roughly 30 members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) 3725 work at Northumberland County Community and Social Services. They help people navigate Ontario Works as case workers, do outreach to people living in encampments and ensure they have a path to stable homes, and connect parents to reliable, affordable child care services.
They work with the county’s most vulnerable – but their services are now at risk as more workers are chased from their jobs by mounting workloads, inflexible management, and low wages. That was the message they delivered earlier this month in a unanimous strike vote.
In the last round of bargaining, the county stripped workers of a four-day work week that had been in place for more than twenty years. The result has not been an increase in services for the community but an exodus of workers to other municipalities who offer the same four-day work week with more flexible work arrangements. This loss has resulted in less consistency for service users and plummeting moral for the remaining staff who are overworked and face incredibly high caseloads.
“The four-day work week was pioneered by our staff over the last twenty years. It attracted workers from across neighbouring municipalities that came to serve Northumberland County residents because it offered them the ability to balance the needs of their families while still serving the community,” said Tracy Sloan, President of CUPE 3725. “In a high stress, high burn out field, it allowed us to decompress, manage our stress, and balance our life while dutifully serving clients and the community.”
Compelling workers to commute an extra day to the office has had a negative effect on workers, impacting everything from the amount they spend on gas to their ability to be present for child and elder care. While frontline workers have left the agency, the number of managers has continued to swell, raising the question of why an organization dedicated to serving the community is so top heavy. There are currently nine management positions at Northumberland County Community and Social Services for just over 30 frontline staff.
“Our communities deserve well funded social services that meet their needs and workers deserve jobs that don’t burn them out,” said Sloan. “I’m incredibly proud of our members for standing up for both. Workers know what they and their communities need and we hope the County leadership starts listening.”
CUPE 3725 members remain hopeful that a fair deal can be reached when the two sides return to the bargaining table on November 25 and 26.
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
