Montreal mom fears special needs son will be held back with more public sector strikes coming
As Quebec's Common Front of public sector unions announced a weeklong strike will happen next week, one Montreal parent is worried about her special needs son being held back in a crucial school year.
Tina Chapman says she fought "tooth and nail" to get her 12-year-old son, Blake — who is on the autism spectrum — a full-time aid at Laurentian Elementary School in Lachute after only getting about eight hours of support in class.
But after four days of labour action by support staff in the English school system this month and more on the horizon, she's worried what impact it will have on her son who is in his last year of elementary school.
"I had to fight in the media, in the public eye, to get him the eight hours he had for the years, and now transitioning to high school with the strike days that are happening, it's making that transition plan … so much more harder because we can't schedule it properly," she said in an interview Tuesday.
The Common Front of unions announced Tuesday that they will be striking from Dec. 8 to 14, which means close to half a million workers in the public sector will be off the job unless they reach a deal with the province.
The group of unions held previous strikes for its 420,000 members on Nov. 6 and from Nov. 21 to 23.
Chapman says she believes Premier François Legault and Education Minister Bernard Drainville are out of touch with the realities that Quebec parents — including single parents like herself — are facing with kids repeatedly out of class amid the labour action.
Parents of children with special need more support, as do the teachers, she said.
"There is no way he can function at school and get the education level as any other neurotypical child if he didn't have it. He's very bright, he's very motivated, very wants to be like every other kid in his class. He has come to me and said, 'I want to be like everybody else, I know I'm not,'" Chapman said through tears.
"Would you hear your 12-year-old child come to you and say, 'I know I'm different but I don't want to be like that. I don't want it to be so noticeable.' How hard is that for the government to understand?"
Her son has built an "amazing bond" with his support worker in recent years. He often communicates with her on Facebook Messenger and "she's always able to keep him calm, or redirect and get him back on task," she added.
"Having aids in the classroom, it helps them to be able to not only focus on the children as well as the special needs child, it allows them to do everything and treat everyone equally."
Some parents have been struggling to make special arrangements with their kids' classes cancelled on previous strike days. Some of them took time off of work, while others said they would rely on family members and private tutors.
With no deal in sight, opposition parties are putting pressure on the CAQ government to reach a deal with the public sector unions.
Treasury Board President Sonia LeBell faced calls from the Quebec Liberal Party to resign, saying she is unable to get along with the unions.
"Sonia is zero for 10 in contract negotiations," said Liberal education critic Marwah Rizqy. "Why is she still the head of the Treasury Board? Maybe it's time the premier found a better Treasury Board president."
Quebec Solidaire (QS) also said the government needs to "table a real offer to the unions."
With files from CTV News Montreal's Matt Gilmour and The Canadian Press
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Sick to my stomach': People grieve Jasper National Park by sharing favourite photos
As an out-of-control wildfire roared through Alberta’s famed Jasper National Park and its townsite late Wednesday, many are fearing the worst as officials warned of 'significant loss' within the area.
DEVELOPING Jasper wildfire burns buildings, while poor air quality forces some fire crews out
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on social media that Ottawa has approved Alberta's request for federal assistance after a fast-moving wildfire hit Jasper National Park and its townsite late Wednesday.
Canadian women's soccer team staffer given suspended prison sentence over drone incident, prosecutor says
A Canada women's soccer team staffer has been given an eight-month suspended prison sentence after flying a drone to film the closed-door training session of the New Zealand team on Monday, the prosecutor's office said in a statement.
Sale of envoy's NYC condo 'expected to exceed' $9M: government
The current official residence for Canada's representative in New York City is 'being readied for sale,' according to a spokesperson from Global Affairs Canada.
'I'm so broke': Two Toronto women speak out after losing $76,000 in romance scam
Two women from the Toronto area are speaking out after losing thousands of dollars to a romance scam, including a single mother who lost $62,000.
Barrie-Innisfil MPP 'blacked-out' and crashed car into window of child care centre
Staff at a Barrie child care centre say they are frustrated by what they call a local MPP's inadequate response after a car crashed through a window in one of the toddler rooms.
Loblaw, George Weston to settle class action over bread price-fixing for $500 million
Loblaw Cos. Ltd. and its parent company George Weston Ltd. say they have agreed to pay $500-million to settle a class-action lawsuit regarding their involvement in an alleged bread price-fixing scheme.
EXCLUSIVE One address, 76 foreign currency dealers: Inside Canada's money service business 'clusters'
An IJF and CTV News investigation has found dozens of cases across Canada where multiple money services businesses (MSBs) are incorporated at the same address, sometimes without the knowledge or consent of the location's actual occupant. One money laundering expert calls it an 'abuse of the system.'
An unwelcome attendee has joined the Paris Olympic Games: COVID-19
After a handful of Australian water polo players tested positive for COVID-19 this week, questions have emerged around how the spread of the disease will be mitigated at the Summer Olympic Games in Paris.