Sweetening the deal
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ABOVE THE FOLD
NO STRIKE — DOUG FORD has backed down and CUPE is ending its strike.
After bubbling over, the standoff between the province and union representing school support staff is cooling off, with the Premier promising CUPE in writing that he would repeal controversial Charter-overriding Bill 28 and return to the bargaining table — something CUPE demanded in exchange for calling of its strike.
Ford called it a “massive olive branch” while blaming CUPE for walking off the job. That came as public-opinion polling showed a majority of Ontarians blame the PCs for the strike and as former Ford-friendly unions turned on the Premier.
LAURA WALTON, president of CUPE’s school board bargaining unit, took credit for Ford’s climbdown. “We won. The bill is gone,” she told reporters.
Walton was flanked by dozens of union leaders who had been planning another presser to escalate their fight against the PCs strike-banning, contract-imposing law.
Word on the street was that a general…