Staff at The Mabin School, a private school in Toronto's Annex, join Unifor

TORONTO, July 4, 2019 /CNW/ - Staff at a private Toronto school seeking greater job security, transparency and a voice in how they are compensated have successfully voted to unionize with Unifor, Canada's largest private-sector union.

Some 40 teachers and staff in administration, IT, fundraising, custodian services and extended care at The Mabin School, a not-for-profit alternative private school in Toronto's Annex area, have formed Unifor Local 87-M's newest bargaining unit. The school serves students from junior kindergarten to grade 6.

"We are thrilled to welcome The Mabin School employees as new members into Unifor and our Local," said Paul Morse, president of Local 87-M, which services over 1,700 members. "It takes strength and determination to stand up for yourself and form a union, but when employees band together, so much can be accomplished."

Organized by 87-M Local Union Organizer Emina Gamulin and National Organizing Rep Justin Minello, more than 80 per cent of the staff voted for the union in May.

Among the first tasks for the new Mabin School union's bargaining committee is to determine the members' priorities and negotiate a first collective agreement with the Employer.

Unifor Local 87-M is a composite Local of knowledge workers across southern Ontario, including English-as-a-second-language school EC Toronto, newspapers such as the Toronto Star and Globe and Mail, and House of Commons broadcast and IT employees. Unifor is Canada's largest private-sector union with more than 315,000 members in all sector of the economy, including over 12,000 in media.