Just days after one of Ontario’s four major teachers’ unions announced dates for a strike vote this fall, representatives from labour unions from across the province are hosting a rally Wednesday to “mobilize education workers” amid stalled contract negotiations with the province.
Organizers say the event, which is being held outside Pope Francis Catholic School on Ossington Avenue in Toronto’s west end, aims to “engage the community about the realities facing Ontario’s publicly funded education system.”
“Today we have workers coming out here in downtown Toronto, coming together, all unions here on a day of solidarity… to really bring attention to the issues that are before people right now, and that is the government not wanting to get to the bargaining table,” Joe Tigani, President, of the Ontario School Board Council of Unions, said on Wednesday morning.
On Monday, the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association (OECTA) confirmed that it will be holding a strike vote on Nov. 12 and 13.
The other major unions have not yet announced plans to call strike votes this fall.
In an email to CP24, a spokesperson for the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) said strike vote dates have not be shared “at this time.”
Michelle Teixeira, the president of the Toronto chapter of the Ontario Secondary Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF), told CP24.com that she had “no comment at this point,” as “nothing has been announced yet.”
A spokesperson for L’Association des enseignantes et des enseignants franco-ontariens (AEFO) said next steps are” still being considered.”
“At the moment, we are still having strategic discussions and are considering our next steps,” they wrote in an email on Tuesday.
Tigani blamed the province for the lack of runway to discuss the issues at the negotiating table.
“We actually asked this government to bargain early, back in March,” Tigani said.
“(Education Minister) Paul Calandra and the Ford government had no interest in having that conversation. It was clear at the time that they had other agenda items.”
Speaking on the Deb Hutton Show on Newstalk 1010 on Sept. 8, Calandra said he is “very optimistic” that a deal can be reached and kids can stay in the classroom this year.
“There is a deal to be had here. There really is. We have a number of items that we are disagreeing on right now, with respect to who should be bargaining, centrally or locally. We’ll get past that. But there is absolute deal to me made here,” he said.
In a statement on Wednesday, a spokesperson for Calandra said that “students should not be drawn into labour disputes.”
“Labour issues are best addressed at the bargaining table, where we can work through our differences while keeping classrooms focused on students, their learning and their success,” Emma Testani said.
JP Hornick, the president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), accused the province of deliberately “stoking labour tensions” while it looks to “take control” of the education system.
“Rather than to negotiate with the workers who provide education, they’ve chosen to draw a line in the sand,” Hornick said.
“Instead, they issue draconian announcements about changes to curriculum, they give people $750 but you have to use it at an American-based corporation to buy your school supplies.”
Hornick accused the province of eroding “democracy” in the education system by scrapping trustees and added that class sizes are “out of control.”
“We know there aren’t enough supports for kids who need additional supports, kids with autism, kids with developmental behaviour disorders, kids who need a little bit extra help,” they said.
“Instead, we’ve got teachers that are stressed to the max. We’ve got educational workers who are stressed to the max, who are facing violence in their day-to-day work.”
