Potential strike lies ahead if no deal is reached between the Toronto Elementary Catholic Teachers Union and the Toronto Catholic District School Board

BY PAUL JUNOR

The many challenges that have become endemic in Ontario’s public education system continues as a potential strike lurks between the Toronto Elementary Catholic Teachers union (TECT) and the Toronto Catholic School Board. The union has not had a contract since 2019 and unless a deal is reached soon, there will be a strike on Monday, January 31^st, 2022.

On Wednesday, January 26^th, 2022, the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) released a letter to families within the board. The letter states, “The Board is very disappointed that the TECT is choosing to disrupt student learning by threatening to go on strike over the following issues”:

• Absenteeism continues to be a serious issue that impacts the classroom experience for students; TECT wants to prevent the Board from supporting teachers while also improving attendance at work.
• The Board is responsible for ensuring that staffing levels and classroom assignments are managed in a way that reduces the disruption to students. TECT wants to limit the manner in which the Board determines this, particularly, during the commencement of the school year in September.

The letter notes, “It is inexcusable that the local union (TECT) wants to halt student learning by threatening to strike after all that students have been through during the pandemic, in order to prevent the Board from providing absenteeism support and managing staffing processes.”

Stephen Leece, Ontario Education Minister, is not happy with the prospect of a strike by the TECT. He states, “These teachers union strikes are an affront to the interests of children who deserve to be in school. On behalf of tens of thousands of families who seek stability as Ontario gets through the challenges of Omicron: Call off the strikes.”

The issues between the TECT and the TCDSB have been brewing for some time. There have been on-going job actions over the past few months such as work-to-rule sanctions which “Include no extracurricular activities, parent-teacher meetings, and only submitting bare-bones reporting cards.” In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, this has increased pressures on parents and guardians who have to deal with extra stress.

Julie Altomare-DiNunzio, President of TECT stated, “This is an incredibly difficult action for us to take, but we cannot ignore the board’s bullying tactics, repeated efforts to drag out the negotiations, punitive actions against teachers engaged in lawful job action, and refusal to work together to reach a fair collective agreement.” She continued that the TECT is “Fighting for our students at the bargaining table, to maintain the current practices that ensure stability in the staffing process so there is consistency.”

There is a glimmer of hope that the potential strike may be averted in a statement from the TCDSB. “We will continue to do all that we can to reach a fair and just agreement.”