Students can look forward to peaceful school environments; Deals with teacher’s unions bring optimism

BY PAUL JUNOR

The Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (ETFO) announced a tentative deal with the Ontario government on Friday, March 30^th, 2020 that would suspend strike actions pending the results of a ratification vote.

According to ETFO president, Sam Hammond, “This has been a very prolonged and difficult bargaining process. We are very grateful for the support and unwavering solidarity of our members and the public who had continued to stand up for public education,” (as reported in the March 20^th, 2020 edition of the Globe and Mail). The members of ETFO will vote on ratification from April 23^rd, 2020-April 27^th, 2020. ETFO agreed to a 1% salary increase over three years and higher benefits than what the government had proposed.

This deal comes on the eve of the announcement on Thursday March 12^th, 2020 by the Ontario English Catholics Teachers Association (OECTA) that it had reached a tentative deal (as reported in the March 13^th, 2020 edition of the Globe and Mail). OECTA was the first of the teacher’s union to settle after months of labour unrest, marked by rotating strikes and limited withdrawal of services. The union announced that it had suspended all job actions and on April 7^th, and 8^th, its 45,000 members voted to ratify the deal.

OECTA agreed to a 1% salary increase and a 4% increase on benefits. The deal will ensure that average high school class size increase to 23 (up from 22 but still far below 28), which the government had wanted at the beginning of the negotiations. The government conceded to 23 after insisting that they wanted it to be 25.

The third union that reached a deal with the government is the Association des Enseignants Franco-Ontarians (AEFO), which represents French language teachers. The union announced that it had reached a tentative deal late Thursday, March 20^th, 2020 (according to the March 31^st, 2020 edition of The Canadian Press).

President, Kemi Sabourin praised members, “The encouragement and solidarity supported our efforts and throughout a particular laborious round of negotiations.” The union has not released details of the agreement, which remain confidential until its members ratify it. The date for this ratification vote has not been set.

According to the March 18^th, 2020 edition of the Globe and Mail, The Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation( OSSTF) has indicated that it plans to end all rotating walkouts and work-to-rule because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Ontario government decided to close all school in the province for two weeks after March break to April 5^th, 2020, which was later revised to May 4^th, 2020 and subsequently to May 14^th, 2020.

OSSTF resumed negotiations with the government in April. According to Harvey Bischof, president of OSSTF, the union has been concentrating on responding to the COVID-19 pandemic for several weeks and not talks. According to The Canadian Press, Harvey states, “We’ve all been very focused on trying to do the best we can under these current circumstances. For us right now, that’s been a higher priority because we’re in the midst of unprecedented circumstances.”

On Monday, April 20^th, 2020 there was an announcement from OSSTF that it was able to reach a tentative agreement with the government and the boards. In a statement, Harvey Bischof observes, “These are extraordinary times. When we began negotiations neatly a year ago no one would have anticipated the situation we face today. While this tentative agreement does not satisfy all of our concerns, we recognize the current environment we are in and the need for students to have stability once this emergency is over.”

The Minister of Education, Stephen Leece in a statement on Monday, April 20^th, 2020 states, “During this entire process, our aim was to ensure our young people receive the best education we can offer, so they can develop the skills they need to succeed in the classroom and in the future.”                                                                     

OSSTF is the last teachers union to settle with the government. The new contract will be put to a ratification vote in May. The union agreed to the government offer of a 1% salary increase over three years. Details about class size increase had not been released, as the union wanted it to remain at 23:1. If students are able to go back to school before June, there will be no more labour unrest. Parents/guardians, teachers and students can look forward to peaceful school environments.