

Chris Fox, CP24.com





On the first day high school students in Durham, Peel and Rainbow district school boards were back in class, the union representing public high school teachers said they intend to strike again in two weeks, but the government says it won't let that happen.

The Ontario Labour Relations Board ruled on Tuesday that a strike by teachers was illegal, and that they could not resume striking for at least two weeks.

But the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation said in a news release Wednesday that it would respect the board's decision, however its “members will be back on the picket lines on June 10."

Meanwhile, Education Minister Liz Sandals said the government will continue to work to pass back-to-work legislation, now dubbed the Protecting the School Year Act, with an aim to pass the legislation on Thursday.

She said the back-to-work legislation would "make it impossible to have any strikes at those three boards for the rest of the school year," because the legislation is based on an earlier finding by the Ontario Education Relations Commission that the 2014/2015 school year "was in jeopardy" due to the strike.

Officials with the Durham and Peel school board advised students to bring their own lunches as cafeterias in both school boards were expected to be closed on Wednesday. Co-op students at the Peel District School Board were also being asked to report to their school, as co-op placements were not yet back up and running. Co-op students in the Durham District School Board, meanwhile, were being advised to report to their work placements at the regularly scheduled time.

“I think parents are certainly relieved. I have gotten a mixed reaction from teachers but I am going to side with the high side and say that teachers are committed to teaching and are fairly happy to be back in their classrooms,” Peel District School Board Chair Janet McDougald told CP24 on Wednesday morning. “All in all I think it will be a good, effective, productive four or five weeks.”

Due to the strike, teachers in all three school boards will be allowed to forgo final examinations to allow for more instruction time.

Speaking to reporters at Queen's Park, Sandals said graduating students will also be given access to web-based courses to complete credits they need to "fill in any gaps" before continuing on to college or university

Sandals said she is also offering school boards the opportunity to convert any exam or professional development days into teaching days, "to regain as much teaching time as possible."

Teachers with the Durham District School Board walked off the job on April 20 while teachers with the Peel District School Board hit the picket line on May 4 and teachers with the Rainbow District School Board in Sudbury followed suit six days later.

Though those strikes are now over teachers across the province remain without a contract and talks remain on hold in a number of local boards. Talks at the central table are also stalled after the OSSTF applied fo conciliation.

“We are still in the same situation we were in yesterday (without a new contract) but the good news is that our students are in school. That is what they deserve and that is where they belong,” McDougald said. “At the same time we still have to work within this dysfunctional process and we will be trying our very best to make some dates and get some meetings going so we can go back to bargaining locally but I really believe that it is the central table that is critical to making the deals locally.”

Catholic teachers told to prep for possible strike action

As high school students in Durham, Peel and Rainbow district school boards returned to the classroom Wednesday, the union representing Catholic school teachers is telling members to be prepared for possible job action this fall.

A union bargaining update sent to Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association (OECTA) members, obtained by CP24 Wednesday night, said that members should prepare for possible job action in September.

“Given all of the contract strips that are still on the table, and in light of the difficulties confronting our sister affiliates regarding employer intransigence, OECTA continues to prepare for job action in the fall,” the update reads.

“It will not be business as usual […] in September.”

The update encourages members to consider notifying their financial institutions to “discuss monetary obligations such as mortgage payments, loans and leases,” and to not schedule "any activities in the fall that are outside of your regular instructional duties."

Mediated talks are scheduled for Thursday and Friday of this week, as well as six days in June.

The union has not yet filed for conciliation to get a no board report, which would put them in a legal strike position.

- With files from CTV's Naomi Parness.

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