Elementary teachers, government talks show signs of progress, Sandals says

Talks between the government, school boards and the elementary teachers’ union continuing with Education Minister Liz Sandals saying the sides are “slowly moving forward” in bargaining.

Thestar.com
Oct. 6, 2015
By Robert Benzie and Kristin Rushowy

Talks between the government, school boards and the elementary teachers’ union continued for a second day Tuesday, with Education Minister Liz Sandals saying the sides are “slowly moving forward” in bargaining.

“There is progress being made,” with the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO), Sandals told reporters at Queen’s Park on Tuesday.

“(It’s) not hugely fast progress, but there is progress being made and given the history with ETFO - where things have often seemed to be in reverse instead of forward - forward is good,” said Sandals of the rocky bargaining history with the country’s largest teacher union.

“We do seem to be moving slowly forward and this is the only way we’re going to resolve it,” she said. “We’re there, we’re ready to bargain, and we’ll keep at it.”

It is the first glimmer of hope for negotiations after a bargaining blitz in early September led nowhere.

ETFO members began a work-to-rule last spring that escalated after talks broke off Sept. 11.

A week later, the union threatened one-day rotating strikes across the province in October unless talks resumed and progress was made.

Teachers have also withdrawn from extracurricular activities on “Wynne Wednesdays” in their protest, which means they focus on classroom duties that day while wearing a “solidarity colour” and union buttons or shirts.

The fall progress report, which comes out in late October or early November, will also be affected as teachers won’t provide comments, which make up the bulk of the first report card.

All other teacher unions in the province - high school, Catholic elementary and secondary, and French - have inked deals with the province.

Meanwhile, support staff in Ontario schools are also staging a work-to-rule as negotiations continue.

On Monday, Premier Kathleen Wynne expressed concern about a move by secretarial staff in Halton and Ottawa to not buzz-in visitors, leaving boards to ask schools to keep doors unlocked.

“It’s not acceptable that kids’ safety should be a bargaining chip. It absolutely is not,” Wynne told reporters.