Public elementary school teachers in York Region are voting today, Oct. 30, on future strike action.
Teachers from across the region will be gathering at an Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) meeting tonight at the Markham Fairgrounds.
Strike vote meetings are being held throughout the province, and the results are to be announced in early November.
According to the ETFO, its members are concerned the Ford government has an agenda to undermine public education by stripping collective agreements, eroding full-day kindergarten program and refusing to renew funding for special needs students.
ETFO collective agreements expired Aug. 31, and with bargaining that had occurred throughout the summer coming to "a virtual standstill", the teachers union requested the labour minister on Oct. 16 to appoint a conciliation officer to help the parties reach fair agreements, a news release stated.
“ETFO’s goal is to reach fair agreements for our members that also enhance learning conditions for Ontario’s elementary students,” said ETFO president Sam Hammond. “These are achievable goals, and ETFO will do everything it can to reach them. That includes participating in the legal steps of the collective bargaining process, like conciliation and taking strike votes.”
“Government representatives at the bargaining table have been asked, point blank, whether the Ford government intends to make funding cuts to elementary education in 2020. All we are getting are evasive non-answers. That is completely unacceptable,” Hammond added.
ETFO represents 83,000 teachers and education professionals across the province.
