ONTARIO—Members of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation (OSSTF/FEESO) covered under the School Board Collective Bargaining Act have voted overwhelmingly to approve a proposal to resolve bargaining with the Ontario government through a process that could include binding interest arbitration.
“It depends on which members of OSSTF you speak to, but over three-quarters of members (78.4 per cent) voted in favour of the agreement,” stated Eric Laberge, president of the OSSTF Rainbow Local. “There was opposition to the proposal but for all those that voted, the vast majority voted in favour.”
“We are proud to announced that after a three-week long vote, open to all members in the school board sector, OSSTF/FEESO members have voted to approve a proposal that will put all unresolved items before an independent, third-party arbitrator,” said OSSTF/FEESO president Karen Littlewood. “Premier (Doug) Ford can’t be trusted. For over 14 months, we have tried to engage the Ford government in good faith bargaining but we haven’t had a partner at the table that cares about safeguarding our public education system. Now we have the opportunity to bypass traditional bargaining pathways to secure a fair collective agreement.”
“After five years of underfunding and underspending under the Ford administration, our top priority is to get the best possible deal for OSSTF/FEESO members while working to protect public education in Ontario,” said Ms. Littlewood. “Learning and working conditions across the province have deteriorated under the Ford government, staffing and retention have languished, and students are unable to access the supports and resources they need to succeed as a result of this government’s deliberate underfunding of education and shortchanging of students. We cannot allow this to continue.”
Mr. Laberge explained, “this is not a collective agreement for a new contract. It is a process to resolve bargaining issues. There are three pieces to it.” He explained the proposal creates a pathway forward for OSSTF/FEESO members in the school board sector to receive a remedy for wages lost under the Ford government’s unconstitutional wage suppressing legislation, Bill 124. OSSTF/FEESO will continue to ensure that our university section and school board transportation consortia members receive wages unfairly taken away from them. Under this bill it limited public sector wage increases to one percent. A hearing on this is to take place this month.”
“The second piece is that this is a pathway to bargaining at the two OSSTF/FEESO central tables, for teacher, occasional teacher and education workers bargaining will continue until October 27, at which time any matters that have not yet been settled will be put before an arbitrator,” said Mr. Laberge. “And local bargaining across the province will continue until March 28, 2024, at which time all remaining items that have not been settled may be sent to arbitration. This is very similar to central bargaining. Whatever has not been agreed to will go to binding arbitration.”
Mr. Laberge continued, “as part of this pathway agreement there will be no strike or job action taken by the employees, and the employer, and the board English public school board system guarantee this school year. And everything that is ratified will take in the period from August 2022 to August 31, 2026.”
“I want to thank all OSSTF/FEESO members who participated in the membership vote, those who shared information with their colleagues, and the thousands who attended one of our 30 information meetings held all across the province. Together, we are striving for the best possible outcome for our federation,” concluded Ms. Littlewood.
Stephen Lecce, minister of education, issued a statement on September 27 on the OSSTF vote. “I am very pleased that the members of the (OSSTF) have voted in favour of this deal that keeps kids in class. We came together to put 400,000 English public high school students first, and as a result, a student who started high school last year will now graduate in three years without the threat of strikes. This will allow students to focus on their studies as our government ensures school boards get back to basics.”
“This is a significant step forward in providing stability for high school students,” said Minister Lecce. “I believe strongly that every student deserves this certainty.”
“With the approval of this agreement, I am calling on all outstanding education unions to reach a deal and end the delay. Nothing should matter more than students being in class and benefiting from uninterrupted learning for the next three years, with an enhanced focus on reading, writing and math,” said Minister Lecce. He said over the next month the province will continue to bargain with the union to reach a fair and reasonable agreement. Based on the approved process, if a central agreement cannot be reached by October 27, the parties will enter binding interest arbitration to resolve any outstanding issues. Through this process, a neutral arbitration board will make binding decisions on all outstanding matters.
“The OSSTF’s decision to vote in favour of an agreement that would preclude strikes during this round of negotiations reaffirms our joint commitment to the success and well-being of Ontario students,” said Minister Lecce.
