Collective Bargaining

Educators across Ontario are swimming through an ever-growing alphabet soup of new initiatives introduced by the government, school boards, and principals.

In  July, the Minister of Finance invited ETFO and other public sector unions to a meeting to discuss compensation.

Early Learning Program is the most dramatic  transformation in the structure of elementary education that we have seen in years.

When school begins next September 2014, 600 Ontario elementary schools will open their first early learning program (ELP) classrooms.

Disputes are part of life,  and that means they are part of the normal ebb and flow of any  workplace.  Key to the underlying philosophy of  our   labour  laws  is   the notion  that  when  disputes arise,  it   is   important  that  there   be  an  orderly, accessible, well- reasoned mechanism f

The word steward comes from  an  Old English term  meaning “house guardian.” It  is  a  word with  a  long   and honourable history within religious institutions, land management, the  military,  the  transportation industry,  and, of course, unions.

Enforcement follows bargaining as summer follows spring.

As this is being written, only a handful of settlements have been negotiated. All  of  them  are   excellent,  despite the  very  major  challenge  that  this year’s   unusual  bargaining  scenario being presented.

For a dramatic several days in early February, the activities of ETFO, the Ontario  Public  School  Boards’  Association (OPSBA), and the Minister of Education were the subject of intense media scrutiny.