EDITORIAL: Strike was warranted

While Wednesday’s one-day strike by elementary teachers may have been an inconvenience to some parents, it was too important an issue to not protest it in full force.

The Ontario government must find ways to save money.?That we know. A $15-billion deficit is not something taxpayers can continue to carry.

But effectively creating legislation denying teachers – or any workers for that matter – the right to bargain collectively is not the way to go about it.

Argue what you will about the number of sick days teachers get – and it does seem a bit excessive, given they get summers off  –  but don’t take away their right to at least have a seat at the table to state their case before they’re taken away.

Teachers mold our children, and like it or not, help shape the adults they become in the future.

They deserve respect when contract time rolls around.

Not to mention this is a slippery slope for the government to embark on.

Who will be next on the list to lose their bargaining rights? Hospital employees? Conservation officers? The OPP??

Those of you who are upset at elementary teachers who didn’t show up for work on Wednesday, imagine how upset you’d be if your employer told you to take it or leave it at the negotiating table.