THUNDER BAY – Classrooms are closed on Tuesday at Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board schools, as teachers march, pickets in hand, to protest stalled labour negotiations with the province.
Members of the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association are staging a one-day walkout across Ontario, the first of what could be more to come should negotiations remain at a standstill.
Aldo Grillo, president of the OECTA Thunder Bay elementary division, said teachers remain united that Ontario schools should retain smaller classrooms and mandatory online classes should be scrapped. Teachers are also fighting for wage increases tied to inflation.
“We’re looking to send our message that we want negotiations to start up again and let’s get this process going and let’s reach a settlement,” Grillo said, joining striking teachers in front of Bishop E.Q. Jennings school, one of 22 elementary schools affected by Tuesday’s walkout, the first by publicly funded English Catholic teachers in more than two decades.
“I think the public needs to take notice that it’s not just one group, it’s every educational group in the province that is out there right now, striking, protesting against this government and their inability to move negotiations forward and get a settlement with every group.”
In addition to the Catholic teachers, the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation is staging rotating strikes impacting a nine different boards across the province on Tuesday, including teachers and education workers in the Kenora area.
Members of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario plan to walk off the job in a series of rotating strikes this week, targeting Lakehead Public Schools on Thursday.
The French teacher’s union last week began a work-to-rule campaign.
Grillo said there may be strength in numbers.
“Absolutely,” he said. “In the media lately, the minister of education alluded to the fact that it’s the same fight over and over again every couple of years with the teachers’ unions. Certainly Ontario hasn’t seen this level of protest, this level of walkout in over 20 years, with the (Conservative Mike) Harris government.
“So there is a problem right now.”
About 600 OECTA members in Thunder Bay walked off the job on Tuesday.
Grillo said there could be further job action down the road, depending on how things unfold at the negotiation table.
“Certainly we’re never going to reach an agreement unless everybody is back at the table and working productively. The government has laid out some pretty definitive statements over the course of the last week, so they don’t look willing to move. Should things still be stalemated, then I would anticipate there will be future action as well.”
Grillo isn’t sure how that potential job action might unfold.
Last week Minister of Education Stephen Lecce announced the province will play qualifying parents up to $60 a day if strike actions close schools or school-based daycares.
