A third Ontario education union has scheduled a strike vote for its members, as pressure grows on contract talks with the Ford government.
On Sunday, the Ontario School Board Council of Unions, a part of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, announced it would hold a strike vote in November.
The 57,000-strong union joins the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association and the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) in scheduling strike votes talks over new contracts stall.
David Mastion, the president of ETFO, told reporters Monday that education unions are ready for an escalating fight with the government if necessary.
“I think they can expect a proportional response to the challenging times that we’re in right now,” he said
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“We will only take action that needs to be taken in order to get this government to move off of their trajectory. The trajectory since 2018 has been to dismantle, to cut, to suffocate everything that’s good about public education.”
A spokesperson for Education Minister Paul Calandra said ongoing disputes at the Labour Relations Board were delaying contract talks.
“The majority of the unions have gone to the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) to determine which issues should be negotiated at the central or local tables,” they wrote in a statement.
“We respect their right to do so, but this process has delayed the start of bargaining. Once the OLRB process has concluded, we will be ready and willing to negotiate whenever the unions are ready to begin.”
Calandra’s office said “premature strike threats do not serve the interests of students” and said the minister would remain focused on “getting to the table and reaching a deal that keeps students in the classroom.”
Mastin said he did not want to see teachers or education workers go on strike — but stressed the threat was serious.
“We’re hoping to avoid any work action, and it might very well be that a big strike mandate sends a message to the government that educators in this province — OSBCU, OECTA, OSSTF — we’re all very, very serious about this,” he said.
“And they might change course.”
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