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The current level of overt teacher discontent in Ontario is unprecedented. Never before have so many students been affected. Both the secondary and elementary school unions are on the war path.
In the secondary schools of Peel, Durham and Sudbury the school year has been in jeopardy for about 70,000 students because of strike action by the teachers.
Other schools are on a work-to-rule campaign that is affecting many extra-curricular activities. And massive strike and work-to rule actions are being planned for the up-coming school year.
What are the reasons for this growing unrest among teachers? It is indeed amazing that the Minister of Education, Liz Sandals, expressed her frustration that she does not know what the unrest is all about.
However, at the core of the whole sordid affair is the existence of a very messy and blurry two-tier bargaining process.
It is a process which gives the provincial government the power to deal with big-money issues such as salaries, class sizes, sick leave, and preparation for teachers, while the local school boards are empowered to handle lesser issues such general working conditions.
It is quite clear that the Liberal provincial government is intransigent and inept in dealing with teacher concerns about class sizes, preparation time and financial cut-back etc.
But it is also equally clear that the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation (OSSTF), and the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (ETFO) have demonstrated their insensitivity and total disregard for the thousands of students that have been entrusted to them.
It is not fair and moral for students to be penalized and used as pawns in this acrimonious dispute.
For example, students should never be deprived of extra-curricular activities. They did not create the current crisis, therefore they should not pay a heavy price for the irresponsible impasse between the government and the teachers.
All teachers should, therefore, behave responsibly and carry out their traditional duties in a professional manner.
Although back-to-work legislation is a bitter pill to swallow, all teachers should not resort to work-to-rule tactics. A return of teachers to their traditional duties would certainly earn them the respect of both parents and students.
I firmly believe that teaching should be declared an essential service, thus teachers should not have been given the right to strike.
On the other hand the collective bargaining process should not be entrusted to the provincial government and local school boards.
The collective bargaining process should be given to an impartial third body made up of dedicated, knowledgeable, and trustworthy individuals such as impeccable jurists.
There is definitely an urgent need for a better mechanism for settling labour disputes than what is currently in existence.
This is indeed imperative for a child’s educational well-being should never be disrupted by dictatorial, obstinate, uncompromising, and insensitive adults.
Rupert Johnson can be reached at: r.b.johnson@sympatico.ca.
