Strike vote set for local teachers
Report says larger class sizes will cost 173 their jobs over four years
The Niagara branch of Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation has scheduled strike votes next week amid predictions that larger class sizes will result in local job losses.
District 22, which represents teachers and occasional teachers in secondary schools across the District School Board of Niagara, has set the votes for Nov. 12 and 13.
“The strike votes are part of the bargaining process,” said Shannon Smithy, president of OSSTF District 22 Niagara. “They will allow the OSSTF to get a clear message from our membership as to how strongly they believe in the fundamental principles of our brief.”
In a news release Friday, the local federation unit cited a recent third-party report that predicts the District School Board of Niagara will lose 173 high school teachers over the next four years because of larger class sizes mandated by the province. The report was authored by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
A forecast by Ontario’s Financial Accountability Office estimates cuts to education by the Ford Government will result in 10,000 fewer teachers provincewide by 2023-24, the union said.
“Parents should be concerned because larger classes mean less one-on-one attention for every student,” Smith said. “It also means less access to supports that may be needed in order to ensure student success.”
In Niagara, the loss of 173 teachers would represent 20 per cent of the local membership, Smith said.
“It’s only the first year of the cuts and we have already seen an increase in the number of split classes and an increase in class sizes throughout the district,” Smith added.
The government has introduced legislation to limit annual public sector raises at one per cent while the teachers are seeking cost-of-living increases equal to about two per cent, the Toronto Star has reported.
Staff for Ontario Minister of Education Stephen Lecce pointed The Standard to remarks made by Lecce at a news conference Thursday.
“Last week when I made an announcement to reduce classroom size from 28 to 25, it was an offer that signals we are committed to keeping kids in class by being reasonable and constructive,” Lecce said..
Lecce also pointed to a deal that averted a strike by caretakers, educational assistants, early childhood educators and office staff represented by CUPE in early October as another sign of the government’s good faith in negotiations and commitment to keep kids in class where they belong.