COMMUNICATING ABOUT BARGAINING

Check out the section called Stay in Touch. You’ll find information in that section about how to update your contact information with ETFO.

ETFO members cannot rely on the media to carry our message in an accurate and effective way. We need to maintain a healthy sense of skepticism when reading anything about ETFO negotiations in the press or online, or listening to bargaining news on the radio and TV.

To receive the most accurate information about collective bargaining, always go to the source – ETFO and your ETFO local. As negotiations pick up speed, ETFO members should make it a priority to stay on top of bargaining updates from ETFO. You can do this by:

• attending local collective bargaining information meetings;
• bookmarking the website address www.etfocb.ca, and visiting the website frequently;
• subscribing to the ETFO Collective Bargaining eNewsletter through either www.etfo.ca or this site;
• Making sure you read ETFO Collective Bargaining Bulletins distributed to you through your ETFO local;
• making sure you receive local newsletters about bargaining and are on your local’s email distribution list and/or phone tree;
• subscribing to ETFO’s Twitter feeds - @ETFOeducators, @etfopresident and @etfocb;
• subscribing to your local's Twitter feed;
• becoming a member of the ETFO Collective Bargaining Facebook Group;
• speaking with a local representative who can answer your questions about bargaining; and
• asking your steward to arrange a school visit from the local president (or other elected representative) to discuss bargaining issues and the latest developments.

We need to remember that to a parent, the single most important voice for the Federation is the educator in the classroom, and the most important message is that educator’s own story.

Every educator knows the overload we face due to increased workload demands and decreased personnel in schools – and how that impacts on our students. Every educator knows that student programming will benefit when more specialist teachers and support personnel staff our schools, which can be achieved by increasing preparation time or reducing class sizes.

Drawing on our own personal experiences when answering questions from parents is the most powerful way you can counter negative information “out there” in news items, editorials or online.

School boards can communicate limited information to ETFO members about collective bargaining, such as:

• general statements that that the board remains committed to negotiating in good faith; or
• factual responses to statements made by the Federation.

School boards (including school administrators) should not:

• ask ETFO members about their Federation activities or views about a strike;
• use language designed to influence an ETFO member’s decision about a participating in a strike vote, legal strike or any other Federation activity or event;
• discriminate against ETFO members who actively support the Federation by intentionally assigning them undesirable work;
• ask ETFO members (including School Stewards) about internal affairs of the Federation such as strike strategy or what happened at a member meeting; or
• take part in a petition or circular against the Federation or encourage its circulation.

If you receive concerning verbal or written communication about collective bargaining from your school board or school administrator, you should immediately refer the matter to you ETFO local office. Your local representative will contact ETFO Provincial to determine what type of action is warranted.