The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) will hold a strike vote in November, the union’s first vice-president, Shirley Bell, confirms with CityNews.
The Ministry of Education responded to the news, saying “premature strike threats do not serve the interests of students and do nothing but create unnecessary panic for parents. Our focus is where it should be – getting to the table and reaching a deal that keeps students in the classroom.”
The development comes just days after the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association (OECTA) announced it would be holding a strike vote in November, telling its members that a vote would send a message to the government that there needs to be meaningful progress at the bargaining table.
Talks with the major education unions are largely stalled as the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) is looking at the issue of which topics should be bargained centrally between the unions and province, and which should be between local unions and school boards.