Talks between elementary teachers, government end without agreement

Talks between the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario and the provincial government have ended after three days without an agreement.

No new dates for talks are scheduled.

The two sides returned to the bargaining table Wednesday for the first time since Dec. 19.

“While the mediator has called off discussions for now, the Government stands ready to meet at any time, to reach a deal that keeps students in class,” read a statement from Education Minister Stephen Lecce issued moments after the talks ended.

Lecce said that the government also “affirmed in writing” its commitment to maintaining Ontario’s full-day kindergarten program. ETFO had been concerned the one teacher, one early childhood educator model was threatened.

“I have long said that compensation, pay and benefits remain a top priority for teachers’ union leaders and that remains true today,” Lecce said in a statement.

“Even following our formal commitment to one of their publicly stated priorities, ETFO leadership continues to advance compensation for their members over the protection of the education system for our youngest learners.”

A strike by elementary school teachers scheduled for Monday will go ahead as planned at seven local boards including Halton. A provincewide strike by ETFO is set for Feb. 6.

“ETFO made every effort over the past three days to move negotiations forward, but it became increasingly clear that the Ford government was not willing to address key issues in any meaningful way,” union president Sam Hammond said in a statement.

Unions are asking for wage increases of around two per cent to keep up with inflation, but the government passed legislation last year capping wage increases for all public sector workers to one per cent for three years. The teachers’ unions and several others are fighting it in court, arguing it infringes on collective bargaining rights.

ETFO has also asked for the government to increase supports for students with special needs and address violence in classrooms.

Hammond said that isn’t happening at the bargaining table, but Lecce said the government “has continued to signal reasonableness” on those issues.

Earlier in the day, Premier Doug Ford said both sides would be at the bargaining table until a deal was reached.

All four major teachers’ unions have been without contracts since Aug. 31, and are all engaged in some form of job action.

Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association have agreed to resume talks with the government on Monday, but a one-day, provincewide strike set for Tuesday is still on, for now.

The union representing French teachers, which has been in regular talks with the government, wrapped up two days of talks Thursday and now has two more days scheduled for next week.

High school teachers are now the only union with no scheduled bargaining dates. They announced Thursday that they would resume their weekly rotating strikes, after not holding any during this week’s exam period.

Files from The Canadian Press were used in this report