Teachers took to the picket line Tuesday for another one-day strike, but union officials are optimistic it’s only a matter of time before a deal is reached.
“The more we get our message out there, the more the public is supporting us. In the end, the government is going to have to give in to the pressure,” said Andy Kerr, vice-president of the District 17 teachers bargaining unit with the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF).
Kerr and other OSSTF members were picketing Tuesday with elementary school staff in front of Monsignor Lee Catholic School on Fittons Road in Orillia.
It was a way to show solidarity, said Chris Lowery, OSSTF branch president for Twin Lakes Secondary School, who noted educational assistants and clerical staff with the Catholic board are members of OSSTF.
“It shows a deeper commitment to education as a whole,” he said. “It’s pretty clear that the province has tried to splinter that solidarity.”
Kerr is hopeful a resolution is on the horizon, as the “government’s cuts have decreased a little bit.” He was referring to the province agreeing to mandate two rather than four e-learning courses.
Lowery agreed, but he isn’t holding his breath for a speedy solution.
“There is a side to it that is positive, but the Ford government has policy priorities and getting this done doesn’t seem to be at the top of the list,” he said.
All Simcoe County District School Board secondary schools and Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board secondary and elementary schools were closed Tuesday due to the strike as unions demand lower average class sizes and wages that reflect the cost of living.
Lowery said teachers would rather be in the classroom, and that holding one-day strikes is a way to get their message out without affecting students the way a full-on strike would.
“You don’t want to negatively impact student learning if it can be avoided,” he said.
Parents have been “widely supportive” of the teachers’ cause, Kerr added.
“They don’t want larger class sizes. They don’t want e-learning,” he said.
Jodi Lloyd, chair of the Simcoe County District School Board, said no parents had contacted her directly to complain about the job action.
While she is not privy to the negotiations, Lloyd said she was “not aware of any significant gains” having been made.
“We would like the issues to be resolved, but we have to work through the process,” she said.
Lloyd has been learning about updates as they come out in the media.
"We are trying to communicate with parents as quickly as we can," she said. "It's sometimes confusing for parents to figure out what boards are going on strike and when."
Francis Smith, the Catholic board's trustee for Orillia, Oro-Medonte, Ramara and Severn, also hasn't heard any complaints from parents.
He feels the one-day strikes "haven't had a big effect on students."
"If they go on full strike, it would," he said.
