Toronto’s public high school teachers are a day away from losing a 12 per cent raise over the next four years as their union’s impasse continues with the school board over the issue of supervision.
Board chair John Campbell said yesterday after a meeting of trustees the board sees several options on the table, including asking the province to force a vote by teachers on the offer.
That is a last resort, he added. “Hopefully, we negotiate a settlement at the last minute … but we’re not prepared to let the deadline pass and everything just fall apart.”
The two sides have until tomorrow midnight to reach a deal or lose the provincial commitment to four-year salary increases. After the deadline, the only money available from Queen’s Park is for a four per cent raise over two years.
Toronto’s District 12 of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation is one of just nine locals across the province not to have reached an accord.
Toronto teachers spend far less time supervising hallways, computer labs or libraries than their counterparts across the province, at a time when student safety is a critical issue in this city. Doug Jolliffe, who heads District 12, has said the union won’t bend on the issue of increased supervision requirements for its 6,500 teachers because that is not the solution to school violence.
He has said if the deadline is missed, both sides lose. “Yeah, there’s stuff in there for teachers and for other education workers, but there’s also stuff in there for the board … I hope the trustees understand that,” Jolliffe said.
