Media Releases – CAMPAIGN FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION

Education funds lowest; Startling New Ontario Findings

cpeadmin — Mon, 14 Jul 2014 19:14:57 +0000

Less than 2 years ago an Ontario-wide coalition of more than 90 groups and organizations concerned with growing inequality released an unprecedented report showing that Ontario has sunk to last place in Canada when measured against every important social indicator. “Most people would be shocked to know that Ontario has seen the largest increase in income inequality and the second largest jump in poverty rates in all of Canada,” said Ontario Federation of Labour President Sid Ryan at the time. “By cutting vital programs instead of reversing a decade of corporate tax cuts, the government is handing our wealth over to bankers and CEOs. It is exacerbating inequality.” What has changed with the tabling of a budget from a now-majority Liberal Government in the province? Read on and judge for yourself.

“Within two years, Ontario has fallen from seventh place to dead last in funding for all social programs. Ontario residents are paying the shortfall in hundreds of ways: we have the highest tuition fees and school fees, the highest proportion of out-of-pocket health care costs, a burgeoning array of user fees, and thousands of families wait years for support for children with disabilities,” said Natalie Mehra, Director of the Ontario Health Coalition and the principal author of the Report. “Ontario is at the cusp of a five-year plan for cuts to jobs and services that will cleave an even deeper divide. But there are alternatives and five years of further cuts is not the solution.”

The comprehensive report pulled together national research demonstrating that Ontario is at the bottom of the pack when it comes to equality and social programs and that a growing number of Ontarians are falling behind in the economy. The report found that:

40% of Ontarians – fully 600,000 families – are struggling with incomes that are stagnant or declining;
Ontario funds all of its social programs – including health care to education – at the lowest rate in Canada;
While poverty rates fell in five provinces, Ontario had the second highest increase in poverty rates and intensity, leaving 393,000 children in poverty (one in seven);
Ontarians pay the highest school fees, out-of-pocket health care fees and tuition fees in the country; while
Ontario has led the country on cuts to corporate and income taxes.

Download a full copy of the report: www.weareontario.ca/wp-content/uploads/OCF-RPT-FallingBehind-20120829.pdf.

Download quick reference fact sheets: www.weareontario.ca/wp-content/uploads/OCF-RPT-Factsheets.pdf.

“Having one in seven children living in poverty is bad enough, but learning that one in two children from certain racialized groups is living in poverty is absolutely appalling,” said Avvy Go from the Colour of Poverty. “It is new immigrants and racialized communities that are the hardest hit by job loss and service cuts. They are struggling at the margins and they are overlooked in the province’s plan for economic recovery.”

“This report isn’t exposing the invisible hand of the economy, it is documenting choices – choices that governments make when they slash jobs and public services. Choices that negatively impact people’s lives,” said Ryan. “It is time to cancel tax cuts and loopholes for banks and corporations and reinvest this money in making Ontario more livable for our communities. After all, we are Ontario.”

The Ontario Common Front brings together more than 90 community groups and labour unions across Ontario that are working to expose growing inequality and propose workable solutions to fix it.

TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – Aug. 29, 2012) >logo” src=”https://campaignforpubliceducation.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/ONcommonFrontlogo-300×300.jpg” alt=”” width=”300″ height=”300″ />

The day the music stopped?

cpeadmin — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 20:51:05 +0000

April 09, 2013 16:27 ET
Toronto District School Board Eyes Slashing Music Program

TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwired – April 9, 2013) – Massive cuts to the elementary school music program were placed on the agenda last night at the Toronto District School Board’s Budget Committee. Again facing the annual structural deficit, senior staff tabled a discussion paper in which cuts were made to Band, Strings, Steel Pan and the Recorder/Orff/Vocal (ROV).

Noting that Strings will be down 27.5% of their hours, Band will lose 24.3%, and Steel Pan will drop 19.1%, Itinerant Music Instructor David Spek said: “This plan is a disaster–if children do not receive instruction in elementary school, they will not be playing in high school unless, of course, the parents can pay for outside lessons – another example of privatization and two-tier education.”

“The entire “Recorder / Orff / Vocal” program (ROV) is being dismantled,” added Toronto Education Workers Vice-President Anna Hutchison. “The Board apparently is hoping that they can find classroom teachers to pick up the slack, but there has been no evidence to support that this is going to be possible.”

“The TDSB is cutting into muscle and sinew at this point,” said President John Weatherup. “We fought this fight for a decent music program 10 years ago and the parents in the community were very clear: they want more, not less, good quality music instruction.”

Ten years ago, the TDSB tried to off-load its music programs, citing a preference for classroom teachers to provide music instruction. Then, as now, there are not nearly enough teachers with sufficient levels of expertise to even begin to match what is already being done in the classroom.

“All of the changes are being driven by lack of funding, not by what’s best for the children,” concluded Weatherup. “It is a sad commentary on priorities.”

Contact Information

Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 4400
John Weatherup
President
Cell: 416-902-9266

Teachers, education workers take McGuinty to court

cpeadmin — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 18:17:05 +0000

Launching Charter challenge to defend democratic rights of Ontarians.

The Ontario government is being taken to court by the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) and [CUPE, OSSTF] because of legislation they say violates the fundamental rights of working people in Ontario.

Today ETFO filed a court challenge against the Ontario government’s Bill 115 on grounds that the law, which strips the education sector of its right to bargain collectively, violates rights set out in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

“We want all Ontarians to understand that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms exists to protect the rights of individuals, even when governments seek to override them. That is the strength and backbone of democracy in Canada,” said ETFO President Sam Hammond.

Similar challenges are also being filed by the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF), Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Ontario, and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU). Lawyers for the groups hope to have the challenges heard together by the court.

“Ontarians, and indeed all Canadians, need to be assured that no government will be permitted to attempt to drastically undermine employee democratic rights without facing the strongest possible challenge. Today we are also asking the Ontario government to recognize these rights and repeal Bill 115.”

In his remarks outside the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Hammond pointed out that the Charter guarantees the right of people to organize, engage in collective bargaining, and withdraw services to advance workplace goals. “This is a right we will fight for all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada,” he said.

“The Charter also guarantees the right not to be deprived of fundamental rights. It protects employees from being forced to work under terms and conditions which are coerced, dictated, or imposed by the state. Certainly Bill 115 violates these rights on many counts.”

The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario represents 76,000 elementary public school teachers and education professionals across the province and is the largest teacher federation in Canada.

For more information, contact: Valerie Dugale, ETFO Media Relations: Cell: 416-948-0195

photocredit: theindignants.org London, Ontario’s Beal Secondary School student walkout to “Kill the Bill”, Friday Oct 5th, 12:35pm

a Crass Game…

cpeadmin — Sun, 02 Sep 2012 15:38:54 +0000

MEDIA RELEASE

McGuinty’s Anti-Union Posturing is Simply a Crass Game of Politics that Will Cost Him a Majority (Toronto, ON) — Stealing a page out of Tim Hudak’s failed “Change Book,” Premier Dalton McGuinty made a cynical electoral play when he decided to try to vilify school teachers and educational workers. In a deposition delivered last night on the McGuinty government’s controversial anti-worker bill, OFL President Sid Ryan warned that trampling workers’ rights will cost the Premier a majority.

“We sincerely believe that this Bill is a cynical piece of legislation. We don’t believe it is intended to address any serious concern that needs addressing in this legislature,” Ryan told the Standing Committee on Social Policy. “The school teachers’ unions and support staff in this province have made it perfectly clear that they had no intention of disrupting the start of the school year. They just wished to sit down with their respective school boards and negotiate.”

In 2011, Premier McGuinty solicited campaign support from various teachers’ unions on the pledge that he would “respect the bargaining process” and wouldn’t “tear up collective agreements.” However, August 27, 2012, the McGuinty Government introduced Bill 115 Putting Students First Act, 2012, which seeks to do just that. The bill is part of a cynical Liberal strategy to try to win two byelections on September 6 by driving a wedge between parents and educational workers.

“McGuinty has gone out of his way to fashion himself as the so-called ‘Education Premier’ [but] who does he think make the education system work? It is school teachers and support staff that are creating this world class education system that we’ve got in this province and this Premier now thinks it is politically expedient to go out and bash these school teachers to try to demonize them to win a byelection down in Kitchener-Waterloo,” said Ryan. “That’s what this legislation is all about.”

The OFL also called the legislation a violation of domestic and international labour and human rights standards, accusing Premier McGuinty of tossing aside basic workers’ rights and the legal bargaining regime to impose contract provisions that are meant to be negotiated with the province’s school boards. The Federation called out the Premier for violating the spirit of the United Nations Conventions of the International Labour Organization.

Video excerpts from Ryan’s deposition can be viewed online at:http://youtu.be/cKUdQEqh-pY

“Bill 115 is nothing but crass politics being played by both the Tories and the Liberals and the pawns in the game here are the voters down in Kitchener-Waterloo. The anti-union rhetoric that has permeated the campaigns by both of these political parties has backfired and is turning off voters,” said Ryan. “This legislation is simply a cynical ploy to attempt to influence an election down in Kitchener-Waterloo. I believe that both Dalton McGuinty and Tim Hudak will both meet their Waterloo tomorrow night when the results come rolling in.”

The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) represents 54 unions and one million workers in Ontario. For more information on the OFL, visit www.OFL.ca and follow the OFL on Facebook and Twitter: @OFLabour.

-30-

For further information:

Sid Ryan, OFL President: 416-209-0066 (cell)

Joel Duff, OFL Communications Director: 416-707-0349 (cell) or jduff@ofl.ca *ENG/FRE*

Unprecedented attack on constitutional rights & freedoms of school board employees

cpeadmin — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 15:14:45 +0000

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association joined Ontario’s teachers [and other education workers] in opposing proposed legislation that would force new contracts on teachers and school [board] workers, saying it’s fundamentally undemocractic and that collective bargaining is a constitutional right. [watch it here!]

“Budget concerns are no justification to undercut the democratic process,” CCLA director Sukanya Pillay said at a Toronto news conference on Thursday.

The controversial Putting Students First Act, or Bill 115, was introduced by the minority Liberal government on Monday. It would impose a wage freeze on teachers [and other education workers] and also gives the government the power to ban lockouts and strikes for at least two years.

“You don’t have to be a constitutional lawyer to conclude that the proposed legislation is an unprecedented attack on the civil liberties and constitutional rights and freedoms of school board employees,” constitutional lawyer Steven Barrett of Sack Goldblatt Mitchell LLP said at the conference.

Pillay said Bill 115 is a “pre-emptive” bill, which removes the right to strike before it is even suggested.

That “seriously impairs fundamental rights in a manner that cannot be justified in a free and democratic society,” she said.

The CCLA also said the bill eliminates meaningful negotiation and sets a bad precedent for future debates.

[Education] unions are considering all their legal options in the wake of the legislation. Meanwhile, some teachers in the province are considering withdrawing from after-school activities and other programs run on a volunteer basis.

The bill will likely become law, as the Progressive Conservatives have agreed to help pass the legislation. The NDP have said they will vote against the bill.

Three unions representing about 45,000 workers, including English Catholic and francophone teachers, have signed on to an agreement that includes three unpaid days off and ends the practice of banking sick days that can be cashed out at retirement.

But three other unions representing 191,000 workers oppose the deal.

Citynews 30 August 2012

Present at the press conference were Sukanya Pillay, a CCLA director, legal expert Stephen Barrett from Sack Goldblatt Mitchell, Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Ontario President Fred Hahn, Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) President Sam Hammond and Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF) President Ken Coran.

Canada’s teachers support of Ontario colleagues

cpeadmin — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 00:32:33 +0000

OTTAWA, Aug. 24, 2012 /CNW/ – The teachers of Canada are throwing their support behind their colleagues in Ontario as the McGuinty government threatens to impose a contract by legislation on teachers who have not yet had the opportunity to reach a negotiated settlement through the collective bargaining process.

“The 200,000 teachers of Canada raise their voices in support of all their Ontario counterparts in their struggle to secure their rights to fair collective bargaining,” says Paul Taillefer, president of the Canadian Teachers’ Federation (CTF).

“A legislated settlement, as the McGuinty government proposes, represents an abuse of its legislative authority and interferes with collective bargaining that, in some cases, has yet to begin. It is an affront to every teacher inCanada,” adds Taillefer.

The CTF President urges the Premier of Ontario to abandon his plans to enact this legislation and permit the parties’ return to the bargaining table in good faith: “Collective bargaining is a problem-solving process. Contracts by government decree have no place in a democratic society.”

CTF has also urged teacher organizations across Canada to show their solidarity with their Ontario counterparts: “An attack against one Member organization is an attack against us all,” concludes Taillefer.

An alliance of 15 Member organizations and one Affiliate Member representing nearly 200,000 teachers across the country, the Canadian Teachers’ Federation (CTF) is a member of the international body of teachers, Education International (EI).

Follow CTF on Twitter @CTFPresident, @CanTeachersFed, @EnseigneCanada

Student trustees at Queens Park

cpeadmin — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 00:22:02 +0000

Ontario Student Trustees Association to Hold Press Conference Monday Aug 27th

OSTA-AAECO is the provincial group representing English and French Student Trustees on Public School Boards.

The press conference will address the direct negative impact that the proposed Liberal legislation will have on students.

Twitter @OSTAAECO. Holding a press conference on Monday at Queen’s Park with @OSTAAECO to address the new#PuttingStudentsFirst Bill. @OCDSB@OCDSB_Students

Legislation Does Not Put Students First

cpeadmin — Sun, 26 Aug 2012 00:40:03 +0000

TORONTO, The announcement of proposed legislation to dictate the terms and processes for labour negotiations in Ontario’s public schools attempts to infringe upon the democratic role and historic success of education in this province.

The bargaining process currently in place in Ontario works when school board employers and employees can sit down together to negotiate issues best understood by those parties. As the four associations representing English-Public, French-Public, English-Catholic and French Catholic schools, ACEPO, AFOCSC, OCSTA & OPSBA strongly oppose any legislation that would supersede the local collective bargaining process. School boards and their local employee groups understand the needs of students in their communities and have the moral and legal responsibility to represent their interests.

The proposed legislation announced today attempts to over-ride several important pieces of legislation that have governed rights and protected citizens over many decades. The content of the proposed legislation does not, in our view, put students first, despite its title.

We feel strongly that the parents of Ontario expect school boards to protect the quality of education in the classroom and the future of the education system by making decisions that are not driven by political expediency but are focused squarely on what is in the best interests of students and teachers in the classroom.

Our Associations agree with the concerns that have been expressed publicly by Directors, Supervisory Officers, trustees and school boards around the elimination of professional development days, the restrictions placed on the system-wide use of diagnostic assessment data, the introduction of seniority as a key determining factor in the hiring practice, the removal of the enhancement monies in order to achieve financial targets and, specifically in regards to the AEFO agreement, the supervision parameters.

School boards in this province are committed to doing their part in Ontario’s current fiscal climate, but will not endorse a course of action that jeopardizes the education of students and the role of school boards in the democratic process.

We urge the government to respect the law and to work in an environment of mutual respect with its partners in education.

Association des conseils scolaires des écoles publiques de l’Ontario (ACEPO)
Association franco-ontarienne des conseils scolaires catholiques (AFOCSC)
Ontario Catholic School Trustees’ Association (OCSTA)
Ontario Public School Boards’ Association (OPSBA)

presidents respond to legislation threat

cpeadmin — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 15:35:52 +0000

Education Minister’s ‘Bullying Tactics’ Have No Place Anywhere in Ontario’s Education System: CUPE Ontario President

“We need to work together to find a solution” that respects the work education workers do, and is suitable for students, families and workers, says Fred Hahn

Toronto, ON – The Liberal government’s proposed legislation released yesterday that would strip school boards and their employees of basic rights are ‘bullying tactics’ that have no place anywhere in our education system, warned the President of the Ontario Division of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE Ontario), the union representing over 55,000 education support workers in the province.

“Nobody wins when a bully starts a fight. The only thing anyone can do is stand on the principle that what the bully is doing is wrong. The bullying tactics leveled against education support workers are contrary to everything that everyone in Ontario’s education sector has been trying to achieve for years,” says Fred Hahn.

“We need to work together to find a solution that respects the value of the work education workers do and that is suitable for students, families and our members,” adds Hahn.

His remarks follow Education Minister Laurel Broten’s ‘preview’ of legislation that, if passed, would force contracts on school board employees and school boards if they do not reach collective agreements before Sept. 1.

Candace Rennick, CUPE Ontario’s Secretary-Treasurer, says education support workers “have always been committed to building and preserving quality education for Ontario’s students. CUPE Ontario is equally committed to reaching out to the public and to our members to collectively build the best possible education system for Ontario’s students.”

“Bargaining collectively, negotiating collective agreements – these are basic rights says Terri Preston, Chair of the Ontario School Boards Coordinating Committee (OSBCC), the voice of School Board employees in CUPE Ontario. “In most cases we are only in the very beginning stages of bargaining with school boards across the Province. The fact that government wants to strip away that right by introducing legislation is appalling. We believe in a process that supports free collective bargaining, and where agreements are reached between employers and unions – not imposed by a third party” she added.

Education support workers are the backbone of the school. Every day our members ensure schools are safe, clean and have the resources they need to nurture young minds.

“Our members are dedicated to seeing students return to clean, safe and well-resourced classrooms in September. They have and continue to work very hard to ensure schools are ready in a few weeks,” said Hahn. cupe.on.ca

Government’s Legislation is Politically Motivated, Doesn’t Put Students First

August 20, 2012 The Ontario government ramped up its strategy to create an artificial crisis in education today when it announced plans to recall Queen’s Park and introduce legislation that unfairly targets teachers and other education workers.

Government House Leader John Milloy announced this morning that the Legislature will resume on Monday, August 27th so that the Liberals can introduce the Putting Students First Act, 2012. If passed, this legislation will impose cuts on the wages and benefits of teachers and other education sector workers. The proposed legislation also significantly restricts collective bargaining rights in the education sector.

“The government’s legislation is unprecedented and goes far beyond any wage restraint or back-to-work legislation ever enacted in Ontario,” said ETFO President Sam Hammond. “This legislation is obviously designed to put politics, not students, first. The government is putting its own short-term political gain ahead of students. This creates chaos and instability in the education system. It doesn’t benefit students and their parents.”

“The government continues to deceive the public by saying it needs to pass this unnecessary legislation in order to preserve the school year,” continued President Hammond. “ETFO has said, over and over again, and school boards have confirmed, that the school year will begin as it always has. We call on the government to live up to its own words and actually put students first.”

etfo.on.ca

Ontario Secondary School Federation of Ontario

On August 16, 2012, the Minister of Education announced that the Liberal Government had prepared draft legislation to implement restraint measures in the education sector. The legislation is designed to impose the OECTA MOU or something that is substantially similar (if successfully locally negotiated by August 31, 2012) upon all education workers. If a locally negotiated collective agreement is settled after August 31, 2012, it must be substantively identical.

The Provincial Executive is currently reviewing the legislation. Also, OSSTF/FEESO’s in-house legal counsel is meeting with legal counsel from other organizations in the education sector to prepare the appropriate legal challenges.

The Provincial Executive is also liaising with both CUPE and ETFO regarding the legislation.

Although the Government has not announced when it would recall the Legislature to deal with the legislation, Premier McGuinty has hinted publically that it may be the week of August 26, 2012.

Tim Hudak has called on the Premier to recall the Legislature immediately. The Conservatives have not yet indicated whether they will support the legislation. They want to be briefed by the Education Ministry before commenting, and are still pushing for an across-the-board wage freeze law for all public sector workers.

I have been conducting many media interviews related to the introduction of the legislation. I have emphasized in each interview that all of the actions the Government has been taking affect teachers and support staff and that the legislation, if implemented, would have a negative impact on all education workers. I have also been emphasizing that OSSTF/FEESO teachers and support staff will be in their schools with their students on the first day of school.

We are actively pursuing local collective agreement settlements in several boards across the province with the hopes of achieving a settlement prior to the August 31, 2012 deadline imposed by the Minister. Our strike votes will proceed as scheduled.

As more information becomes available, we will continue to update you.

Kenneth Coran, President, OSSTF osstf.on.ca

Most Ontarians Oppose Legislating Teachers’ Wages

cpeadmin — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 16:29:38 +0000

Almost eight in ten (77%) believe province should negotiate to reach mutual agreement.

A significant majority of Ontarians believe the province should negotiate an agreement with teachers rather than use legislation to impose wages and benefits on them, according to an independent poll conducted for the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO).

When asked if the government should negotiate provincially to arrive at mutually agreeable wages and benefits, 77% of Ontarians agree. Only 19% believe that legislation should be imposed on teachers without negotiations.

The telephone survey of 1,000 Ontarians aged 18 and up was conducted by Jane Armstrong Research Associates from August 3-9, 2012. The survey is considered accurate within a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

“From the beginning, ETFO has continued to say that we want to engage in true negotiations with the Minister of Education. It would appear Ontarians agree with that approach,” said ETFO President Sam Hammond. “Since February, the government has presented teachers with a ‘take it or leave it’ offer with no room for meaningful negotiation. Now they’ve threatened to legislate an agreement based on their terms, and the public isn’t buying it.”

Hammond added that the bullying behaviour of the McGuinty government hasn’t built the kind of public trust that the Premier and Minister of Education might have hoped for.

When survey respondents were asked whom they trust to promote the interests of Ontario students and schools, the results show that teachers, teacher organizations, and school boards receive a much higher vote of confidence than do the education minister and premier. Ontarians express a great deal of trust in teachers (41%), teacher organizations (18%), and school boards (20%). Many fewer express a great deal of trust in the province’s education minister (13%), and premier (10%). Just 8% said they have a great deal of confidence when asked about the Minister’s ability to manage contract negotiations with teachers.

The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario represents 76,000 elementary public school teachers and education professionals across the province and is the largest teacher federation in Canada.

August 14, 2012 etfo.ca