English Montreal School Board to apply religious symbols ban after avoiding vote on the issue

The English Montreal School Board was expected to vote Wednesday night on whether it would enforce the province's religious symbols ban, but the item was struck from the agenda shortly before the start of the meeting.

"I guess the majority of the commissioners felt that there were a lot of questions left about what exactly this means for the school board," said EMSB vice-chair Joe Ortona.

He said the issue will be sent back to the board's HR committee and will be brought back before the council as a whole at a later time.

EMSB Chair Angela Mancini tried during the meeting to return the discussion of the religious symbols ban to the agenda, but was voted down.

Mancini said she was surprised by the commissioners' decision to put off the planned discussion and vote, saying that "by delaying the discussion in public, we are de facto agreeing to implement the law."

She said the law presents an "ethical issue" and that the board needs to protect its right to determine who it hires.

The EMSB came out strongly against Bill 21 before it had even been adopted into law.

In March, the EMSB adopted a resolution stating "its strong opposition to any legislation that prohibits or restricts its employees from wearing religious symbols."

The Commission scolaire de Montréal, for its part, also had a meeting scheduled Wednesday night where the subject of Bill 21 was set to be discussed.

The CSDM had initially said they would need more time before applying the law, but it appears the board has backed down.

The French-language board began including a notice in job postings this summer saying applicants will need to comply with the law.

About 20 people protested outside the CSDM meeting, pushing back against the board's decision to comply with Bill 21.

CSDM President Catherine Harel-Bourdon told Radio-Canada that the board hasn't changed its mind but said it feels forced to apply the law by the government.

The Lester B. Pearson School Board also opted to abide by the law, despite criticizing the measures earlier this year.

"We are currently creating the directive that outlines the main obligations stemming from the act (Bill 21) and will guide management personnel in its implementation," Cindy Finn, director general at the board, said in a text message.

"Foremost in our message is that compliance with the law is to be handled with a presumption of good faith and that this sensitive issue is to be addressed in a respectful and courteous manner."

Education Minister Jean-François Roberge has threatened to put any school board that doesn't adhere to the law under trusteeship.

On Wednesday, he reiterated that school boards must apply the law.

"If they have some trouble understanding the law, understanding the application now that the law is in application, we are there to help them. But at the end of the day, the law is the law," he said.

Bill 21 prohibits new public teachers from wearing religious symbols such as a hijab or kippa. Teachers already on the job are exempt under a grandfather clause, provided they stay in the same position.