Labour board, education commission, expected to rule this week on teacher strike

The days of Sudbury's English public high school teachers walking picket lines could be numbered, as the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) is expected to make a ruling on the legality of the strike this week.

Three school boards have asked the OLRB to declare the strikes in Sudbury's Rainbow Board, Durham District and Peel District board illegal.

They're kind of on strike at a bad time.- Maddison Adams, grade 9 student

The boards' joint application contends that the local Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation (OSSTF) strikes are over matters negotiated between the provincial government, the Ontario Public School Boards' Association and the provincial union — not the union locals.

Over the weekend, talks between the teachers and the province broke off. The OSSTF said it will now apply for conciliation, a potential step towards a province-wide high school teachers' strike.

School year at risk?

In the meantime, another body is offering advice to the province. The Education Relations Commission is considering whether the labour dispute is putting students at risk of not completing their school year.

That finding could inform how the province moves forward in this dispute. 

Former minister of education Sean Conway said he wouldn't be surprised if the premier forces teachers back to the classroom.

"In my day as minister, that was a very important development because if the Education Relations Commission deemed that the students were then or now in a situation of jeopardy, that usually was the trigger that brought back-to-work legislation," he said.

Conway added that the province is grappling with a deficit of more than $8 billion, and that is fueling labour disputes.

"I want well paid teachers," he said. "I guess the question is how many well paid teachers and how many well paid education assistants can this system afford?"

Meanwhile, grade 9 Sudbury Lockerby Composite student Maddison Adams said she's enjoying the break from class, but questioned how prepared she'll be for the next year.

"Normally, they do their big stuff right at the end," she said.

"They're kind of on strike at a bad time."

The commission won't say how long it will take to deliver its guidance. The last time it advised the province was in 2002.