NEWS RELEASE
ASSOCIATION DES ENSEIGNANTES ET DES ENSEIGNANTES FRANCO-ONTARIENS
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OTTAWA - Franco-Ontarian teachers who are members of the Association des enseignantes et des enseignants franco-ontariens (AEFO) will start the second phase of their work-to-rule campaign on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2020. New restrictions will be added to the tasks targeted in phase 1, which mostly affected administrative duties.
"Despite the first phase of work-to-rule, the Employer Bargaining Agency (EBA), acting on behalf of the 12 French-language school boards, continues its attacks on members' rights and what they have gained over the years. And the government is showing no sign of rolling back its cuts affecting students' learning conditions," states Rémi Sabourin, AEFO President.
The next bargaining sessions between AEFO, the government, and the Employer Bargaining Agency (EBA) are planned on Jan. 29 and 30, 2020, with a mediator appointed by the Ministry of Labour.
"We cannot tolerate the governments' and the school boards' inertia any longer," says Rémi Sabourin. "At our most recent meeting, last week, negotiations were practically at a standstill. I don't know what overall strategy the school boards and the government have settled on, but choosing to do nothing is absolutely not the best tactic."
What's more, at the negotiating table, school boards seem to want to continue to conform to government decisions about students' learning conditions, such as mandatory e-learning for all high school students, fewer course choices, and larger class sizes.
According to Rémi Sabourin, AEFO President: "School boards have been staying silent in the face of arbitrary and catastrophic decisions by the government relating to students' learning conditions. But for us teachers, students are our priority. Their success is nonnegotiable."
AEFO knows that strike action may have an impact on the daily life of Franco-Ontarian students and their families, and asks parents to understand that this job action aims to fight the deterioration of our education system.
AEFO has about 12,000 members and represents French-language elementary and high school teachers in Ontario, from both Catholic and public school boards, as well as professional and support staff working in various French-language workplaces.
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