All four major Ontario teachers’ unions who represent over 190,000 staff plan to file complaints with the province’s labour board as they allege Ontario’s school reopening plan violates its own workplace safety laws.
Initially the unions released a joint statement following last Monday’s (Aug 24) virtual sit down with Labour Minister Monte McNaughton saying they’d file the complaints by that Friday if safety regulations weren’t put in place.
They made this recent announcement the following Monday (Aug 31).
Among other things, the unions are once again pushing the Labour Ministry for smaller class sizes, to ensure a two-metre distance can be maintained.
In a responding statement, McNaughton said he can’t comment on a specific case before the Ontario Labour Relations Board.
However, it went on to say his ministry has contacted every school board, and health and safety inspectors have “met with majority of school boards already, with near universal participation from frontline educators.”
The statement also said McNaughton “plays a neutral overseer” role in the process and he “will not play politics with such an important issue.”
