Ontario's elementary school teachers and education workers have agreed to extend their contracts by two years, leaving the Liberal government nearly free of teacher negotiations ahead of the next election.
The Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario is one of the last major education unions to agree to such a deal, joining the French teachers' union, several support staff unions, and the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association.
ETFO says if ratified, the contract extension will improve the working conditions of its members and the learning conditions of students.
The current contracts with teachers and support staff are set to expire this August, so these new deals would last until August 2019 _ well after the June 2018 election.
Education Minister Mitzie Hunter says the government is in communication with the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation about a contract extension, but there are no dates currently scheduled for formal talks.
The government has not disclosed any terms of the deals before they are ratified.