Niagara's English Catholic board is confirming all Niagara Catholic schools will be closed next Tuesday if members of the teachers' union stage a one day strike.
Yesterday the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association announced plans to stage the one day strike on January 21st after talks with the province broke down last week.
The union represents high school and elementary teachers across the province.
Officials with Niagara Catholic are encouraging parents to review alternative plans in case the strike goes forward.
In a post on social media, officials also say the Grade 9 Mathematics EQAO assessment will not be administered this month due to the ongoing job action.
Officials with the board say the Minister of Education has told them any EQAO tests not completed in January will be administered in June instead.
Good morning - we begin our day today with a labour negotiations update for students, parents and guardians: The Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association (OECTA), which represents Catholic elementary and secondary teachers in the Province of Ontario, including Niagara Catholic, announced a one-day, province-wide withdrawal of services on Tuesday, January 21, 2020, if no agreement is reached. If there is a full withdrawal of services by our elementary and secondary teachers, for the safety of our students, all Niagara Catholic schools will be closed for students on Tuesday, January 21, 2020. Parents/guardians are advised to review alternative plans should schools be closed for students on January 21, 2020. We will continue to provide current information on this site, through our social media channels and directly with families through our School Messenger communication system as required. We respect the collective bargaining process and remain hopeful that a fair and respectful resolution will be reached soon. As well, parents/guardians and students currently enrolled in Grade 9 Mathematics – Academic or Applied in Semester One are in the process of being informed that due to the current job action by the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association (OECTA), the scheduled EQAO Grade 9 Mathematics assessment will not be administered this January 2020. Boards have been informed that OECTA secondary teachers will not participate in EQAO related activities, including preparation, administering and subsequent marking of the test. On January 8th, the Minister of Education informed Boards that EQAO not administered in January will be administered in June 2020. As additional information is provided by the Ministry of Education, we will communicate this to students and parents/guardians.
A post shared by NiagaraCatholicDSB (@niagaracatholicdsb) on Jan 14, 2020 at 6:31am PST