Strike ruled illegal; teachers back in class Wednesday

The teachers strike in Ontario – including at the Rainbow board in Sudbury – is illegal, the Ontario Labour Relations Board ruled late Tuesday. Teachers and students are expected back in class Wednesday.

In its ruling, the board “declares that the local strikes at Durham District School Board, Rainbow District School Board and Peel District School Board are presently undertaken in contravention of the School Boards Collective Bargaining Act, 2014.”

The province appealed to the labour board to rule the strikes illegal, arguing that the issues behind the work stoppage are provincial and therefore out of the control of local boards.

The board ordered the union representing teachers, the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation, “its officers, officials and agents and striking employees at Durham District School Board, Rainbow District School Board and Peel District School Board cease and desist their unlawful strike, from the date of this Decision (May 26, 2015), and not resume it until at least a two-week moratorium from the date of this Decision has expired.”

The ruling would also appear to mean the cancellation of a planned march Wednesday by about 500 teachers. Before the ruling, the governing Liberals were planning to pass back-to-work legislation. The march was planned as a final act before the legislation became law. The NDP refused to support the bill, delaying its passage through the Ontario Legislature until later this week or early next week.

In his ruling, labour board Chair Bernard Fishbein also imposed a two-week ban on new strikes

“I have adopted the suggestion of counsel for the school boards and would direct that the strikes be put on a moratorium,” Bishbein wrote. “Since I have found these strikes to be unlawful in that they are 'in respect of central bargaining' and section 100 of the LRA authorizes the Board to direct 'what action, if any, a person, employee, … trade union … and their officers, officials or agents shall do or refrain from doing,' I direct that these strikes cease at least for two weeks from the date of this decision.”

To read the full decision, go to www.olrb.gov.on.ca/Decision/0376-15-U_Durham-Rainbow-Peel_District_School_Boards.pdf