Stuck in limbo

Whenever there’s a dispute involving teachers, whether directed at a specific board of education or the provincial government in general, as is the case this time around, it is the students and their parents who are the real victims.
But while it may have taken a full-blown strike or lockout to eventually reach a settlement previously, one can’t help but wonder just how long the current impasse will drag on given the controversial legislation rushed through Queen’s Park back in September.
Bill 115 bans teachers from striking for two years. Yet the province has said it will sit on its hands in the face of rotating one-day strikes across the province by elementary teachers—which are sure to cause disruptions even if parents are given 72 hours’ prior notice.
High school teachers, meanwhile, basically have thumbed their noses at Bill 115 by withdrawing from extra-curricular activities which, among other things, has meant an abrupt stoppage to the season for the various Muskie sports teams and kiboshing after-school clubs.
Bill 115 makes a mockery of the collective bargaining process and the McGuinty government jumped the gun in passing it. The teachers, however, were equally premature in their job action considering a court challenge of the legislation hasn’t been heard yet—let alone ruled on.
But really, even if Bill 115 is upheld, what will change? One-day strikes already are being held with impunity and there’s nothing to prevent an ongoing withdrawal of extra-curricular activities.
The only solution is a return to good faith collective bargaining between the teachers and their respective school boards—and let the chips fall where they may.
That way, at least, we’re not spinning our wheels in perpetual limbo.