Another one-day strike by Ontario public high school teachers will proceed Wednesday after talks with the provincial government were cancelled.
In a statement issued Monday night, Education Minister Stephen Lecce's office said the mediator called the talks off because they were a waste of time if no one was bringing anything new to the table.
The mediator suggested the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation (OSSTF) and the Progressive Conservative government take the holidays to consider their positions and meet again in the new year.
The union's third one-day walkout will take place Wednesday and will involve 10 school boards, including the Lambton-Kent District School Board. The strike will also affect dozens of French-language elementary schools where some workers are represented by the OSSTF.
The OSSTF has said class sizes, staffing, mandatory e-learning, and other issues that affect the quality of student learning have been sticking points throughout contract negotiations with the province.
“The ministry’s imposed class size increases have already caused devastating losses in course options and programs for students in Sarnia-Lambton and Chatham-Kent high schools. We cannot and will not accept these devastating cuts that negatively impact the quality of their education,” said OSSTF District 10 President Jennifer Kumpf in a media release.
The OSSTF previously held a one-day province-wide strike for all Ontario school boards on December 4, and a one-day walkout in select areas on December 11. Teachers and education workers at public secondary schools have also been participating in a work-to-rule limited withdrawal of services since November 26.
-With files from Kirk Dickinson