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Aug. 31 deadline doesn't provide enough time Continued from page 1 7 · Wednesday, August 8, 2012 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com The public board must sign deals with nine employee groups, including OSSTF. To be asked to sign new contracts with all of them with only one month to negotiate, while everyone is on break is unrealistic, he said, especially considering it had taken the ministry five months to negotiate a deal with just one group, the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association (OECTA) at the provincial discussion table (PDT). The Province has also brokered a deal with the Association of Professional Student Services Personnel, a small 750-member union, which represents social workers, psychologists and speech pathologists. "It's going to be very difficult for the Halton District School Board to negotiate its agreements with all of its bargaining units before Sept. 1," he said. "It's probably unrealistic for the minister to have that expectation, particularly Don Vrooman when it took them as long as it did to come to one memo of understanding with one union at the PDT." The minister's announcement also affects the Catholic school boards, which also have to negotiate contracts with unions other than OECTA. Further, the Provincial agreement only dealt with the financial aspect of the OECTA contract, while there are other details to negotiate as well, said Alice Anne LeMay, chair of the Halton Catholic District School Board. The Halton public board had initial meetings with its unions from mid-June to early July and scheduled its bargaining meetings between late August and late November, a timetable based on past bargaining experiences. Vrooman said bargaining had not started locally as school boards were waiting for the results of the PDTs. Broten is calling for school boards to use the ministry's agreement with OECTA as a road map with the other unions. However, it has been reported in the media, many unions say the Catholic teachers deal is unworkable for their members. The Liberal government is trying to find savings in its deficit and wants all public sector workers to take wage freezes. The majority of the current collective bargaining agreements expire on Aug. 31. With no new contracts signed, teachers would continue to work under the existing deals. Broten said as the existing contracts just roll over, wages go up automatically as teachers move up the salary grid, which is based on years of service and qualifications. An automatic rollover leads to salary increases of 5.5 per cent for many teachers and the accumulation of two million more teacher sick days that could be cashed out when teachers retire, she said in previous media reports. In the Liberal government's most recent budget, no funding was allocated to grid movement increases. By rolling over the existing contracts, school boards would have to find savings within their budgets to pay teachers annual raises. Teachers are entitled to annual raises for approximately the first 10 years of employment under the current contract as well as raises when they achieve additional qualifications. As an example, for one such group at the local public board, the elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario (Halton), teachers on the lowest qualification scale start at $39,742 and get annual raises until they reach $73,115 after their 10th year of employment. The rate of pay is higher for teachers with more qualifications. The teacher unions accepted a wage freeze for two years, but under existing contracts, teachers are entitled to raises based on their years of service and qualifications. "While it is the HDSB's intent to remain compliant with fiscal parameters set by the Province, boards will be faced with the challenge that has provoked the minister's less than arbitrary deadline," said Vrooman. As the board is legally obligated to do, Vrooman said HDSB will honour all collective bargaining agreements. "There's a lot of things that make it diffi- cult for the board. If it weren't for the PDTs, we would be at the bargaining table," he said. "If it weren't for the Provincial budget and what the ministry is giving us in funding, we wouldn't be in the predicament this fall with the grid." For Oakville MPP Kevin Flynn's reaction, see Teachers page 8