Oak-land Ford Lincoln 905.844.3273 www.oak-land.com CA$H FOR GOLD & JEWELLERY 905-337-0051 LONDON GOLD SNA NEWSPAPER OF THE YEAR 2010 ontario's top newspaper - 2005-2008 The Nutcracker Artscene Upper Oakville Shopping Centre A member of Metroland Media Group Ltd. Vol. 50. No. 141 "Using Communication To Build Better Communities" WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2012 60 Pages $1.00 (plus tax) All I want for Christmas... Teachers eye strike position By Dominik Kurek OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Local public elementary school teachers may be in a legal strike position as early as Dec. 10 after asking the Ministry of Labour's conciliator for a no-board report. The Halton unit of the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (ETFO) met with the conciliator Nov. 21 and expects to receive the no-board report this week. A no-board report is issued if conciliation fails. "This means it's a very It can be requested by the strong mandate and it conciliator or by either confirms for us that party and indicates a failour members are not ure to resolve differences. After the report is issued, happy with what the the parties must observe a government is doing." 16-day period during which time the terms of Marg Mcfarlane, employment are frozen. Elementary Teachers The ETFO members Federation of Ontario, would then be in a legal Halton unit president strike position 17 days after the report is issued, which could be as early as Dec. 10 or 11, said ETFO Halton president Marg Macfarlane. ETFO Halton, which represents 2,600 teachers and educational professionals, voted with an overwhelming majority (95 per cent) in favour of a strike mandate. "This means it's a very strong mandate and it confirms for us that our members are not happy with what the government is doing," Macfarlane said. The no-board request comes after months of protests against the provincial government's Putting Students First Act, which took away the bargaining rights of education workers, froze their pay for two years and cut into their benefits. See Action page 9 ERIC RIEHL / OAKVILLE BEAVER / @halton_photog A visit with santa: Santa arrived via horse and carriage at Hopedale Mall, Saturday. Here, Sadie Toscano, dressed up for the occasion, has a chat with Santa. Not long after, St. Nick and Mrs. Claus visted Centriller Square for Saturday's tree lighting ceremony in Bronte Village. For more photos from Bronte Village, see page 11. For photos of Santa's visit at Hopedale, see page 17. OFF $ SPEERS ROAD BROADLOOM "We Take The Time To Do It Right" 200 ON ALL FLOORING & AREA RUGS *with a purchase of $1000 or more. LTD www.speersroadbroadloom.com Where young minds become ignited and adolescents set foot on the path to becoming the decision makers of the future. www.maclachlan.ca Pre-school to Grade 12 | 337 Trafalgar Road, Oakville | 905-844-0372 MacLachlan College CARPET · WOOD · LAMINATE · AREA RUGS · VINYL · CERAMIC 400 Speers Road, Oakville 905-844-0712