HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Citizens News, 1976-01-21, Page 6Page 6 -Citizens News, January 21176
Jottings by Jack W from Queen's Park
The Ontario Legislature has,
of course, been recalled to debate
emergency legislation to end the
strike of Metropolitan Toronto
Secondary School Teachers which
began on November 12, Last
week the teachers voted to reJ'-
ccthe latest atcst offer of
the school
boards which would have raised
minimum salaries from $7,800
to $12,000 (53.8%) and maximum
salaries from $18,400 to $24,100
or 30.9%,
The government introduced
legislation which force teachers
to return to work on Monday,
January 19, or face daily fines of
up to $500 each. Under the legis-
lation, an arbitrator is to be app-
ointed who will set teachers'
salaries until June 1977, retro-
active .to last September 1. The
arbitrator's ruling will come by
February 14, and teachers are not
to receive any interim pay inc-
rease.
If teachers work to rule or
refuse extra -curricular duties
when they return to the class-
room, this would also be inter-
preted as a strike under the
bargaining legislation. Profess-
ional development days, taken
by the teachers in the last two
weeks of June to mark exam
papers and evaluate students, are
to be cancelled..
N.D.P. Leader Stephen Lewis
proposed an amendment to the
legislation making the most
recent Metro Board wage offer
of an average 24.6% increase the
"floor" for compulsory arbit-
ration, and the influential Ont-
ario Teachers Federation have
urged all three parties to establ-
ish such a floor to provide for
continued negotiations. However,
the Liberal Party did not support
this amendment because there
seemed little merit in tying the
arbitrator to a predetermined
base.
Bob Nixon, probably making
his last major speech in the Leg-
islature as the Leader of the
Liberal Party, said his party
would vote to get the schools
open, believing that compul-
Lgisiate Toronto teachers back
sory arbitration is the only way to
bring about a settlement. How-
ever, he expressed his reserv-
ations about the • government
provision for a two-year settle-
ment, because this may not be
necessary if Ontario public sector
employees are
to be under the
jurisdiction of the Anti -Inflation
Board.
He also criticized the govern-
ment's attitude toward the Ontar-
io Education Relations Commiss-
ion, an agency created last year
when teachers were given the
legal right to strike. The Com-
mission was established to super-
vise teacher collective bargaining
g
and advise Cabinet when it bel-
ieves continuation of a strike
jeopardizes completion of courses
and it hasn 't been taken seriously
by the Government in Bob Nix-
on 's opinion - "it is not having
enough support from the Govern-
ment." He cited the Govern-
ment ' s
overn.ment's failure to appoint all five
members of the Commission until
after the Metro strike began.
While the Liberal Party supp-
orted the back -to -work legislat-
ion because of concern about the
affected students, they were very
critical of the government's
decision to sign a federal -provinc-
ial agreement on the anti-inflat-
ion programme without bringing
it before the legislature prior to
signature.
James Bullbrook, Liberal
MPP for Sarnia, pointed out that
no matter what the arbitrator
may say, the final decision will
rest with the federal Anti -Inflat-
ion Board, because the Govern-
ment of Ontario has; without
legislative approval, signed an
agreement which will have that
effect, which is in direct contrav-
ention of Sections 92 and 93 of
the British North American Act.
"I believe the agreement to be
Hens personals
Mr. Ed Corbett was taken to
Victoria Hospital, London by
ambulance on Saturday.
Rev. W. D. Jarvis conducted
worship service in Carmel Pres-
byterian Church on Sunday.
The annual congregational
meeting will be held January 30.
Mrs. Margaret Ingram is a
patient in South Huron Hospital
Exeter where she is receiving
treatmen
ON A HIGH PERCH - At Friday's Open House at Huron Tractor
In Exeter, Kippen area boys Floss McIntosh and Terry McGregor
enjoyed climbing aboard a huge John Deere four row combine.
• News Photo
illegal," said Mr. Bullbrook.
"The best they can hope for is to
rely on the peace, order and good
government clause and a section
of the British North America
Act to legalize in the most periph-
eral fashion the signing of this
agreement—You can't dele-
gate your authority...the Province
of Ontario cannot give their
authority to the federal govern-
ment...This happens to be a parl-
iamentary democracy and we, as
a legislature, are part of a perl-
iamentary system. You don't
go abdicating basic constitutional
responsibilities, legal or other-
wise... We are a legislature, and
we demani1 our right to legis-
late."
See you next week.
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