Elementary teachers in the Rainbow District School Board voted overwhelmingly last night in favour of strike action.
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Ninety-six percent of teachers attending a meeting at the Caruso Club gave their union a mandate to take any and all action, including a full withdrawal of services strike, to achieve their contract goals.
The main issue on the table is preparation time. Rainbow elementary teachers currently have 150 minutes of preparation time, but would like at least 200.
Â?The workload of elementary teachers is crushing, and my members are telling the Rainbow board to correct that problem at the bargaining table,Â? said Emily Noble, ETFO president in a press release.
Â?My members want outstanding issues to be settled during negotiations. But if the board doesn't improve their last offer, then the next issue to be resolved will be the date the strike begins,Â? Noble said.
The Rainbow Teacher Local represents 606 public elementary school teachers. Their contract ended August 31, 2004. They plan to start working-to-rule in March if no agreement has been reached by then.
