Peel District School Board, Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation (District 19, Peel) agree to implement award of arbitration panel

First-in-province decision resolves local bargaining issues

MISSISSAUGA, ON, July 28, 2015 /CNW/ - The Peel District School Board and the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation (OSSTF) District 19, Peel, representing secondary teachers and secondary occasional teachers in the Peel board, have agreed to implement the interim award of the arbitration panel. The panel, which was created as a result of the Protecting the School Year Act (Bill 103), issued a unanimous decision. The agreement does include secondary occasional teachers.  This interim award replaces a negotiated settlement, is effective immediately and does not need to be ratified by both parties.

The award resolves all local bargaining issues with the exception of payment of fees to the Ontario College of Teachers. That item will be decided by the arbitrator. At this point the board will not  provide any further information on the award details while this arbitration process continues.

Notes Janet McDougald, chair of the Peel board, "From the beginning, we have said that we respect our secondary teachers as dedicated professionals, who are committed to student success. We were focused on reaching a fair, negotiated settlement, and are pleased that we resolved our local bargaining issues. At this point, we now must be hopeful that the central table will reach an agreement and the school year can start for Peel students without disruption."

The Peel board serves 153,000 students from kindergarten to grade 12. Operating 246 schools in Brampton, Caledon and Mississauga with an annual budget of $1.7 billion. The Peel board is the largest employer in Peel.

SOURCE Peel District School Board

Media contact: Janet McDougald, Chair of the Board, Peel District School Board, 416-571-3737, [email protected]; Reference: Brian Woodland, Director of Communications & Community Relations, 905-890-1010 ext. 2812, [email protected]