Following our recent news about the possibility of school closures, we are informing parents and guardians after careful consideration that if no agreement is reached in the province over the weekend and CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) staff begin their full announced strike, Durham District School Board (DDSB) elementary and secondary schools will close their doors to students on Monday. October 7, 2019 and thereafter until further notice. We also need to plan for other developments if they happen. In the event of further action, we will continue to closely monitor conditions on a daily basis to ensure that operations in our schools remain safe for students and staff. As always, if you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact the administration of your child`s school. Parents and guardians are strongly advised to start on Monday, July 7. October 2019, to make further childcare arrangements to prepare for a possible school closure. At the time, there was no agreement between the province and the Ontario Secondary School Teachers` Federation (OSSTF). As a result, Durham District School Board (DDSB) secondary schools will be closed to students on Wednesday, December 4, 2019 due to a one-day strike by OSSTF members. We are aware that parents/guardians are concerned about disruptions related to working at school and how they may affect their children. We believe that normal school activities for students can and will continue to continue and that at this time, apart from information pickets, tangible evidence of work action at the school level will not be obvious to students, parents and guardians.

As a Board of Directors, we remain committed to caring for our students and our commitment to their well-being, safety and success remains unchanged. As you are probably aware, collective bargaining is underway with Ontario`s education unions. In light of recent developments regarding the state of work situation in the provinces, we would like to provide an update, particularly with regard to elementary teachers represented by the Elementary Teachers` Federation of Ontario (ETFO) and the current situation regarding Individual Education Plans (IEPs), certificates and communication of kindergarten learning within our board. We inform school visitors that there may be longer delays than usual when they are hummed at school, as there will not always be a staff member supervising the intercom. Negotiations would continue this weekend. We are optimistic that a provincial agreement can be reached to avoid further disruption to our students and their families. As mentioned earlier, CUPE represents support staff in our elementary and secondary schools. Its members include, among others, administrators, maintenance workers, secretaries and educational assistants.

All these working groups would be affected by any working action. We are also pleased to inform you that all Durham District School Board elementary and secondary schools will be open on Monday, October 7, 2019 and that regular classes will be held. OSSTF has announced that all of its teachers and education professionals will participate in a full province-wide withdrawal of one-day services on Wednesday, December 4, 2019, unless a new collective agreement is reached at the provincial level by then. We value our employees and their work with students. We also recognize their right to the collective bargaining process, which includes the possibility of a complete withdrawal of services. Families whose students have special educational needs may have other concerns related to the provision of programs and support as part of a work action. We want to assure our community that we are listening to the unique needs of these students and will continue to work with school teams and families in this regard. It is very unusual for the DDSB to close schools for our students. It used to be and still is an extraordinary and rapidly evolving situation, but the safety of students and staff is still our top priority. The decision to close schools was not taken lightly and was made because we do not believe we can provide the necessary safe learning environments for all students upon a complete withdrawal of services by OSSTF members. If you would like a hard copy of your collective agreement, please speak to your steward. If you don`t know who your steward is or how to get to your home, contact your local CUPE office.

12. In the event that a teacher uses sick leave credits from the account due to the negligence of another party and the teacher brings a civil action for damages, all funds received will be reimbursed to the Board of Directors in lieu of a loss of salary resulting from such a right, and the Board of Directors will remit the appropriate number of sick leave to the teacher. 43K Goods not invoiced for sick leave: (a) absence with payment will be admitted to the place where: quarantine by a medical officer of health, although the teacher is not sick; Jury duty or in response to a subpoena, provided that the teacher of the room assumes all costs, except for travel and living expenses and the cost of living received as a jury or as a witness; take examinations or participate in a diploma contributing to the diploma of a spouse or child from a recognized secondary or post-secondary institution; or participated in these current work activities to the rule, we had to make decisions regarding the sharing of schools. At that time, shared use permits for schools between September 30 and October 13, 2019 were revoked until further notice. However, all after-hours education programs will continue. These cancelled permits do not affect the use of any of our schools for early voting and polling stations for the upcoming federal election. This letter is intended to keep parents and guardians informed of the action for the employment of teachers in relation to EQAO. At the end of each semester, students enrolled in Grade 9 applied and academic mathematics courses take a provincial assessment of their math knowledge and skills. .