The union representing the 114 secondary teachers declared redundant by the Near North District School Board held a rally in front of MPP Vic Fedeli’s constituency office in North Bay.
Teachers who were handed their layoff notices were joined by their colleagues and members of the community in an effort to show the MPP the human side of the job losses that the Tories have claimed were not going to happen.
“My members were devastated by the job loss and even more upset by the continued confusion and lack of clarity on funding for our school board”, said Glen Hodgson, President of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation in the Near North.
Hodgson, who was accused of “fearmongering,” by Fedeli in recent weeks, says the federation is instead using rallies such as Wednesday’s as an opportunity for “fact-mongering.”
Fedeli answered via a statement: “Our government is committed to protecting what matters most while balancing the budget in a responsible manner. Once again, let me be clear – we are standing by our commitment that not a single teacher will lose their job as a result of our proposed changes to class sizes and e-learning.”
