The organization representing Ontario’s Public School Boards issued a statement just minutes after Education Minister Stephen Lecce announced he was scrapping Regulation 274 which forced principals to hire substitute teachers based on seniority. In a release the Ontario Public School Board Association wrote, “today’s announcement is good news for Ontario’s public school boards and their communities. The Ontario Public School Boards’ Association (OPSBA) has been advocating strongly for the repeal of Regulation 274, which favours seniority as the most important factor in teacher hiring, since its introduction in September 2012.”
“OPSBA has long maintained that transparent and equitable hiring practices are essential in order to ensure a highly qualified teacher workforce that reflects the diversity of students and school communities, and meets local needs. Excellence in teacher hiring is critical to supporting student achievement and well-being in a strong public education system.”
Our numerous consultations have revealed the many challenges and inequities this regulation has created in the hiring of teachers.
“Regulation 274 created many challenges for school boards, including:
- An inability to address diversity and equity in hiring
- Placed limitations on boards to hire teachers that reflect the needs of the school community
- The pressure occasional teachers feel to be on multiple school board lists
- The inability of permanent teachers to seek employment at a different school board; and
- The restrictions for principals and vice-principals to return to teaching.
This regulation has also disadvantaged teachers who are new to the profession, and it has become a deterrent to entering the teaching profession.”
“Eliminating the unfair restrictions created by Regulation 274 is the right thing to do and will allow school boards to hire the right teachers for the job – including teachers who look like and understand their students’ experiences because they have lived them.”
– Cathy Abraham, OPSBA President
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