Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil and the head of the province’s teachers union are meeting Monday to try to prevent possible job action by teachers.
Last week, Nova Scotia Teachers Union (NSTU) president Liette Doucet said more than 80 per cent of teachers who cast a ballot voted in favour of authorizing an illegal strike or other form of job action.
READ MORE: NSTU meets with education minister behind closed doors
Teachers have spoken out strongly against a report released last month that would overhaul the back-end of the education system. The government has said it will enact all of the recommendations from Avis Glaze, including removing principals and vice-principals from the union, axing elected English school boards, and creating a college of teachers to oversee the profession.
Doucet said no immediate job action was planned and called on the government to engage in “meaningful consultation” with teachers.
Since then, Doucet and the education minister have met behind closed doors.
Monday’s meeting between Doucet and the premier will be a chance for the two sides to hash out their differences over the Glaze Report.
“Reasonable people will find a reasonable solution. It’s my view that teachers want to be in front of kids. It’s also my view that the status quo is not acceptable and we’re proposing what was brought to us in Avis Glaze to begin moving forward,” McNeil told Global News on Monday.
The union is staunchly against the province’s decision to largely endorse the Glaze Report, which made 22 recommendations. The province has said it will act on 11 of the recommendations immediately, with legislation coming as early as Tuesday.
The legislature’s spring session begins Tuesday, and a rally has been organized to protest outside Province House.
More to come
With files from The Canadian Press, Marieke Walsh and Jennifer Grudic
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