The Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario says 97 per cent of its teacher members voted in favour of the three-year deal.

The Ontario government is attempting to close an ugly round of bargaining as it restarts talks with the only remaining teachers' union without a contract, and an expert says the COVID-19 pandemic may create a path to labour peace.

Ontario has reached tentative contract agreements with the unions representing the province's 12,000 French-language teachers and 83,000 elementary teachers.

“This has been a very prolonged and difficult bargaining process,” ETFO president Sam Hammond said in a statement. 

The Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario is set to resume contract talks with Premier Doug Ford's government today.

In previous talks earlier this year, ETFO said it was close to an agreement on several key issues, but that the government negotiators changed positions at the last minute.

Lecce said classes will average about 23 students in 2020/2021 while making the announcement at Queen's Park on Tuesday.

The president of the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario said Monday that if contract deals aren't reached by March 6, they will begin a new phase of strikes effective Monday, March 9.

Friday was the first time since 1997 that teachers and education workers from all four unions have striked on the same day.

Roughly 20,000 teachers and education workers picketed along a 30 km stretch in Peel Region Friday in what that the unions call the longest picket line ever in the region.