A12 O THEGLOBEANDMAIL| WEDNESDAY, MARCH 11, 2020
EDITORIAL
PHILLIP CRAWLEY
PUBLISHERANDCEO
DAVID WALMSLEY
EDITOR-IN-CHIEFT
he labour dispute between Ontario’s powerful teach-
ers’ unions and the Progressive Conservative govern-
ment of Premier Doug Ford has been a topsy-turvyaffair.
For most of its duration – months of rotating job actions,and several one-day general strikes that closed every public
school in the province – the unions have been able to posi-
tion themselves as the defenders of education, and the gov-
ernment as a malign force.
And who cast the unions as protectors of the public in-terestÌ Step forward, Ford government. This is all playing out
according to a script it wrote. Author, author
Mr. Ford and his education ministers – he has gonethrough two in less than two years – barely merit a passing
grade on this file.
Mr. Ford has in past called union leaders “thugs,” andmade it clear his priority is to stand up to labour organiza-
tions that have long been allies of Ontario’s Liberal Party, and
the natural enemy of anyPC government. Fair enough.
But at the same time as it was negotiating with teachersoversalaries and benefits, the Ford government introduced a
plan to increase the average high-school class size to 28 stu-
dents from 22, while also requiring students to take two
courses online, rather than in a classroom.
The government wanted to position all of this as a fightagainst the unions, but Ontarians were, understandably,
more interested in what these other abrupt changes to the
education system would mean for their children and public
schools.
As no one needs reminding, this is not exactlya govern-ment that has developed a reputation for prudent manage-
ment of complex files – or even non-complex files, such as
purchasing licence plates that are visible at night.
When the people who botched the redesign of licenceplates decided to redesign the education system, who were
their chief opponentsÌ The teachers’ unions. The Ford gov-
ernment cast them in the role and they embraced the part.
This same Fordgovernment that came into office insistingthe province was in a fiscal crisis also somehow repeatedly
found money to reverse a series of ill-considered and unpop-
ular cutbacks.
All of which made it easy for the unions to portray theirstrikes as being about protecting the school system from un-
justified PC cutbacks. A much reported-on poll taken in mid-
January showed that parents sided with the unions by a mar-
gin of nearly two to one.
Last week, thegovernment finally sent the script to re-write. As is its habit, the Fordgovernment has backed off. It
now says it will only increase the average high-school class to
23 students from 22. Students also will be able to opt out of
online courses.
That leaves the unions’ demands for a 2-per-cent pay in-crease. Thegovernment is offering 1 per cent. As of Tuesday,
however, at least one union was planning to continue its ro-
tating strikes after the March break, if no deal is reached. An
official for the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario
said they won’t stop untilthe government restores $200-mil-
lion in funding for special needs, again playing themselves as
the province’s lone defenders of schoolchildren.
So were the concessions a smartmoveÌ The government’sdefenders say Mr. Ford has called the teachers’ bluff and ex-
posed them as more dedicated to their pocketbooks than the
needs of students. It’s more apt to say that Mr. Ford spent
months playing the wrong hand in the wrong game at the
wrong table. He promised to stand up to the teachers’ unions,
but his government at the same time was trying to hastily
remake the education system. Voters were more focused on
the latter.
Yes, decisions about the funding of public schools are sup-posed to be up to the elected government, not the unions. It’s
the job of elected officials to set and implement education
policies, and they answer to voters if they get it wrong.
The teachers’ unions serve their members’ interests –that’s their job – and it isn’t their place to negotiate what’s
good and bad for education. Yet Mr. Ford effectively handed
them that power.
Ontarians need agovernment that, when necessary, canstand up to the teachers’unions. It also needsa government
with serious plans for improving education. So far, Team Ford
is batting 0-for-2.
Yetanother
owngoalfor
DougFord
PIPELINE PARITYRe Saudi Crown Prince’s Moves
Show What A Danger He Is (March
10)h I’m now convinced of the one
reason Canada should finish the
pipelines, east and westh to pre-
serve sovereignty and national se-
curity in the face of foreign lead-
ers such as Mohammed bin Sal-
man.
Rick WalkerTorontoRe Berkshire Hathaway Drops Out
Of nergie Saguenay Project
(March 6)h What did Quebec Pre-
mier Frandois Legault think was
going to happen after such strong
opposition to the prior Energy
East pipeline, and now after the
rail blockadesÌ Why would any in-
vestors consider Canada when
there seems tobe nogovernment
support for oil and gas projects
and a lack of law enforcementÌ
Even the average guy can figure
this one out
L. G. AndersonSpruceGrove,Alta.MEDICAL RESPONSERe Seniors’ Care Homes Form Vi-
rus-Response Group (March 10)h I
just received a “COVID-19 Mem-
ber Alert” from the Ontario Med-
ical Association. I reasonably ex-
pected a useful update on the epi-
demic. Instead, the first three bul-
let points for Ontario doctors
covered income stabilization,
compensation for additional
practice costs and the reintroduc-
tion of OHIP fee codes for tele-
phone service.
It appears that OMA leadership
is primarily concerned with in-
comes ahead of the safety and
well-being of the public.
Philip BergerMD,TorontoDRIP, DRIPRe UNDRIP Legislation Would Be
Chaotic In This Country – And
The Blockades Prove It (March
10)h Manitoba Premier Brian Pal-
lister makes a forceful case for “re-
spectful partnerships” with Indig-
enous communities, rather than
“regulatory processes.” The cur-
rent upheaval in oil prices seems
to strengthen his argument.
Market volatility of this magni-
tude calls for experience, a steady
hand and deep pockets. This is
not a game in which Indigenous
communities should want to take
an active role.
Norman Paterson
Collingwood,Ont.Brian Pallister argues that incor-
porating the UN Declaration on
the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
into Canadian law would lead to
chaos. He points to recent Wet’su-
wet’en-inspired blockades as
proof. I believe the Manitoba Pre-
mier has it backward – if anything,
the blockades come out of a fail-
ure to embrace the rights articu-
lated in the declaration. Yet he is
confident that it would upendadvancements in “developing a
coherent framework for how to
respectfully consult and accom-
modate Indigenous concern.”
It all sounds like the same song-
book to which more repressive
leaders worldwide have long
turned. Those tired lyrics offer
protestations around stability
and progress, and insist that hu-
man rights stand in the way. Glob-
al leadership should champion
human rights as the way forward,
as the path to justice and stability.
That should have happened long
ago with respect to the rights of
Indigenous peoples in this coun-
try. It should not wait any longer.
Implementing the declaration
across Canada should be a neces-
sary next step.
Alex NeveSecretary-general,
AmnestyInternationalCanada;
OttawaGUESS WHO?Re Blaming Sexism For Warren’s
Loss Is A Disservice To Women
(March 9)h Can U.S. voters imag-
ine a viable female candidate who
is almost 80, who had a recent
heart attack, who promised to re-
lease her medical records but
then refused to do so, who spent
rallies wildly gesticulating and
wagging her finger, who voiced
tired clichvs and conspiracy theo-
riesÌ Neither can I. Yet Bernie
Sanders persists as a candidate in
the Democratic race.
On the day she suspended her
campaign, Elizabeth Warren was
asked by a reporter if sexism
played a role in her downfall. She
said, “If you say, ÒYeah, there was
sexism in this race,’ everyone
says, ÒWhiner’ If you say, ÒNo,
there was no sexism,’ about a ba-
zillion women think, ÒWhat plan-
et do you live onÌ’ ”
That’s how sexism works. Say-
ing that sexism played a role in
her downfall is not the same as
blaming sexism. She made many
mistakes in her campaign, but she
constantly had to deal with the
question of likeability, which
male candidates don’t get asked.
Manuel MatasWinnipegMARCH BREAKRe Strikes To Escalate If No Deal
Reachedh Union (March 10)h It
troubles me greatly that the peo-
ple in power in Ontario seem to
lack foresight. The consequences
of strong-arming teachers into ac-
cepting less-than-decent com-
pensation for the responsibilities
they carry feel unconscionable.
Today’s students are tomor-
row’s entrepreneurs and provid-
ers. Thegovernment has a re-
sponsibility to ensure the next
generation is equipped with the
skills to succeed in the new world,
but moreover is equipped with
the moral and ethical values nec-
essary in society. I see teachers as
important contributors to society,
to a much greater degree than pol-iticians of today.
The government should pay
these valuable people what they
are worth today, considering the
value of the people they develop
for tomorrow.
Richard MertlHampstead,Que.Ontario’s teachers seem to have a
sense of entitlement that lets
them believe only they can decide
what is right for the education sys-
tem and for students. The unions’
failure to strike a timely bargain
after the government’s retreat on
class sizes and e-learning shows to
me that this dispute is about com-
pensation, not students.
So the impasse goes on and I
continue to watch entrenched
union leadership hold students,
parents and taxpayers hostage.
Paul ClarryAurora,Ont.MATHEMATICALFEATSRe The Olympics Are Great –
When You Can Afford Them
(March 7)h Contributor Adrienne
Tanner concludes that some-
times the right answer is no if Brit-
ish Columbia were to bid for the
2030 Winter Olympics.
The three largest expenses are
the competition sites, the athletes
village and security. The existing
sports facilities in Vancouver,
West Vancouver and Whistler that
were used in 2010 would need lit-
tle more than a touch of paint. A
new athletes village could be
turned into social housing after
the Games. As for security, surely
it would not be too much to ask
that Canadian police forces and
Armed Forces be paid for lots of
overtime hours.
It seems to me a simple yes –
but am I missing somethingÌ
Christopher Cottier
WestVancouver,B.C.NOTHING WASTEDRe %itchen Tricks (Pursuits,
March 7)h Two additions to the
tricks that have solved three prob-
lems for a busy lawyerh eating
more veggies, reduction of food
waste and having more healthy,
ready-to-eat meals.
I make morning smoothies
based on frozen old bananas and
fruit, kale and spinach, ugly car-
rots, and so on. And for a quick
meal at day’s end that satisfies,
without heaviness, I like to make
“clean out the fridge soup,” start-
ed with homemade stock of peel-
ings, skins, stems, stalks, ends of
herbs and older frozen veggies.
Just be prepared for guests to ask
why there is garbage in the fridge.
Barbara LegateLondon,Ont.LETTERSTOTHEEDITOR
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