Publication Name: School Board Update

Welcome Back to School!

· 14 min read

With this edition of our School Board Update, we’d like to welcome you back to a new school year. In this Update, we discuss a recent policy of the Ontario Human Rights Commission with respect to accessing education for students with disabilities, which notes that while advances have been made in this area, there is still much work to be done.

Recent Legislative Initiatives of Interest to School Boards

· 10 min read

Recent legislative changes in Ontario will have a significant impact on school boards. First, school boards will now be required to adopt a code of conduct that applies to trustees. Second, as of January 1, 2018, entitlement to benefits for chronic mental stress is compensable under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997…

Arbitrator Confirms that a Teacher on Voluntary Unpaid Leave is Not Entitled to Sick Leave Until She Makes a Bona Fide Return to Work

· 4 min read

In a decision dated February 20, 2018, Arbitrator William Kaplan dismissed a grievance brought by the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association (OECTA) concerning a teacher’s entitlement to sick leave when, following a voluntary unpaid non-statutory leave of absence, she is unable to return to work due to an intervening illness or injury.

Human Rights Tribunal Dismisses Special Education Human Rights Application, No Prima Facie Case of Discrimination Found

· 8 min read

In a recent decision, U.M. v. York Region District School Board, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (Tribunal) dismissed an application brought against the Respondent school board which alleged that it had discriminated against two students (U.M and M.M.) in the delivery of educational services. This decision confirms that in special education situations, a school board is obliged to act in the interests of the students with respect to educational decisions; while it should communicate with parents, those educational decisions are not generally subject to parental control. Learn more in this School Board Update.

Court of Appeal Reiterates that a Sincerely Held Belief is Insufficient to Found a Violation of the Charter

· 6 min read

In an important decision which weighs competing rights, the Ontario Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal on the basis that the appellant had failed to provide any evidence that the inclusion of what he referred to as “false teachings” in the school curriculum interfered with or violated his or his children’s religious freedom. Learn more in this School Board Update.

Arbitrator Declares that DECEs Need Not be Scheduled “Side By Side” with FDK Teachers

· 9 min read

In an arbitration award released on October 13, 2017, Arbitrator Russell Goodfellow dismissed a grievance brought by the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association (OECTA) concerning the scheduling of breaks accorded to Designated Early Childhood Educators (DECEs) under the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) support staff collective agreements applicable to them. Arbitrator Goodfellow declined to follow the controversial path taken by Arbitrator George Surdykowski in a 2014 decision involving the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board (Surdykowski Award) and has established a very useful precedent for school boards to employ. In this School Board Update, we review this important award.

Back to School Edition – Student-Focused Case Law and Legislative Update

· 16 min read

Welcome back to school! We hope everyone enjoyed a restful summer season. To kick off the school year, we bring you the latest edition of our School Board Update with particular emphasis on legislation and decisions involving the student body…