OSSTF/FEESO Stands Up for Charter Rights and Launches Court Challenge

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Oct. 11, 2012) - The Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation (OSSTF/FEESO) has filed a legal challenge against the Ontario government over its passage of Bill 115, Putting Students First Act.

"The McGuinty government has left us with little choice but to pursue legal action in order to protect the Charter rights of our members and of all Ontarians," said OSSTF/FEESO President Ken Coran. "The expectation of all citizens is for their government to follow the rules that are laid out in our Constitution. Today, we begin a process to hold this government accountable to those rules."

"The Premier and the Minister of Education were strongly advised by many groups, including the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, that Bill 115 violates the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, therefore making it unconstitutional," continued Coran.

Actions and announcements by the McGuinty government and Conservative leader Tim Hudak would lead many to speculate that there is a greater agenda to roll back the rights of workers in Ontario in the name of austerity and deficit cutting.

"We welcome the support of our colleagues in the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario (ETFO), the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE)-Ontario, and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), all of whom are filing legal challenges. Many other individuals and organizations continue to express their outrage at the passage of Bill 115 and any future plans by the McGuinty government for similar attacks against other Ontario workers."

Coran concluded, "McGuinty and Hudak have chosen to defy the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Today, we have chosen to defend it."

OSSTF/FEESO, founded in 1919, has 60,000 members across Ontario. They include public high school teachers, occasional teachers, educational assistants, continuing education teachers and instructors, early childhood educators, psychologists, secretaries, speech-language pathologists, social workers, plant support personnel, university support staff, and many others in education.