Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Paid PD Day, Columbia Sportswear Invitation; Truth about Reg. 274

More than $700 is yours - don't leave it behind!
Do you realize that your six half days of Paid PD (including the half-day reserved for mandatory online training) totals over $700 of salary? Are you aware that you will also receive 3 days of seniority credit, pension credit, three days of the ten needed to remain on the elementary list and 24 hours of credit for purposes of Employment Insurance? Do you know that your Thames Valley OT Local has negotiated the most paid PD of any Board in the Province?
Registration is open for the next paid session on February 26.  Please register via the Employee Portal directly.
  • Click on "Conference/Session Registrations"
  • Scroll down to Elementary Occasional Teacher PD (2018-2019)
  • Click on "Register"
  • Review the session descriptions by clicking on the session title, and indicate which sessions you would like by clicking into the small circle on the left.
  • Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on "Submit/Continue"
  • We recommend that you print your timetable for your records.
At the time a paid professional activity is offered, Occasional Teachers on an LTO or permanent contract with an FTE of 0.5 or higher are not eligible for paid PD. Members in assignments of less than .5 FTE are eligible for half of the paid PD opportunities.  Please remember to submit a Reflection Form at the end of the session in order to drive the payment process (forms will be available at each session).
Please do not hesitate to contact the OT Office or TVDSB Staff Development if you have any questions.
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It's that time - You will find your Columbia Sportswear Employee Store Invitation on the ETFOTVOT website under member services.

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Learn The Truth About Regulation 274 - 

Before 2012 when this hiring legislation came into effect, Boards of Education were notorious for hiring according to nepotism and favouritism.  This Local had already identified a large number of Occasional Teachers in our membership who were very successful in long-term assignments but had difficulty even gaining interviews for permanent positions. They did a great job in their LTOs at one school so they usually got first chance there for full year long-term assignments, thus they were only known in one school -  unless that school had a vacancy for a permanent position, they would not be called to interview. They were exceptional Occasional Teachers who were unknown to the rest of the system.
Though Regulation 274 is far from perfect (we do not agree with screening for a LTO List) it has made hiring practices more accountable and the path to permanent positions, more predictable. 
As we approach this next round of bargaining, be informed.  We encourage all members to check out the independent report commissioned by the Ministry of Education in 2013 available at this link: www.etfo.ca/defendingworkingconditions/bargainingandagreements/pages/reg274.aspx