Covid Attestations: Math Proficiency Test for recent grads; Indigenous Women's Mentorship; Benefits for LTOs; Earn While you Learn

Covid-19 Vaccination Attestations -

Just a reminder that the deadline for all TVDSB staff to complete their mandatory vaccine attestation was September 10th. 

Those members who have not done this, will not be allowed to work for the Board.

The choices provided are:

- I am fully vaccinated (in which case you attach your vaccine receipt)

- I am in progress to obtain full vaccination

- I am not vaccinated due to medical reason (documentation will be required)

- I am not vaccinated and will participate in the education and testing program as outlined by the Ministry

- I am choosing to not attest and will participate in the education and testing program as outlined by the Ministry.

The Ontario Human Rights Commission has just released a policy statement regarding vaccine mandates which can be found at OHRC Policy Statement Sept. 22, 2021

Be advised that Regulation 364/20 of the Re-Opening Act, 2020 (A Flexible Response to Covid-19 Act), recently amended by Regulation 577/21, requires all school Boards to comply with directions, advice and guidance from the Medical Officer of Health.

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IMPORTANT for Teachers who Graduated on or after March 31, 2020

As of January 1, 2022, all new Teachers will be required to pass a Math Proficiency Test/MPT in order to be certified with the Ontario College of Teachers/OCT.

The Ontario Teachers Federation is offering Math Office Hours to support beginning Teachers and Teacher candidates with this test. You can check out archived sessions at Math Office Hours

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New: Indigenous Women's Mentorship Program

Provincial ETFO is hosting a one year, multi-session program for 20 Indigenous women mentees to work alongside mentors towards goals of leadership in ETFO and reconciliation through the lens of Etuaptmumk, two-eyed seeing.

Registration is now open for both mentors and mentees with a deadline of October first so for more information please contact Sabrina Sawyer .

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Provincial ETFO has just released Covid-19 FAQ#1 -

Topics include - 

• - ventilation in classrooms?
• - concerns about PPD?
• - work refusals?
• - concerns about rapid antigen testing?

Make sure to register to receive the ETFO Provincial Newsletters

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Access to Benefits for LTOs -

LTOs in full year, full-time long-term assignments have access to benefits for the duration of their assignments. Those in assignments without posted end dates will have an opportunity to enroll in the program after they have taught 90 calendar days.

I both situations, information about enrolling is sent to those eligible LTOs via their TVDSB Outlook account. For details and a useful FAQ page about coverage etc., go to ETFO ELHT Benefits .

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Did You Know that You Can Earn While You Learn?

Are you aware that in TVDSB, Occasional Teachers have access to 4 half-days of paid PD. This means you can earn teaching credit, EI credit etc. while participating in PD at a time convenient to you.  NB. 1) This is in addition to the Mandatory 14 modules that are due September 30th for a half-day's pay. 2) LTOs in assignments greater than .5 are not eligible. 3) Retirees must reserve a day in June as completion of the mandatory modules that are posted in the Spring, is paid at the end of June as teaching time .

Paid PD options are found in the Employee Portal > Conference/Session > Registrations > Elementary Occasional Teacher PD. Click on "Register" to find out what is on offer. Currently the only online options are "Kindergarten: Inquiring Minds" and "Comprehensive Literacy - Reading." There are also 2 in-person sessions being offered in schools on this Friday's PD. NB: These 2 Sept. 24th sessions require prior permission from school Principals.

These sessions will be expanded on greatly as the year progresses so don't leave this money on the table.

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14 Modules due September 30th; Open an Account with ETFO Provincial; Copyrights; Opportunities for registered Members

 H&S Training due September 30th for a half day's pay -

Just a reminder to TVOT members that you must complete all of the following online modules, available in the Employee Portal under "Employee Training" . You can check to see that your completed modules have been recorded by logging back into the Employee Portal. If the check marks are still in place, then they have been successfully received.

Awareness Training 2021 - 2022 September Mandatory Training Links coming soon! This is the mandatory training that is required for the 2021 - 2022 school year. The training includes COVID Awareness 2021 - 2022, September - December Safety Spotlight, and IPOC training requirements.
COVID Awareness 2021 - 2022
Employee Incident Reporting and Investigation Form - Entering an Incident
October - Fire Code Training - Staff
November - Head Injury Prevention
December - Slips, Trips and Falls
Violence Awareness Video 1 - Legislation
Violence Awareness Video 2 - General Awareness
Employee Health and Safety Handbook
IPOC Roles and Responsibilities Updated Video
Anaphylaxis
Asthma
Diabetes Type 1
Epilepsy
Concussion Training

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Your ETFO Provincial Account 

TVOT members are encouraged to ensure that their membership information is accurate with ETFO Provincial. You can do this at ETFO Member Records .

While you are there, take time to explore their new website where there is always lots of pertinent information and opportunities for ETFO Teachers, Occasional Teachers and other education workers.

ETFO Webcasts - 

Four new webcasts have been added to the Provincial website  which may be of interest to members:

• Virtual Learning 101 for Occasional Teachers
• Mindfulness
• Community Building - Early Years/Primary
• Community Building - Junior/Intermediate 

As with the other webcasts there, lesson plans are included.

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Teachers need to consider if the materials they are planning to use are allowed without copyright infringement. The works of others cannot be used without permission unless the federal Copyright Act allows such usage. Be sure to check at Fair Deal Decison Dealing Tool first to ensure you are not in violation.

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Resource Rebate and Professional Learning Development Fund/PLDF - 

Again this school year, TVOT members who have registered on the TVOT Website will have access to applications forms for our $50 Resource Rebate (formerly Book Rebate) for any resource which is related to your professional practice.

As well, if you have been a member of the TVOT Local for at least twelve months, then you are eligible for the Professional Learning Development Fund/PLDF subsidy of $350 for any course which is applicable to your professional practice. Applications must be submitted prior to the course so as to ensure that funding in the budget line is still available. 

Check out our website for further details.

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Columbia Outlet Store Invitation; Paid Mandatory Covid Awareness Training; Covid Attestation; LOA from the List; Paid Sick Leave due to Covid-19

 

Welcome Back to our WEDNESDAY BLOG - Hopefully members enjoyed a wonderful summer and everyone is relaxed and recharged with the energy needed to start this new school year - it promises to be another challenging one as Covid persists. 

So that members do not miss any of this important information, please be aware -

- MANDTORY 1/2 day SAFETY TRAINING - Covid Awareness 2021-2022: All TVDSB staff must complete this mandatory training. Occasional Teachers will receive payment for a half-day and must document completion by Thursday, September 30th.    Log into the Employee Portal and click on "Employee Training". and the September Mandatory Training is half-way down the page. Be sure to click "Submit" once you have finished. Log back into the area and if the checkmarks are still there, then it has been recorded as completed.

- COVID ATTESTATION - Government Regulations require that all members (all educational staff) must complete a Covid Attestation by Friday, September 10th at 4 PM. This is available in the Employee Portal in the blue left hand border under "Covid 19 Applications". (Same place where staff records their screening.)  TVOT members need to be aware that Provincial ETFO has reviewed the government's policy with legal counsel to determine whether it violates our rights or school boards' obligations to comply with privacy legislation, human rights legislation, Charter obligations etc. or our Collective Agreements.  The review concluded that school boards can require this disclosure but must ensure that the information is protected from unauthorized disclosure and in only used for the purpose for which it has been collected. In TVDSB, this and all medical information is kept confidential and accessible only to the Abilities and Wellness department. This is the same department that safeguards all staff medical information and notes.

- UNPAID LEAVES - Elementary Occasional Teachers may request up to 2 years unpaid leave of absence from the OT List as provided by our Collective Agreement. No reason need be provided. The form is available in the Employee Portal in the LaserFiche section of the left border. The application requires the name of your supervisor, Elisha Greenham.  This leave can be requested no later than Thursday, December 30th to be effective for the entire school year. Otherwise members are required to teach at least ten (10) full days in order to remain on the OT List. 

Pocket Calendars and Autumn Newsletter - These will be mailed at month's end to all TVOT members who have kept their contact information with TVDSB up to date (a condition of your employment).  We know members would like to have these resources for September, but we are delayed as we must await this information from the Board. 

Columbia Outlet Store Autumn Invitation

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COVID-19 Putting Workers First Act, 2021 - paid leave extended to Dec. 31, 2021

Daily Occasional Teachers may have access the three paid days of leave under Bill 248:

A qualified employee would be entitled to a paid leave of absence (not to exceed $200 per day) under Bill 284 because of one or more of the following reasons:

 

·         the employee is under individual medical investigation, supervision or treatment for COVID-19, including being vaccinated or recovering from vaccination;

·         the employee is acting in accordance with a section 22 or section 35 order under the Health Protection and Promotion Act that relates to COVID-19 (e.g., their workplace is shut down by a Public Health Unit and they are directed to self-isolate, etc.);

·         the employee is in quarantine or isolation as a result of information or direction from a Public Health Unit official, a qualified medical practitioner, Telehealth Ontario, the Government of Ontario, the Government of Canada, a municipal council or board of health;

·         the employee is given a direction by their employer in response to a concern that the employee may expose others in the workplace to COVID-19; and

·         the employee is providing care for a family member (i.e., dependent) who is under medical investigation, is receiving treatment or is under quarantine/isolation due to COVID-19.

Dependents include: 

·         employee’s spouse;

·         parent, step-parent, foster parent of the employee or employee’s spouse;

·         child, step-child, foster child of the employee or employee’s spouse;

·         child under legal guardianship of the employee or employee’s spouse;

·         brother, step-brother, sister or step-sister of the employee;

·         grandparent, step-grandparent, grandchild or step-grandchild of the employee or employee’s spouse;

·         brother-in-law, step-brother-in-law, sister-in-law or step-sister-in-law of the employee;

·         son-in-law or daughter-in-law of the employee or employee’s spouse;

·         uncle or aunt of the employee or employee’s spouse;

·         nephew or niece of the employee or employee’s spouse;

·         spouse of the employee’s grandchild, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece;

·         a person who considers the employee to be like a family member; and/or

·         any individual prescribed as a family member.

Application for payment under this program is made to the Employer.

Longer Term Absences due to Covid-19 

The Government of Canada currently offers the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CSRB). 

Information regarding the CSRB can be accessed here: CRSB

LTO and Permanent Hiring; Days Needed to Stay on the List; Important Deadlines;

 TVDSB Hiring Process Announced for the Summer

By now, you have read the information about summer hiring to LTO and permanent positions that was posted by TVDSB in Outlook this week. 

The Union agrees with the many members who have contacted us that with the loss of a path to permanent hire, this is a huge step backwards. Unfortunately with the Ford government's revocation of Regulation 274, Boards are free to develop their own policies so long as they meet the expectations set out in the Ministry's Policy/Program Memorandum 165 and they adhere to any pre-existing terms in Local Collective Agreements. 

As the TVOT Local concluded bargaining in June 2020, five months before the Regulation was revoked, our next opportunity to affect change in hiring will be sometime after August 2022. That being said, the TVOT Collective Agreement does provide that all LTOs must be post-probation and that TVOT members have priority in hiring to permanent positions and LTOs over external hires.

For your information, here is the link to PPM 165 - 

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/extra/eng/ppm/165.html

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Required Number of Days to Remain on the TVDSB elementary OT List

Information was also posted this week by the Board which reduced the number of days needed to remain on the OT List, from 10 days to 7 days for 2020-2021. 

Our Office has heard from many OTs who did not request a full year Leave of Absence, in hopes of being able to get back to in-person teaching some time during this school year.  The Local urges concerned members to complete their mandatory online training, and to participate in the paid PD opportunities that are still available and can be completed at your leisure up until June 29th. If after this you are still short of days then we encourage you to email HR with your rationale after June 30th.  Please send your emails to Jessica Grison Roeder at j.grisonroeder@tvdsb.ca and be sure to include:

• First name
• Last name
• TVDSB employee number 
• Rationale

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It's Up to You

Not only is it a condition of employment that TVOT members must keep their contact information updated in the Employee Portal (Article L6.08 e), but the Local uses this same information to send out our large September mailout. This large mailing includes our newsletter with lots of important information for the coming school year. It also contains your annual Pocket Calendar which provides an at-a-glance list of schools with their contact information and whether they are on a regular or balanced day schedule, your pay dates, important contacts, deadlines etc. 

Please make sure to keep your personal information accurate.

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Deadline is almost here for - 

• Mandatory Online Training
• Offence Declaration etc.
• Paid PD Opportunities 

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Summer Holidays - 

Just a reminder to TVOT members that the Local Union office is funded according to the school year calendar.

Your TVOT President monitors the office email and phone messages on a weekly basis during the holidays but in cases of an emergency, we recommend members contact the ETFO Provincal Office at 1-888-838-3836. 

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This is our last Wednesday Blog until September 2021 so stay safe and keep well everyone!

 

Columbia Sportswear Invitation; ETFO Summer Academy; Where to find your Collective Agreement; Last day of LTO

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- 13 school days remaining and LTOS are expected to attend June 29th 

(further details at end of Blog)

- 13 school days to complete TVDSB Annual WHMIS Review / Offence Declaration / I.T. Declaration / Privacy Declaration (MANDATORY)

 - 13 school days to complete the 15 online training modules in the Employee Portal > Employee Training (MANDATORY)

- 13 school days to take advantage of online PD sessions offered by TVDSB that count for all purposes as teaching time. (These can also be done on evenings and weekends until June 29th.) EARN WHILE YOU LEARN

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Register for these virtual sessions at 

ETFO Summer Academy

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TVDSB Everyone Belongs: Staff Survey

As set out by the Ministry of Education's Equity Action Plan 2017, this survey is to assist TVDSB in better understanding who is working for them in hopes of better supporting their employees and removing barriers. Participation is anonymous. You can find the survey at TVDSB Equity Survey

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ETFO TVOT Occasional Teacher Collective Agreement 2019-2022

Members can now access our TVOT Collective Agreement on our website at ETFOTVOT Local Website . 

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Do LTOs attend school on June 29th?

Yes LTOs attend and will be paid on grid do so long as the permanent Teacher you are replacing is not returning that day because under the terms of new Collective Agreement -

L20.03 A Long-Term Occasional Teacher who is scheduled to work when there is a Professional Activity Day will be paid for the day and will be required to participate in the scheduled professional activity sessions, pro-rated according to the FTE of the assignment. This includes any Professional Activity Day scheduled the last day of school in June provided the permanent Teacher being replaced does not return to work that day.

Have more questions regarding your employment? Contact your ETFO TVOT Local at etfotvot@gmail.com

Islamaphobia in London; TVDSB Job Postings; Ministry Math Proficiency Test

Islamaphobia Lives in London

By now, most in our area are aware that 

Salman Afzaal (46), his wife Madiha Salman (44), their 15 year-old daughter Yumna Afzaal and Salman's mother Talat Afzaal (74) were murdered by the driver of a speeding truck, as the family enjoyed an evening stroll on Sunday.  Their 9 year-old son, Fayez remains in hospital in critical condition.

Words cannot convey our deep sorrow after this horrific act but as London Mayor Ed Holder said at the mosque vigil Tuesday evening: "This was a terrorist attack, an act of mass murder and a grotesque expression of hatred rooted in Islamaphobia. All of us now must confront the question - in what kind of community, what kind of city, and what kind of country will that recovery take place, both physically and spiritually?"

For information on how you can offer support, click on Moving Forward

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UPDATE: TVDSB Job Postings     

Unfortunately, not all the details are yet confirmed, however we can say that TVDSB expects permanent positions to be posted at the end of June and possibly into early July.

LTOs for September will be posted following these, with some Principals requiring interviews and others allowing Human Resources to fill their assignments. Additional positions will be posted mid-August.

TVOT members are encouraged to check their Outlook accounts and this Wednesday Blog for more information about hiring, once the details become available. 

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Getting More Out of Outlook

TVDSB communicates with its staff via Outlook. Occasional Teachers should make a point of checking the Occasional Teacher Group in Outlook on a regular basis. In fact, you can even set up your account so that you receive notices directly to your Outlook inbox. TVDSB Staffing Specialist, Jessica Grison Roeder offers members the following information - 

Where to find LTO Postings:

 SharePoint in Job Postings

OR

Employee Portal, on the right side you will see a link to internal job postings.

 

 

 E-Mail Alerts: Email alerts can be set up on the SharePoint page for new job postings

https://tvdsbo365.sharepoint.com/teams/JobPostingsSite

 

How To Apply:  Apply electronically via your Employee Portal < HRS Applications < Job Applications < Teaching < Select LTO posting you wish to apply, complete the OT Application Form and click “SUBMIT”

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UPDATE: Deadline Extended - Math Proficiendy Test (MPT)

The Ministry of Education has announced that Ontario-trained Teacher candidates who need to pass the Math Proficiency Test/MPT in order to meet their certification requirements, now have until December 31, 2021 to take that test. Once finalized, further information about the extended test window will be available on the Math Proficiency Test  website. 

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Remember - 

If you want to teach for TVDSB next school year, you must complete the Annual WHMIS Review/Offence Declaration/IT Declaration/Privacy Declaration (in the Employee Portal, left hand side).

You must also complete the mandatory online training modules found there on the right hand side under "Employee Training".

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Being Paid on Grid; Summer Academy Registration; ETFO AQ Courses; Infectious Disease Emergency Leave

 

Don't Miss this Deadline to be Paid Appropriately!

Whether you are in a posted LTO or a position that has evolved after replacing the same Teacher in the same assignment, in TVDSB you are entitled to be paid according to your QECO rating and previous post-certification teaching experience. The onus is on you however, to ensure that these documents are submitted to HR prior to July 31st for retroactive adjustment for any long-term assignments that took place that school year.

Please be aware that the QECO application process can take several weeks. Click QECO and follow the instructions or call them at 1-800-385-1030 to request a form. Submit the results to TVDSB Staffing Officer Jessica Grison-Roeder before the end of July or forward a copy of the QECO confirmation card to show that your application is in progress. 

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Register at ETFO Summer Academy

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A reminder that this valuable website is closing - 

For a last chance to access these resources, click on Edugains .

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June is Pride Month - a time for all to make sure our practices include everyone.

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About ETFO AQ Courses

As the Union representing 83,000 educators in Ontario, ETFO has gained a reputation as one of the foremost providers of Teacher professional learning within Canada. ETFO courses are developed by educators who are active in today's classrooms. Course content is practical and well-grounded in effective practice with an appropriate balance between theory and practice. Courses are reviewed regularly to ensure that the key learning, course activities and resources remain current. 

As required by the Ontario College of Teachers/OCT, ETFO AQs require 125 hours of study. With the exception of FSL, course registration is $675 (FSL requires a Second Language Proficiency Test which costs an additional $75.00)

For more information check AQs for Teachers by Teachers .

Registration has already opened for some courses.

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Daily OTs and access to Paid Infectious Disease Emergency Leave:  TVOT members are encouraged to check out the memo sent by TVDSB on May 31st via Outlook regarding 3 days of paid sick leave for absences related to Covid between April 19/21 and September 25/21. As LTOs have access to paid sick leave under the provisions of our Collective Agreement, they are not eligible.