ETFO Member Validation Sticker, Health & Wellness PD Event; Happy Holidays

Once again, the 2018 ETFO member validation sticker will be mailed to members' homes in the winter edition of VOICE magazine.
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We are very happy to announce our next PD Event which will focus on Health and Wellness taking place on January 25th, 2018 from 4:30 PM - 7:30 PM, at the BMO Centre, 295 Rectory Street in London.  Full dinner is included for TVOT members.

Workshops being offered are:

I.  Brain Breaks in the Mindful Classroom

II. Simple Can Be Fun! Daily Physical Activity and Physical Education Strategies for the Occasional Teacher

III. Physical Education for All:  Engagement and Skill Development for all your Students

Please go to www.etfotvot.com to register.
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Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all our members.
The TVOT Office will be closed during the Christmas Break and re-open when classes resume in January.
Should you have an emergency which requires Provincial ETFO assistance, please call 1-888-838-3836.
Enjoy your Winter edition of our Newsletter and we look forward to serving you in the New Year.

Collapsed Classes/Coverage Assignments; January PD Day; Returning from a Mat Leave; Inclement Weather

Collapsed Classes / Coverage Assignments
In times of inclement weather, classes are often collapsed. Per Articles L18.02 & Article L18.03, the Occasional Teacher (OT), is to follow the exact time-table of the teacher they were hired to replace. Where an OT is hired for coverage purposes, that OT shall cover no more than 1 (one) Supervisory Duty.
Please don't hesitate to contact our office with any questions (519)641-3936.
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January 19, 2018 is a PD Day

Did you know that if you are a daily OT or in a long-term assignment of less than .5, you can be paid on Board professional development days as if you were working that day? This year, daily OTs have access to 6 half-days of paid PD (a half time LTO can access 3 half-days). One half-day must be reserved for mandatory training which will be posted in April, but registration is now open on the Employee Portal for Friday, January 19th.  There should be something for everyone in the selection, so we encourage you to have a look and register soon as spots go quickly.
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Returning from a Maternity Leave?
Since seniority in TVDSB is calculated by accumulated number of days worked, be sure to contact Corissa Parker in Human Resources on your return from maternity leave to have your seniority  adjusted to reflect the average number of days you have worked since being hired.  That way you will not be disadvantaged by taking this statutory leave.
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Inclement Weather and OTs/LTOs
The Board no longer routinely closes school when buses are cancelled. Regardless of whether you are in a daily or long-term assignment, the Collective Agreement in Article L10.08 provides that if you are delayed by local weather conditions but arrive at school as soon as possible during the regular working hours, you will not have any deduction of salary. "Local" is defined as the geographic area between your home and work site.  You are encouraged to notify the school to let them know you will be delayed.
Should a LTO not be able to attend school at all due to weather conditions, that LTO can enter an absence using one of their "Act of Nature" days as provided by Article L.9.04. This time will be deducted from the 5 care days (pro-rated for part-time and part-year assignments).
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Merrymount donations from Fall General Meeting; Award to Sandi Douglas; Renewed Math Strategy (RMS) Survey

Donations from TVOT members to Merrymount Children's Centre

On behalf of Merrymount Family Support and Crisis Centre, we thank those who so generously donated two teeming  tables of items to assist this unique facility serving more than 8000 families and children each year. 

We know they very much appreciate these items from our Fall General Meeting participants.

It was a pleasure to meet so many members this evening, many who came after working all day.

We very much appreciate your support!

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Outstanding Service to the Local Award to Sandi Douglas

Though it may seem peculiar for the Union to give an award to someone who has spent their career working for the Employer, your Executive was honoured to recognize former TVDSB Staffing Officer, Sandi Douglas for her years of fielding calls and later emails from tens of thousands of our members, generally with patience, professionalism and consideration.  Sandi enhanced the working lives of our members and helped us in the Local to meet the needs of our membership.  Congratulations Sandi!








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The Ministry of Education is currently reviewing the Renewed Math Strategy (RMS). ETFO is a part of the RMS workgroup which is assisting with the review. The workgroup feels it is critical to gather data from frontline educators to tap into their experience of the implementation the RMS since September 2016. This will assist the Ministry in making modifications to the strategy in years two and three. While the survey will be anonymous, respondents will include demographic information so that the survey findings can be generalized to different educator groups (e.g., elementary, secondary, lead teacher, administrator, level of math support at the school, etc.).  ETFO and the affiliates have provided feedback on the survey questions. Please go to the following link to take the survey:  Renewed Math Strategy Survey

- The survey takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete.
- Participation is voluntary.
- Individual respondents will remain anonymous. Information will be aggregated and summarized for sharing.
- If you receive multiple invitations to complete the survey, please do so only once.
- The survey will remain open for the month of December.

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