The president of the Ontario Elementary Public School Teachers' Union said today, Tuesday, that they rejected the province's offer to go to arbitration to avoid a strike.

Karen Brown, president of the Ontario Elementary Teachers' Federation, stated that the union will instead apply for reconciliation.

Last week, the province and the union representing English secondary school teachers agreed to negotiate until the end of October and send outstanding issues to arbitration.

Education Minister Stephen Lecce urged the other three teachers' unions to accept the same deal that avoids a strike.

Brown said that teachers are rejecting this deal.

She added during a press conference today, "This government is trying to bully and impose another person's agreement, the terms and conditions of someone else, on our members."

She stated that the path of arbitration that the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation agreed to follow is not something members of the elementary teachers' union want to pursue.

Brown continued, "At this stage of bargaining, binding arbitration throws the dice on the rights and entitlements that our members have fought hard for. The Ford government is currently demanding significant cuts to sick leave benefits and professional development. Binding arbitration means that the arbitrator is a hundred percent in control."

She mentioned that the best chance to eliminate those cuts is through bargaining.

Brown added that the union also prefers to deal with some issues through bargaining, pointing out that arbitration will not address violence in schools, employment and retention issues, and the challenges facing the blended learning model and support for special education.

Brown affirmed that Lecce created a "false narrative" over the past week stating that arbitration is the solution to fixing the negotiation process.

Brown said, "We have the right under the Ontario Labour Relations Board to go through the full negotiation process, to pressure them to sit at the bargaining table."

She noted that the pace of negotiations with the government has become unacceptably slow. She stated that no progress has been made in reaching an agreement during 30 meetings over the past year, which is why the union is applying for reconciliation to settle some key issues.

She clarified that the union is also planning to hold a strike vote in September.

For his part, Lecce confirmed that the government has made "every effort" to reach an agreement with the teachers and urged the union to accept its latest offer.

He wrote in a statement, "We initially offered private mediation to the teachers, but the union rejected it. Then, we offered a new proposal to continue negotiations and send outstanding issues to a mutually agreed-upon interest arbitrator that keeps kids in the classroom, which the teachers also rejected."

He said the union decided to "move forward with an unnecessary strike, instead of negotiating a deal that keeps kids in classrooms."

The unions representing teachers in the French and Catholic systems also stated that arbitration is not for them. Both plan to hold a strike vote at some point this fall.