Ontario principals argue system limits ability to build relationships with teachers: Study
While many Ontario teachers are in the midst of negotiating a new collective agreement, a recent study suggests many of their principals and vice-principals want — and need — more support when it comes to labour relations.
The survey by Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont., looked at the responses of 280 school administrators in Ontario.
It found while some school boards offer specific professional development in labour relations, others offer virtually nothing.
The inconsistency is surprising given the trend toward more provincewide collective bargaining, says the study’s author, Brendan Sweeney.
“Since 2008, there are more similarities in collective agreements than in recent memory,” he says. “Yet, at the same time, there are persistent inconsistencies in relationships at boards across the province. You have 70 school boards with 70 sets of labour relations.”
As a result, while many principals and vice-principals would rather resolve conflicts and grievances locally, they’re often unsure of themselves or left frustrated when the process is overtaken by union representatives and school board superintendents.
“The dynamic between school staff and senior staff has gradually deteriorated. HR superintendent is a root cause. I hope our issue is predominantly caused by personal incompetency, (sic) my fear is that the impact upon personnel issues will become entrenched or systemic,” one respondent wrote.
“Many senior staff do not want principals to have the autonomy to discuss issues or solutions with other stakeholders,” another respondent added. “Dialogue is significantly restricted. The us/them mentality is enforced by senior staff. Collaboration and transparency appear to be the biggest enemy.”
“There is currently a breakdown in relationships (trust) between the board and principals. This has been a deciding factor in my decision to retire,” another principal suggested.
Many principals and vice-principals may also be “reluctant managers,” Sweeney says. They come straight from the classroom with only a few hours of human resources training.
“If you step into a big high school, there may be 60 teachers, 40 support staff, a large budget and a large building,” he says. “To go in and feel your way through, the human resources/ labour relations training is inadequate.”
Some school boards are attempting to address this deficit.
While Limestone District School Board (LDSB), which includes Kingston and surrounding area, doesn’t offer specific labour relations training for school administrators, it does make an effort to address potential issues, according to Sue McWilliams, LDSB human resources manager.
For example, whenever a new collective agreement is reached, school administrators are offered sessions that address new language and what it means, and they’re updated regularly when arbitration decisions change the interpretation.
At times, the school board has even held mock arbitration sessions to help principals and vice-principals understand how an arbitrator might perceive a grievance.
There’s also a fairly open communications policy, McWilliams says, which means school administrators don’t hesitate to call her, the superintendent or the union directly before situations escalate.
“As a result, very few grievances ever go to arbitration,” she says.
That’s not the case with some other school boards, according to the study’s respondents. Many said while they have a clear understanding of the collective agreement, they’re prevented from being involved.
“Principals usually are not informed of a grievance until it has been filed by the local bargaining reps. Teachers don’t often initiate the grievance. They may not even agree that a grievance is necessary, but local officials take it to board personnel on their own,” wrote one administrator.
“There is insufficient time for communication in the early stages due to other time commitments, and then things have moved past the informal stage, the process has moved forward too quickly and other agencies become involved,” another administrator added.
Time is an issue for many administrators, especially those in the public elementary system, says Sweeney. The study found they perceive the labour relations environment as the most challenging.
The breadth of responsibility may be greater for them, and they’re more likely to be involved in daily interactions with parents and students, leaving less time for administration. Elementary administrators are also more likely to work in smaller schools with no vice-principals.
The Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (ETFO) was the last of the four teachers’ unions to reach an agreement in the last round of bargaining, and they saw a lower wage increase, the study notes.
