Mario Spagnuolo, a teacher and president of the Greater Essex County Teacher Local, has been re-elected to the provincial Executive of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO). Spagnuolo was first elected to the ETFO provincial Executive in 2017.
Close to 700 delegates at the annual meeting of the ETFO in Toronto elected their provincial executive for 2023-2025.
"As we celebrate our 25 years as a strong, dynamic union, we must also continue to fight for frontline educators facing increased, daily pressures, reduced support, and government funding cuts," Spagnuolo said. "Only together, as a collective, can we protect and promote the promise of a great public education system for all children."
After obtaining his bachelor of education, Spagnuolo began his teaching career in 2001 in the town of Essex, teaching French as a Second Language to students in grades 4 through 8. He has served as president, first vice-president, chief negotiator, and member of the collective bargaining committee for the Greater Essex County Teacher Local.
At the provincial level, Spagnuolo has served as a member of ETFO’s Budget Committee and Representative Council Steering Committee. He has also served on the French as a second language, and professional relations and discipline standing committees.
The annual meeting of the ETFO comes as most Ontario elementary and secondary teachers are calling for a strike vote in the fall in an effort to push stalled bargaining with the provincial government forward.
In a statement issued Monday, ETFO, who represents about 83,000 public school teachers as well as support personnel, said these votes will take place across the province from mid-September to mid-October.
In a document provided to ETFO members in June and obtained by CTV News, details of of the union's key negotiation points show the province offered a 1.25 per cent increase for each year of the four year agreement, totalling five per cent.
Meanwhile, the same document shows the union was seeking a one per cent increase annually, plus a cost of living adjustment.