Eleven Ottawa schools won’t field fall sports teams as teachers refuse to participate in extracurricular activities to protest an anti-strike bill passed by the Ontario provincial government.
Monday was the deadline for schools to register sports. The following high schools failed to do so: A.Y. Jackson, Bell, Hillcrest, Nepean, Osgoode, Rideau, Ridgemont, South Carleton, West Carleton, and Woodroffe.
Other schools are still fielding teams, however, fewer than in past years. For example, Merivale High School managed to cobble together a rugby team but it’s only one of six sports that will be offered this semester.
The lack of teams comes down to teachers’ refusal to participate in extracurricular activities as a sign of defiance against a bill passed by Dalton McGuinty’s provincial government that ban teachers’ from striking, and freezes their wages for two years.
The school board is considering whether parents should be allowed to coach sports teams on their own.
“Our district procedure does allow for parents to be full coaches of teams and we’ll be approaching those possibilities in the coming weeks,” said Ottawa-Carleton Director of Education Jennifer Adams.
With a report from CTV Ottawa’s Joanne Schnurr
