As I told members of this chamber yesterday, I have the unique position of being able to see legislation before this House from an independent lens. I can be genuine in my approach, and I have nothing to protect or defend but those interests of my constituents.

I’m a bit cranky with what’s going on here. Who here actually cares about our education workers? Who here actually cares about our students? We have one side of this House who cares about getting even with unions and is, again, threatening the “notwithstanding” clause, and we have another side that encourages political action.

I will give credit to my colleague from Guelph, who, yesterday, encouraged this House to work together, and I was heartened to hear that negotiations had picked up again.

I do find it convenient that there has been all sorts of talk in the past few days about the need to have our students in school. Many of the ministers opposite will know that throughout the pandemic, I was the person coming to them very concerned about the mental health of our young people, and my concerns, at that time, fell on deaf ears.

A word of warning to our education workers: If you decide to walk off the job and the lives of students are severely impacted, you will be blamed, and your union will wear the wrath of Ontario parents. At the same time, the union will have given this government exactly what they wished for. Merry Christmas.

To this government, to CUPE: Stop using some of the province’s lowest-paid workers and stop using our kids as political pawns.

Speaker, it’s time every person in this chamber comes together to tone down the rhetoric, to get the job done. In my maiden speech, I asked members of this House to do politics differently. Today would be a good day to start.

That’s exactly why we want to keep them in class. We’ll do whatever it takes to keep students in class, where they belong. We want parents to know that we’re doing everything we can to make sure their child doesn’t miss a single day of class. We’re at the table with a fair and reasonable offer—as a matter of fact, very fair; the best in the country—and yet, the union refuses to withdraw the strike notice.

Mr. Speaker, we don’t want to be here. No one wants to be here and have to do this. We have heard from countless parents, endless parents. As a matter of fact, there has never been an issue in four and a half years that I have had more emails about, saying, “Make sure my kids stay in the class,” every single day. We know how difficult the pandemic has been on our children, but we need CUPE to withdraw the strike threat. I’m not going to tolerate students being out of the classroom for even one day. The NDP and the Liberals—

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Our offer maintains the most generous—I’m going to repeat that—the most generous pension and benefit plan in the entire country, including 131 paid sick days, unheard of anywhere. We are seeing school boards confirm that the doors will be closed if CUPE goes on strike. I can assure you, Mr. Speaker, we won’t let that happen. Nothing matters more right now than ensuring the students remain in the classroom.

We’re investing over $26.6 billion in public education, the single largest investment in Ontario history, Mr. Speaker. Education funding for this—

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Again to the Premier: The government’s use of the “notwithstanding” clause to ban workers from collective bargaining is wrong. It’s something the Prime Minister and I seem to agree on, and I don’t agree with him on almost anything.

Here’s what the Prime Minister had to say—your good buddy: “The suspension of people’s rights is something you should only do in the most exceptional circumstances, and I really hope that all politicians call out the overuse of the ‘notwithstanding’ clause to suspend people’s rights and freedoms.”

The Premier is fond of standing shoulder to shoulder with the Prime Minister. I’ve seen the photos. So will the Premier change tack today, join the Prime Minister—his good friend—and condemn the use of the “notwithstanding” clause?

LIUNA was first out of the gate in endorsing Ford last election, but had harsh words for this government. International vice-president Joe Mancinelli: “On behalf of LIUNA, we call on Minister” Lecce “to revoke anti-union legislation and restore the collective bargaining rights of CUPE members and act in good faith to reach an agreement that prioritizes both keeping students in school and the rights and respect of all workers.”

So to the Premier: Will he listen to his friends at LIUNA and rip up Bill 28?

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Let me remind the member opposite that children in this province should have rights too, and they should be in school in this province.

Mr. Speaker, we have been clear—

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We have an obligation to ensure stability. We asked the union to bring forth a proposal that withdraws a strike on Friday. We gave them multiple opportunities to do so, and yesterday night, at 10 p.m., hearing from the mediator and through the mediator—

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Mr. Speaker, so long as the union regrettably proceeds with this unacceptable strike, the government will have no choice but to proceed with legislation to avert a strike and keep these kids in the classroom, where they belong.

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We have been clear: We believe children should be in the classroom. They have to be in school every day, after two years of disruption and the strikes that preceded it just a few years ago.

We brought forth a reasonable, fair offer to the union: 10% over four years, maintaining benefits and pensions and sick leave, which most people in this economy do not have. Even with that said, we told the union, “Rescind this strike on Friday that impacts every single—

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Mr. Speaker, it was over a decade ago that the former Liberal government consented in a union negotiation to a regressive regulation called O. Reg. 274, a regulation that permitted exclusive hiring and promotion in Ontario based on seniority—

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We believe new educators, young educators and those with the qualifications should triumph in hiring, not someone who’s simply been in the union the longest. This is about quality. This is about ensuring the best staff member could inspire a child. That’s why we removed this regulation, which even the former Liberal Premier agreed went too far. The Ontario Principals’ Council said they supported it, parents support it, and the government will continue to do everything possible to enshrine quality in the schools of this province.

I want to echo the member opposite’s sentiment of gratitude to the people who work in our schools. That’s why we’ve hired 7,000 since we came to office. It’s why in this proposal we’re going to hire 1,800 more. We’re going to increase their wages every single year—2.5% every single year, 10 points over four years. We’re going to maintain their pension and their benefits and their sick leave program of 131 days. That is a demonstration of commitment to the workers.

We believe children in this province should be in school. That should not be a position which we disagree with. The Premier asked a simple question: Will you vote for a bill that ensures stability for the kids we all represent in this province?

I know that, for many of these workers, they want to be with their kids. That’s why I’m urging the leadership of the union to withdraw this strike that will impact that member, the children in his riding and all of our ridings.

Two million kids will be out of class Friday because the union has decided alone to proceed with a strike that no one wants or should accept. These kids should be in school. They’ve been through the incredible difficulty of pandemic disruptions and strikes that preceded it.

At what point does a government say, “Enough”? These kids deserve to be in school. They have rights too, and we will stand up to ensure stability for every single child in this province, Speaker.

We’ve been abundantly clear: We would have preferred a voluntary option. It was our government that got a voluntary agreement with every education union just two and a half years ago.

Mr. Speaker, when the union on Sunday announces unilaterally that they will strike on Friday, what are the options before a government other than introducing legislation to avert a strike and deliver stability for children? If the Liberals’ and New Democrats’ position is to hope for the best with a deal, and if the union does not withdraw a strike, then we’re putting kids in a perilous position. Clearly, this union is going to strike; it was their intention all along.

We have an obligation to stand up for children, to keep them in school and to provide some stability for their families, for their working parents and for the kids of this province.

We are committed to investing more in public education—680 million more dollars this year, compared to last year. What we’re also committed to is standing up and keeping kids in the classroom.

We are listening to the priorities and voices of parents who demand their children are in school. That is why we are here today, reacting to a union’s decision to strike on Friday, a strike which I would hope none of us would support.

The fact is, Speaker, they are proceeding with a strike on Friday, against the interests of two million children, even after the government urged them to withdraw the strike, to bring forth a reasonable offer and to negotiate a deal that we can all live with. But here we are, Speaker, two days before a strike that will impact so many of the kids of this province, many of whom are vulnerable and should be in our schools.

We are bringing forth legislation before this House that will provide stability for parents, realizing that the preference of the government is a voluntary option. When unions continue to discuss a path to a strike, we will move forward on a path to provide stability for kids.

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Mr. Speaker, let us be clear: We didn’t want to be here. We would have preferred a voluntary option. We gave the union a path to avert a strike that they themselves put the province on.

In response to their action of striking on Friday, with millions of kids in the crosshairs, we brought forth the bill as a last resort to ensure children remain in school. I would have hoped those members, their leadership and the people of Ontario would understand: We are committed to their work, but we’re also committed to keeping kids in school.