Frequently Asked Questions
- How do I get a new or replacement OECTA card?
- Canelementary teachers on class trips switch planning times?
- Can I start my CPP at age 60?
- What can I use my personal obligation days for?
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What does personal obligation days may not conflict with the start of school mean?
- Can I take a personal obligation day prior to, or immediately after, a long weekend?
- How many sick days do I have?
- How do I get my QECO rating?
- Where can I get my Religion Part I?
- Can I get financial assistance for workshops and courses?
- How do I apply for Maternity leave?
- How does a Maternity leave affect my TPA?
- How does a Maternity leave affect my eligibility for a Deferred Salary Leave?
- Do Occasional Teachers lose their 'highly recommended for hire' status if they go on Maternity leave?
- I am thinking about retiring
- I am about to retire, should I cancel my LTD?
- Can I place my retirement gratuity in a Tax free Savings Account?
- When do I receive my retirement gratuity?
- After I retire, what options do I have for paying my benefit premium?
- What to do if F&CS investigates your conduct?
- Does an LTO earn sick leave credits?
- How do I obtain a Superintendent's signature for an AQ course?
- What support is available if I am ill or injured?
- What can Early Intervention do for me?
- Email while on a leave
- Do my benefits cover my child who is at university?
- Supply Teacher Assignment in Secondary Schools
- How Many Leaves of Absence Can I Take?
- How Do I Get Reimbursed for Religion Part 1?
How do I get a new or replacement OECTA card?
For any requests received from statutory members where there were no membership fees paid last year, but excluding those members on a statutory leave, as well as requests from new members, their OECTA membership in the Association will be processed once we receive membership dues from the board on their behalf. That means that if a teacher worked in September 2011 we will be able to verify this information once the school board provides OECTA with membership and fee information. This is usually around the 15th of the following month. We encourage these members to contact us at that point.
A member can request a new or replacement OECTA membership card by sending an e-mail message to membership@oecta.on.ca. The member should include the following information in the e-mail request:
- Full name
- OECTA # (if previously issued)
- Home mailing address
- Home phone number
- Board
- Teaching status (full-time, part-time, occasional, etc.)
- If full-time/part-time - name of school
- Teaching panel: elementary or secondary
- OCT # and/or SIN
Membership cards are printed in batches. For full-time and part-time teachers the OECTA cards will be mailed to the Association Representatives for distribution, whereas for occasional teachers the OECTA cards will be mailed to their home mailing address.
Membership card validation stickers for the 2011-2012 school year will be mailed to the Association Staff Representatives for distribution to full-time and part-time teachers. Validation stickers for occasional teachers, who worked in the 2010-2011 school year, will be mailed to their home mailing address. Additionally, the Waterloo unit office will be provided with validation stickers.
Can elementary teachers on class trips switch planning times?
The Collective Agreement identifies the number of minutes of planning time that is assigned to teachers and it is the principal who is responsible to schedule planning time for all teachers within their school. There is an expectation that the schedule for planning time will be honoured throughout the year including those instances when a teacher is absent and an occasional teacher has been assigned.
Through OECTA, a request has been made for Principals to consider teacher requests to switch planning times in situations like the one identified below where a switch will not affect anyone negatively in terms of planning or teaching time:
If teacher A is going on a trip for the morning only and has planning time in the morning, and teacher B is going on a trip in the afternoon and both teachers would like to switch their planning time for the day when the trip is planned.
In this instance, it is the principal’s prerogative to consider this request if both of the classroom teachers and the planning time or FSL teacher assigned to teach in both of these classes all agree to this change.
If the principal is agreeable, it is the principal’s responsibility to facilitate the switch.
Yes. You can start CPP while still working, if you earn less than approximately $900 in two consecutive months. Since money paid in July and August is actually earned previous to the summer, you effectively earn $0.00 during July and August. For more information, go to Service Canada.
What can I use my personal obligation days for?
Personal Obligation Leave days were negotiated in order to provide teachers with the opportunity, without loss of pay or credit, to attend to those urgent personal matters which come up in life. Examples are, but are not limited to, meeting with a lawyer to close the sale of your house, attending a child's doctor appointment, attending a significant family event that is out of town and requires your presence.
Personal Obligation Leave Days are not intended to be used for your own personal doctor appointment, these are sick days. Nor are they to be used for non-urgent matters such as shopping, golfing, etc.
Personal Obligation Leave Days must be pre-booked with your principal, unless in emergency.
They cannot be used in conjunction with a long weekend or an unpaid leave. They may not be taken on a professional activity day, evaluation day, or holiday break (summer, Christmas or March).
What does "personal obligation days may not conflict with the start of school" mean?
The intent of this phrase is to ensure that personal obligation days do not conflict with that time in the new school year or start of semester, when classroom routines are being established. This means that a personal obligation day would not be used on the first or second day of classes. In some cases, this period may be extended a bit, if classes and teacher assignments are being changed, which would disrupt the establishment of regular class routines.
Can I take a personal obligation day prior to, or immediately after, a long weekend?
The contract states that a personal obligation day can not be scheduled on days before or after a break. So a full day, personal obligation day prior to or immediately after a long weekend can not be granted. However, it is the practice to allow a half-day personal obligation leave in the morning prior to a long weekend or in the afternoon after a long weekend - in both cases there is a period of work adjacent to the weekend.
Each year, at the beginning of the year, up to 20 sick days are added to your sick day account as follows:
- if actively at work, then prorated, based on your contract (that is part time versus full time)
- if not working (ie unpaid leave, DSL), no allocation is provided (the exception is a parental/maternity leave – these leaves are treated as if actively working)
- if you are working only part of your contract due to illness and you carried over sick days from the previous year, sick days are allocated based on your contract
- if you are partially working due to illness but exhausted all sick leave in the previous year, then sick leave is prorated to your working status (not on your contract status)
- note: in the case that you return to full teaching status at some point in the school year, a prorated portion of your sick days is restored to you that is based on the remaining portion of the school year
If you have been teaching for a period of time any unused sick days are added to your sick leave bank. Each October, the Board will send you a notice telling you the current number of days you have available, as well as your statement of experience, category rating and pay scale.
Notwithstanding the Employee Attendance Support Program, the number of days in your sick bank are available to you for use under the provisions of the Collective Agreement, Article 5.15 in the Secondary agreement and 5.15 through 5.21 in the Elementary agreement.
Sick leave is available to you for personal illness on any work day regardless of its proximity to holidays or professional activity days or exam days.
You may be required to provide a doctors note to confirm your reason for absence. A note requested by the Board will be paid for by the Board.
Application forms for QECO ratings can be found at www.qeco.on.ca. To apply for a QECO rating you will need to have available your teacher record card, your university transcript, your Ontario College of Teachers membership and your Teaching Certificate. Some of these documents may have been provided before and are unchanged in which case you do not have to resubmit them. If you are a beginning teacher you may have received a letter from QECO indicating where you will be placed when you have been evaluated. This letter is NOT your official evaluation. You are still required to submit an evaluation application once you have started to work for a board.
It is very important to submit these documents to QECO as soon as possible. You are responsible for having your qualifications evaluated and failure to submit your QECO rating prior to January 15 of the year of your adjustment will result in a loss of retro active pay for course taken before August 31 of the prior year. Documents submitted prior to April 30 will enable you to collect retroactive pay to January 1st prior to submission.
Where can I get my Religion Part I?
Religion Part I, II and III are offered through OECTA's Provincial office. To get a schedule of courses available across Ontario go to www.oecta.on.ca.
Can I get financial assistance for workshops and courses?
OECTA Waterloo does support your professional growth by providing individual assistance to teachers. This assistance can only be applied to workshops and conferences and not to credit course. Individual assistance is applied for using an individual assistance form, available from your staff rep or by clicking here. Receipts for conference registration fees or workshop registration must be accompanied with a conference/workshop brochure. 75% of registration fees up to $200 every two years are available to each member for individual assistance. Check the form for a convenient checklist to ensure you are submitting all of your documents and that your cheque is processed quickly.
How do I apply for Maternity leave?
Click here to access our Pregnancy and Parental leave booklet. Still have questions? Call us at (519)744-8051.
How does a Maternity leave affect my TPA?
A TPA must have 4 non-evaluative years preceding them. If this period includes a maternity leave, then the TPA is deferred one year.
How does a Maternity leave affect my eligibility for a Deferred Salary Leave?
For the purposes of eligibility for a deferred salary leave, being on a maternity leave is considered being at work. So if the eligibility requirement calls for 4 consecutive years of work, then a maternity leave is considered as one of those years.
Do Occasional Teachers lose their 'highly recommended for hire' status if they go on Maternity leave?
An employee on a maternity leave may not be disadvantaged for taking the leave, so, No, an Occasional Teacher that has received a 'highly recommended for hire' recommendation from her principal while doing an LTO assignment, does not lose the recommendation because of a maternity leave.
Click here to access our retirement planning booklet. Still have questions? Call us at
(519)744-8051.
Next Retirement Planning Workshop
TBD
I am about to retire, should I cancel my LTD?
This is a very complex issue that requires detailed information to provide the best advice. Please call the OECTA office at (519)744-8051 or OTIP at (519)888-9683 to get advice on this issue.
Can I place my retirement gratuity in a Tax free Savings Account?
A tax free savings account is just a vehicle to put your money into whereby you will not be taxed on any of the interest/income that you earn as opposed to any other type of investment. You do not get a deduction for it like you do with an RRSP. Basically, the Board would pay the retiree their lump sum entitlement, with tax taken at the source and then they are free to do with their payout as they wish. This would be just like a regular payout and they would be responsible for putting it into the TFSA if they wanted.
When do I receive my retirement gratuity?
The Board will send a letter to all teachers that retired at the end of June, near the end of September. The letter will ask if you would like the gratuity immediately, in January or deposited into your RRSP. Once you return the letter, your directions will be followed.
After I retire, what options do I have for paying my benefit premium?
We do have automatic withdrawal of retiree benefit premiums for any retirees that wish to pay monthly. Some prefer to pay with a cheque in a lump sum for the 6 month period. Those are the only 2 options, we do not allow post-dated cheques any longer.
What to do if F&CS investigates your conduct?
If you are informed in any way of a Family and Children's Services (F&CS) investigation of your conduct, you should immediately call your local Unit at (519)744-8051. If no one is available then seek advice from OECTA's Counseling and Member Services Department. Call 1-800-268-7230.
An OECTA staff officer will assess your situation and provide direction and advice. A lawyer may contact you depending on the circumstances and whether or not the allegations relate to your duties as a teacher.
DO NOT discuss the complaint with anyone else, even your principal or vice-principal before you have been advised by OECTA or a lawyer. They are management and operate according to a protocol that requires them to report what is said.
If and F&CS caseworker arrives at school to question you, or if your principal asks to speak with you regarding an F&CS investigation of your conduct, ask politely to delay the interview until you have had an opportunity to speak with legal counsel through OECTA. Explain that this is OECTA's direction.
If F&CS insists on a meeting and you have not had an opportunity to call OECTA Provincial or speak with OECTA legal counsel, you are NOT obliged to attend the meeting or make any statement. You are obliged to attend a meeting with your principal or supervisory officer if requested, but you are NOT obliged to make a statement or answer questions without the benefit of legal counsel.
There is no such thing as "off-the-record" Every comment can or will be used in the investigation. There is no such thing as an "informal F&CS investigation".
Does an LTO earn sick leave credits?
Yes. They accumulate 2 days for each month in their contract. This time is credited to them at the beginning of their contract. For example, if the contract starts in November and finishes in June they accumulate 16 days. The accumulated days can be carried forward to next year, or taken with them to another Board (assuming the other Board recognizes previous sick days in their contract).
How do I obtain a Superintendent's signature for an AQ course?
A confirmation of teaching experience form, required in order to take an AQ course, must be signed by the Superintendent of Human Resources. Send your forms to the Board Office, attention Erica Duff and upon receipt, she will confirm your experience, have the Superintendent of Human Resource Services sign it, make a copy for your personnel file and return it to you. The Board does not fax them to the faculty on your behalf, so please allow sufficient time for the turn-around in order to meet your registration deadline. The Superintendent of Human Resource Services signs all forms; school superintendents do not.
Note: classroom experience in an inclusive setting will be considered to satisfy the teaching experience requirement for Special Education and ESL part 3 and the superintendent will sign the form, teaching exclusively in a Special Education or ESL class is not required.
What support is available if I am ill or injured?
If you're at risk of developing a long term disability, a few conversations with an OTIP Early Intervention Rehabilitation Consultant could save you months of time off work, speed healing and help you get your life back on track faster.
What can Early Intervention do for me?
OTIP provides a voluntary Early Intervention (EI) program as part of your long term disability (LTD) plan. The purpose of the EI program is to prevent or reduce the duration of long term disability claims so you can get back to life as usual.
Early Intervention starts before a member makes an LTD claim. When the school board or union identifies a member who is at risk of developing a long term disability (someone who has been off work for 20 consecutive days), a designated representative will ask the member if he or she is interested in the EI program. If so, an Early Intervention Rehabilitation Consultant will work with the member to determine the assistance and services that best meet the members’ needs and that will be the most beneficial in assisting the member with his or her return to work. Participation in the program is completely voluntary and confidential and will not affect future claims.
By working with an EI Rehabilitation Consultant, most members are able to return to work an average of 22% faster than others affected by the same condition who didn't take part in the EI program. OTIP may assist in funding services provided to you through the program.
The EI program frequently helps members suffering from mental and nervous disorders (e.g., anxiety, depression, etc.), cancer, injuries and chronic illnesses (e.g., Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease, etc.).
During a long term leave or statutory leave, the Board keeps you on their email system. However, you are removed from the 'all users' list at your school. Upon return, it is the administrator's responsibility to make you aware of any policy or procedure changes.
Do my benefits cover my child who is at university?
Yes, Greenshield benefits coverage of a dependent child, means all unmarried children, stepchildren and legally adopted children of the subscriber while residing with the subscriber or dependent upon the subscriber (or both) and not regularly employed up to the end of the year following their 21st birthday. Coverage is extended for dependents provided they are enrolled in full time attendance at a college, university or institute of higher learning up to the end of the year following their 25th birthday. Email Human Resources to be provided with the form on which you declare which university, or college, you child is attending.
Supply Teacher Assignment in Secondary Schools
- If a teacher’s absence is known to be greater than 2 days in length, the teacher should make their extended absence known to the Principal and Anne Vair will give the school Principal permission to pick and assign the supply teacher of their choice for the assignment.
- The Lead Secretary/Admin. Assistant, who takes a lead role with SmartFind at the school, will e-mail Anne Vair for permission for the school to pick the supply teacher of their choice.
- Anne Vair will then send an e-mail back to her to say that Anne approves for the school to pick the supply teacher.
- The Administrator or Lead Secretary/Admin. Assistant will then contact the supply teacher directly and will make arrangements for the assignment.
- Once the supply teacher is chosen (someone who is qualified in the subject area), the Lead Secretary/Admin. Assistant will enter the job into SmartFind with the supply teacher as pre-arranged for the assignment.
- Teachers are not able to pick or pre-arrange the supply teacher themselves. However, Administrators will often ask the teachers for the name(s) of supply teachers that they would recommend. But the teacher is not the person who picks the supply teacher, or enters the assignment into SmartFind.
How Many Long Term Leaves of Absence Can I Take?
The Board's policy is to grant a maximum of 2 Long Term Leaves in a teacher's career. See the contract for the procedure for requesting a Long Term Leave. Each leave is 1 year in length, or less. A teacher may take their 2 leaves consecutively, or with many years in between. A leave may be used to temporarily teach only a portion of day, for example, to teach only half time. In Elementary, a leave of less than 6 months does not normally count as one of the 2 leaves.
How Do I Get Reimbursed for Religion Part 1?
As per Article 6.16 (OECTA/OCSTA Religion Course) of both the Elementary and Secondary Collective Agreements, the Board will reimburse $500.00 upon receipt of the original receipt, a copy of their certificate and a completed Expense Reimbursement Form found on Staffnet: go to Corporate Services, Forms and then choose Expense Reimbursement. Please remit these forms to the attention of Erica Duff, Human Resource Services and Accounting will have $500.00 deposited into their account.
Do you have any questions for your OECTA Administration? Something you want to know about retirement? Benefits? On-calls? Supervision? Send us an email to office@oectawaterloo.on.ca