Job security for PLI teachers

Around 25 members of teaching and administrative staff at the school, at 55 York St., commenced strike action on Monday after contract negotiations with management fell apart.

Kaplan pays the highest hourly rate in Toronto because they bought out Pacific Language Institute, who paid the teachers those rates. Their starting salary is now less that it was in 1996. Kaplan is using layoffs and ‘performance’ as a way to terminate any teacher making below the lowest hourly rate. Their rankings of teachers change weekly, and somehow no one at the bottom gets laid off… If a teacher has poor performance, then fire them. Don’t use lay off as your veiled excuse to get rid of them. That’s why the teachers are striking.. None of them have security, and Kaplan uses “performance” as a way to punish them for unionizing in the first place.

These teachers are not just fighting for themselves, but bringing awareness to the whole nasty industry, and the even bigger movement of large corporations moving as many staff to part-time members without benefits or vacation pay. Kudos to you Kaplan Toronto Teachers! You are trailblazers.

More ESL teachers need to stand up to these large corporations who take advantage of them.