Parents shouldn't fear school strike, says Wynne

TORONTO - Education Minister Kathleen Wynne says parents shouldn't be worried that elementary teachers could strike in the fall.

The Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario, the union representing 73,000 members, has walked away from contract talks with the province.

But Wynne says she's confident that talks will resume and that they'll be able to reach a resolution.

She says teachers are being offered a good deal given the province's current economic troubles, including a three per cent raise each year over four years and more teachers for Grades 4 to 8.

But the union says there's a funding gap between elementary and secondary schools and notes their current four-year contract is set to expire at the end of August.

There hasn't been a teachers' strike since Premier Dalton McGuinty's Liberal government was elected in 2003, mainly because teachers signed four-year contracts.