Québec solidaire (QS) and the Parti québécois deem it inconceivable that a teacher who was the subject of complaints of alleged misconduct in a Montreal school could find himself in the presence of students in another school service center (CSS) because of the confidentiality of his file.
“That doesn’t make sense. I find it disgusting, ”says solidarity MP Ruba Ghazal, in an interview with The duty. According to her, student safety should not be compromised because of the confidentiality of a teacher’s disciplinary file.
Wednesday, The duty revealed that the Ministry of Education is currently investigating the management by the Center de services scolaire de Montréal (CSSDM) of alleged misconduct complaints against a high school teacher.
The latter was denounced several times over the years to the management of the Louise-Trichet school, in the east of Montreal, before resigning in full investigation into his subject. Despite everything, he was quickly hired by two other school service centers because of the confidentiality of disciplinary files.
Contacted by The dutythe office of the Minister of Education, Bernard Drainville, says it is evaluating all the options and is currently looking at “what can be done so that a teacher’s disciplinary file follows the teacher when he changes CSS, especially when it is about sexual violence”.
According to the Parti Québécois (PQ), school service centers cannot evolve in a vacuum, especially when it comes to student safety. “It is inconceivable that a teacher under investigation for such serious facts could find himself in the presence of students in another school service centre,” said PQ MP Pascal Bérubé, party spokesperson for Education.
Ruba Ghazal hopes that Minister Drainville will recognize the need for a framework law against sexual violence in Quebec schools. The elected representative tabled a bill to this effect at the end of April, for which she received the support of the Liberal Party of Quebec and the PQ.
We must also put an end to the amnesty clauses contained in collective agreements for primary and secondary schools, believes Ms.me Ghazal. This allows the deletion of a disciplinary file after a certain time which may vary according to the CSS. “We have to get rid of that because these are teachers dealing with minors. »
With Anne-Marie Provost and Stephanie Vallet
Further details will follow.