The Ontario Secondary Schools Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF) fonds consists mostly of handwritten and typed correspondence, and also contains minutes, resolutions, bankbooks, cheque stubs, ledgers, reports, school curriculum outlines, and news bulletins. Included as well are travel claims, salary schedules, membership lists and some copies of the federation magazine The Bulletin (1958-1968).
This fonds, documenting the labour movement within education, presents a comprehensive picture of OSSTF affairs and organizing procedures from 1920-1968. Specifically, although not without exception, the records highlight OSSTF activities in Districts 28 and 29, jurisdictions which encompass most of Northeastern Ontario. Many papers represent correspondence to and between the Provincial Executive, the District Secretaries and the membership at large. Meticulous accounts of membership totals and dues illustrate the constant drive for membership participation through the years, and the financial records illustrate the success of this drive. Some very lively correspondence written by the Provincial General Secretary and the Provincial Treasurer, both of whom served in these positions from 1924-1947, is testament to their enthusiasm and convictions. Researchers interested in the OSSTF response to the loss of 600 teachers to the armed service during WWII, to the matter of child poverty, to the School Law Amendment Act of 1938, and to cases of professional difficulty will find the records rich in documentation.