The BC Teachers’ Federation will be bargaining this weekend to avoid a full-scale strike planned for June 17.
The Labour Relations Board has deemed provincial exams an essential service in BC.
Minister of Education Peter Fassbender said they applied last week to designate provincial exams and report cards for senior graduates as an essential service.
“That means students in Grades 10 to 12 will be able to write their exams as scheduled and Grade 12 students will receive their final marks in a timely manner.”
Fassbender said the government’s focus is to reach an agreement with striking teachers by June 30. Bargaining is expected to continue this weekend.
The minister said the BC Teachers’ Federation has indicated that it will submit a new wage proposal.
“Teachers deserve a raise but it must be in line with recent agreements covering nearly 150,000 public sector workers – including 34,000 school support workers, Fassbender said.
Marcus Toneatto, principal of Southern Okanagan Secondary School, told students and parents today (June 12) that he’s cautiously optimistic that an agreement will be reached this weekend.
If no deal is reached, schools will be closed on Monday in preparation for a full-scale strike starting Tuesday, June 17.
Toneatto confirmed that Grade 10-12 provincial exams will go ahead no matter what happens.
Regular school exams, however, will not go ahead as planned (if the strike continues), he noted.
“Just plan on provincial exams, but no school exams.”
The principal asked the students to clean out their lockers and take all of their stuff home with them on Thursday (in case there is no progress in bargaining talks).
Toneatto recognized local teachers for their continued hard work in making education fun and engaging for the students.
Superintendent of Schools Bev Young said they are waiting for some additional information regarding buses for provincial exams before issuing a news release.
Young confirmed that graduation ceremonies will be going ahead as planned.
