Teachers across British Columbia voted Tuesday and Wednesday (March 5) to determine if they will go on strike for a fair collective agreement.
Sylvia Slater, president of the South Okanagan Similkameen Teachers’ Union, said the strike vote is a direct response to the latest actions by the B.C. government.
The government appealed a recent B.C. Supreme Court ruling that restored teachers’ rights to bargain on class size, composition and staffing levels.
This ruling has been placed in limbo until the appeal is heard.
“We want to negotiate class size, composition and specialist teachers ratios and get better supports for students,” Slater said.
In addition, she noted the government is asking teachers to “accept more zeros” and lock into a vague 10-year deal, while other public sector workers received 3.5 to four per cent increases over the last two years.
“We want a fair salary increase but we don’t want a 10-year deal.”
The results of the vote are expected to be made public on March 6.
Slater said once a successful strike vote is taken, the BC Teachers’ Federation has 90 days to activate it with job action.
“If job action is needed it will occur in stages, but initial action will not include immediate school closures or disruption for students in the classroom,” Slater said.
The B.C. government wants the appeal court to strike down the ruling, arguing that school boards would need to hire more teachers to accommodate the deleted clauses in the contract.
In 2002 the Liberal government removed numerous contract clauses relating to class size and composition.
Bev Young, district superintendent of schools, said they are concerned about any labour disruption that may impact student programs as well as district operations.
She noted the complexity of implementing 12- year-old language that may not reflect current educational needs or practices is complex.
“It is important that the BC Teachers’ Federation and the BC Public School Employees’ Association resolve the matters of class size and composition at the bargaining table.”
Young said it is very likely that the district will have to hire additional teachers if amendments to the collective agreement are bargained. She added it would be ideal if a new agreement can be negotiated prior to the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year.
Young said the district welcomes any improvements to learning conditions for students. But she pointed out the impact of a new agreement (including class size and composition) can only be assessed once it is known if the amendments will be funded by the provincial government.
After a full year of bargaining and more than 40 sessions at the table, B.C. teachers called for the strike vote last week to push back against major concession demands, an unfair salary offer, and a deliberately confrontational attempt to reverse the recent BC Supreme Court decision on class size, composition, and staffing levels, said BCTF President Jim Iker.
“Teachers care deeply about our schools, our students, and our communities. We don’t take a strike vote lightly,” said Iker. “However, this government seems incapable or unwilling to let the BC Public School Employers’ Association negotiate fairly with teachers.
“Christy Clark, her government, and BCPSEA are insisting on rollbacks, freezing wages, and ignoring the Supreme Court of British Columbia.”
Iker said he was incredibly disappointed and frustrated as teachers have worked hard this round to create a sense of calm and purpose at the bargaining table. While the last round was dominated by government acting in bad faith, this time teachers were hopeful that new players and a new framework agreement would help both parties reach a fair and reasonable deal, he said.
Since January 27, when the BC Supreme Court released its ruling that found the Christy Clark government had acted in bad faith, BCPSEA has tabled unreasonable proposals, including:
• New language that would yet again strip all provisions on class size, class composition, and staffing levels for teacher-librarians, counsellors, special education, and other specialist teachers.
• A salary offer that starts with a 0.5 per cent increase on the date of ratification. The increase is not retroactive. Because the previous contract expired last June, this means zero for all of 2013–14 school year to date. The proposal is followed by another zero for 2014–15 school year and then various ones and point fives over the next four years.
The last four years of the 10-year term, an idea teachers rejected in June by a province-wide vote of 96 per cent, features an ill-defined indexing scheme that even BCPSEA’s negotiators could not explain, said Iker.
“The move to once again strip class size, composition, and staffing levels from teachers just days after the BC Supreme Court’s ruling showed total disrespect for the law, for teachers, and for students,” said Iker. “This government, through BCPSEA, is trying to pretend Justice Griffin’s ruling never happened. Their proposal to eliminate class size, class composition, and staffing levels would ‘supersede and replace all previous articles that addressed class size, composition, and staffing levels.
On the call for a strike vote, Iker said: “For teachers, our only recourse in response to the unfair, unreasonable, and deliberately confrontational proposals at this point is to apply pressure through a strike vote.
“Such a vote, however, does not mean imminent school closures. We will consider all job action options and timing very carefully. Our goal is to reach a negotiated deal at the bargaining table without having to resort to job action.”
Job action, if needed, will occur in stages, but any initial action will not include immediate school closures or disruption for students or stop teachers from participating in extracurricular activities, said Iker.
LYONEL DOHERTY
Special to the Times
