by Kyle Wells [email protected] As students return to school across BC, teachers are still in phase one of job action as a result of stalled contract disputes with the province.
The job action means BC teachers are still performing regular teaching duties but are refusing to take part in any administrative tasks, such as writing report cards, recess supervision or staff meetings. Teachers are still talking to parents regarding student performance and are still taking part in extracurricular activities.
Teachers’ last five-year contract expired in June and negotiations have been ongoing. The first phase of job action started at the beginning of the new school year. Powell River and District Teachers’ Association president Cathy Fisher said the job action is actually benefiting students, rather than impacting learning.
“It’s a great thing. It’s what we should be doing. We need to be able to focus our energy on our students,” said Fisher. “Teachers always want to do what’s best for kids. That’s their prime goal...Right now, by focusing on meeting the needs of their kids and not having to spend so much time on those other things, that’s a positive thing.”
Fisher said the main issue in the dispute is teaching conditions to support learning for students, specifically the revoking of a law by the Supreme Court of BC that had stripped BC Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) of the right to bargain class size and composition. The law, declared unconstitutional in an April 13, 2011 decision, came into effect in 2002 and was seen by teachers as a way for the government to deny them the ability to negotiate their working conditions and educational conditions for students.
The court ruling gave the government one year to sort out how to manage the decision. Teachers had hoped their right to bargain class size and composition would be in place before the start of the 2011-2012 school year, but are now concerned the government is preparing similar, slightly amended legislation to replace the law that will not be in the interest of teachers.
“The government isn’t bringing anything to the table except the desire for concessions,” said Fisher. “Nothing of any importance has been worked through.”
The other major issue is establishing a “fair increase to wages and benefits for teachers,” according to a BCTF press release. This amounts to $2.1 billion in compensation improvements according to the BC Public School Employers’ Association (BCPSEA), a figure that BCTF disputes.
In an issue separate from the bargaining table, BCTF is also seeking to have the money saved by the government in classroom support cutbacks, as a result of the repealed law, returned to the education system. BCTF estimates the funds amount to somewhere around $336 million a year.
“That money’s gone from the education system and they’re saying it’s been put back in different ways,” said Fisher, “but they’re not able to produce any information that shows where that money went. It certainly didn’t go into any classrooms and it certainly didn’t go into support for students.”
Jay Yule, superintendent of schools for School District 47, said he has been in contact with BCPSEA and is being regularly updated on progress with regard to bargaining. Yule said the job action is resulting in some exempted administrators having to supervise recesses and lunch hours but that for now recesses are continuing as usual. Four districts in the province have had to cancel recesses.
“We think the disruption to students will be minimal and it won’t affect the quality of education that is being provided right now,” said Yule. “We’ll ensure that all our students are safe...If we believe that there’s any impact on student safety or security we would look at altering the school day.”
Any potential second phase to the job action will depend on what happens in negotiations. A provincial vote for members of BCTF would be necessary before an escalation of job action. Meetings between the government and BCTF are ongoing.
