Parents don’t need to hit the panic button just yet as a plan for B.C. public school teachers’ job action is not being implemented while mediated talks are happening, says the president of the Coquitlam Teachers’ Association.
But should talks fail, prompting stronger measures, a plan approved by 300 BC Teachers’ Federation representatives at a winter assembly over the weekend, could see escalating initiatives, beginning with the withdrawal from some administrative duties and ranging to a full-scale walkout, although a vote would be required at each step.
Ken Christensen told the Tri-City News this week there’s “nothing unreasonable” about the BCTF putting together a plan but “that doesn’t mean the plan is any way imminent.”
The plan was sent to the province’s 45,000 unionized teachers in an effort to “clarify some matters,” according to BCTF president Teri Mooring, “and to facilitate the sharing of information.
“There is a real need to continue to reach out to members and to ensure that information is accurate, accessible and part of a larger discussion on our values and the needs of the membership across the province,” the email states.
Our goal is to achieve a good deal for #bced teachers at the bargaining table that addresses the recruitment and retention crisis as well as our low salaries. The deal must also fix the inequities in working and learning conditions across the province. #bcpoli
— BCTF (@bctf) February 4, 2020
It comes after a memo was leaked several weeks ago to some members of the media laying out the BCTF’s job action, which has since been updated. There is no plan to withdraw teachers from volunteer or extracurricular activities in the current plan and rotating strikes would be organized at the local level rather than at the provincial level.
“Unlike 2014, each teacher association will be able to organize the rotation locally. The rotations will be designed to keep maximum pressure on the board offices and government while being equitable for all members. In this phase, timing will be key, including lessons learned from previous rounds,” the memo states.
But Mooring said in the memo the BCTF is committed to the ongoing mediation with David Schaub.
Christensen confirmed the plan approved on the weekend is simply a preparatory step but actions outlined in it are not a certainty to happen because the goal is to get a “mutual agreement.”
Still, there are some stumbling blocks, he said, namely that the province hasn’t put enough money on the table “to deal with improvements we are seeking to class size and composition,” mostly to bring some locals with lesser language on these issues to the same level as those with better class size and composition ratios.
As well, he said, teachers would like to see improved wages to put them on par with their peers in other provinces.
In the meantime, he cautioned those who would worry about the job action plan being announced now, noting that at each level, there has to be a Labour Relations Board-sanctioned strike vote.
“There are things that have not occurred yet," Christensen said. "We’re continuing to focus on a negotiated settlement."
Many might remember those difficult days six years ago when talks broke down under the then-BC Liberal provincial government and job action ensued, with teachers conducting rotating strikes, rallies and other job action. That delayed the start of school in September 2014, resulting in parents being paid $520 per child for lost days.
The teachers’ current contract expired June 30, 2019 and negotiations have been ongoing for more than a year.
