Liberals want long-term contracts for school support staff

By

VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – If the provincial government gets its way, it won’t just be teachers signing long-term contracts.  The education minister is hoping all school workers will one day be covered by 10-year agreements.

“And I also think we will be sitting down with CUPE in the not-too-distant future to talk about a long-term agreement within that framework,” says Peter Fassbender.

CUPE represents school support workers.  It reached an agreement on a new contract with the government earlier this month, including a 3.5 per cent wage increase, but the sides will be back at the bargaining table before too long as the new deal expires at the end of the school year.

Negotiations between the government and BCTF have been slowed by legal fight.  The union has launched two successful challenges since the government stripped its collective bargaining rights back in 2002.  The courts continue to hear arguments from both sides.

CUPE K-12 Coordinator Bill Pegler says the union “hasn’t had any information from the minister on this” and is not commenting on the prospect of negotiations for a long-term deal.

“Right now, we’re in the middle of rolling out our provincial settlement to our local unions,” he says.  “Local tables have to get resolved and ratified, so it’s really early for us to comment on something that’s so premature.”

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today