Early bargaining bodes well for labour peace at public schools in B.C.

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – “We’re confident we can get a deal before the end of the school year.”

That’s what the head of the union representing most teachers in British Columbia is saying now that preliminary contract talks have started.

BC Teachers’ Federation President Glen Hansman is expecting negotiations under Premier John Horgan to be much smoother than when the former Liberal government was demanding a decade-long contract instead of the standard three year deal.

“That means that we can think about some issues for this round,” he says, “And then park some for future rounds, as opposed to what we faced in the most recent round when Peter Fassbender was the Minister of Education and he was insisting on a ten-year deal that made for some pretty ludicrous proposals coming from the other side.”

Hansman admits a key issue is wages, as most other taxpayer-funded workers have already agreed to accept no more than two per cent pay raises for each of the next three years.

“We’re actually feeling pretty optimistic,” Hansman says. “I’m confident we’ll get a deal before the end of June. That’s our hope, anyway.”

Hansman says the only province with lower starting salaries is Quebec, but creative solutions are being explored to address wage demands which may include below-market housing being provided in districts where rents are too high.

“Issues that we’re facing in K to 12 aren’t unique,” he says. “There’s similar problems in health. There’s similar problems in the restaurant and hospitality industry given the cost of living too, compared to other markets.”

Ministry of Education staff are also optimistic.

They’ve released a statement holding out hope bargaining between the BCTF and the BC Public School Employers Association will be respectful and productive.

They’re also confident a negotiated collective agreement can be reached before the current contract expires June 30.