The bitter contract negotiations between the B.C. Teachers' Federation and the B.C. Public School Employers Association may come to a legislated end.
Education Minister George Abbott has asked his staff to prepare legislation that would end a labour dispute with teachers, after a ministry fact finder determined there is no hope of settling the dispute.
Teachers are asking for a 15 per cent wage increase, but the government has said that won't happen because there isn't enough money and it is sticking to a zero-wage mandate for public sector employees.
New Westminster Teachers' Union president Grant Osborne told The Record last week that, despite the dismal status of contract talks, he was hopeful that a settlement could be reached.
"Nobody wants 2005 again," Osborne said, referring to a two-week illegal strike by BCTF members.
"An illegal strike is unknown territory. It's a loss of income to the members," he said. "We are trying to be optimistic but depending on what the government does, membership will vote and it will be a provincewide vote by the members to decide how we react to what the government puts on the table, and there could be so many variations of that. It's really hard to predict where we are going to go from here. We are hoping for the best and preparing for everything."
B.C. teachers are calling upon the government not to impose a contract through legislation but rather to enable other labour relations mechanisms to achieve a fair agreement, a British Columbia Teachers' Federation press release states.
"Teachers are looking for fair alternatives, such as mediation or even arbitration, to help the parties find a resolution to this dispute," BCTF president Susan Lambert said in the release. "This government has a choice. It can help find the compromises necessary to reach a settlement, or it can use bullying legislation that will only make matters worse."
Lambert pointed out that calling for mediation is an exceptional and unusual step for any union. "But it's one we are prepared to take in the hope of achieving a settlement and avoiding the damaging repercussions of an imposed contract," she said. "Teachers are disappointed, but not surprised, at today's report. It appeared from the outset that the government was using this process as a precursor to legislation."
Teachers and the government have been locked in contract negotiations for a year.
