There has finally been some movement in the standoff between B.C.'s teachers and the provincial government.
On Tuesday, Jan. 17, the B.C. Teachers' Federation named its price for a pay increase as part of a reduced package of proposals.
"Ever since bargaining opened last spring, we have clearly expressed to government and the B.C. Public School Employers' Association that we are seeking a freely negotiated settlement that leads to better learning conditions for students and provides fair and reasonable improvements for teachers," said BCTF president Susan Lambert.
The package proposes a threeyear agreement, with a three per cent salary increase based on a cost of living allowance in the first year, plus another three per cent cost of living increase and a three per cent market adjustment over the next two years.
Education Minister George Abbott said the proposal still needs to be costed.
"Our best estimate is that we're still working in the hundreds of millions of dollars at a time when we continue to have a net zero mandate," he said.
New Westminster Teachers' Union president Grant Osborne said the government asking teachers to stick to a net-zero pay increase is not realistic when compared to other government decisions.
"It's not about costing, it's about decisions," he said. "We have tried to be patient."
The BCTF estimates the proposal would cost $565 million in total: that's $305 million in the first year and $130 million in years two and three.
Negotiations between teachers and BCPSEA (the bargaining agent for the provincial government) started in spring, but seemed to go nowhere. The BCTF called for a partial strike in September, when teachers started refusing to do administrative work, like meeting with principals and issuing report cards. The government's net-zero mandate has been the major sticking point in the ongoing labour dispute. The government has mandated a freeze on pay for public sector employees whose contracts are negotiated for 2010 to 2012. That means if teachers want a salary increase, they'll have to take something away elsewhere to cover the costs.
The BCTF has been calling for the government to take the net-zero mandate off the table, but the government is sticking fast to its position.
If the BCTF gets a salary increase, and breaks the net-zero mandate, it would trigger a clause in other public servant contracts negotiated under the net zero mandate, and those would have to be reopened for consideration of salary increases.
"The challenge remains that we have a net-zero mandate for all of our collective bargaining agreements at a provincial level," Abbott said.
