Contract talks between the provincial government and the B.C. Teachers' Federation are always strained, but it seems this current round of bargaining was doomed from the outset.
Salaries are a prickly topic whenever employers and employees sit down to negotiate a new deal, but it's the issue of class size and composition that has this round almost certainly headed for yet another imposed agreement.
It was a dozen years ago Victoria removed classroom limits from contract negotiations with teachers, however earlier this year the B.C. Supreme Court ruled the legislation to do so was unconstitutional. The B.C. Court of Appeal has subsequently granted the provincial government a stay of the potentially costly judgment while its appeal is heard.
It's clear from its 2002 move, as well as its appeal of this year's ruling, the Liberals aren't terribly interested in negotiating when it comes to the make up of classes, so it's not surprising there hasn't been any progress made on that front during the ongoing bargaining sessions. In fact, BCTF president Jim Iker accused the province last week of not putting a single dollar on the table when it comes to class size and composition.
Appealing the ruling suggests the province believes it acted constitutionally and shouldn't have to bargain with teachers on that issue, which is pretty much what's happening. I'm far from a lawyer, but wouldn't entering into negotiations on such matters at this point hurt an appeal that contends the government doesn't have to do so? As for the teachers, well, they've got a judgment in their back pocket that says class size and composition must be restored to 2002 levels, so it's hard to see them budging too far from that position.
This whole situation has contract talks set up to go absolutely nowhere, which is exactly where they're headed at the moment.
If negotiations focused solely on wages and both sides were able to use other public sector agreements as comparables, there would be a fighting chance at a settlement, although given the chasm on that front that's no sure thing. However, thanks to classroom factors that have been out of play for over a decade, this dispute goes much deeper than how big a salary bump the province's teachers deserve.
As far apart as they may be on wages, the class size and composition issue is far more problematic, and ultimately what could keep this dispute dragging on until Victoria brings down the inevitable hammer.
