A civil court faceoff between the Nanaimo teachers’ union and the school district over class size laws was postponed this week.
The Nanaimo District Teachers’ Association and B.C. Teachers’ Federation filed a petition in B.C. Supreme Court against the Nanaimo school board and the superintendent last November over the superintendent’s class size report.
A one-day hearing scheduled in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver Friday was postponed so the parties could set aside time for a three-day hearing instead, said Derek DeGear, NDTA president.
In the suit, the union alleges superintendent Mike Munro failed to produce an annual class size report for trustees that included a rationale for all classrooms in the district with more than 30 students – his report gives two general reasons for oversize classrooms – and that he violated School Act requirements to do so.
The NDTA is seeking a separate and more detailed rationale for every classroom.
Because the legislation applies to all districts, the court ruling could have implications for other B.C. school districts.
Donna Reimer, school district spokeswoman, said the postponement was agreed to by lawyers for both parties and the judge initially assigned to the case told legal representatives that, in his opinion, it was not a one-day matter.
