B.C. teachers won a partial victory Friday in their protracted labour dispute.
It came in the form of a Labour Relations Board ruling that teachers were indeed entitled to withdraw “truly voluntary” extra-curricular services, such as coaching sports and supervising student clubs.
However, it also found the B.C. Teachers’ Federation “declared or authorized an illegal strike” by having members withdraw from activities outside instructional hours that are still considered work duties, such as parent-teacher meetings.
With less than two weeks left in the school year, the ruling is “a bit” of a moot point, said Ginny Manning, who heads the Okanagan Skaha School District’s board of trustees.
But Manning said the decision is a good one, because it defines what is and isn’t voluntary work for teachers, which is what the B.C. Public School Employers’ Association sought when it applied for the ruling.
Okanagan Skaha Teachers’ Union president Kevin Epp is skeptical: “I don’t believe the employer needed to go that route to solve a problem, because in our district that problem didn’t exist.”
For example, Epp said, formal parent-teacher interview nights were scuttled this year, but, “teachers saw parents all the time, and regularly.”
BCPSEA sought the ruling after BCTF members voted for a full-scale withdrawal of extra-curricular services in April to protest back-to-work legislation in Bill 22, but Epp sees it as simply another attempt to bleed away public support for teachers in the run-up to a new collective agreement.
Education Minister George Abbott, who has previously said he’ll impose a new contract on teachers if a deal can’t be reached by the fall, said in a statement that he respects and appreciates Friday’s ruling.
“I’ve always said it is up to individual teachers to decide whether to volunteer,” Abbott said.
“I hope that all teachers who continue to give of their own time to help children will be able to do so without fear of union retribution.”
Another important ruling is expected soon, when a B.C. Supreme Court justice rules on a BCTF application to remove government-appointed mediator Charles Jago from his position. The union has alleged the former university president is biased.
Jago is expected to issue a report on the labour dispute, including recommendations, by June 30. The BCTF has also asked the court to have that report withheld until it rules on Jago’s appointment.
Epp is uncertain how Friday’s ruling may figure into the mediation process.
“It may be that the negotiations have just become a different type of negotiations, and it’s all about LRB and court proceedings to define contract terms.”
