Cheryl Chan , The Canadian Press - Yesterday
The B.C. Teachers Federation has reached a tentative deal with the province that the union says will take them from near the bottom to the “top tier” of pay in Canada.
Clint Johnston, president of the B.C. Teachers Federation.© Provided by Vancouver Sun
The tentative agreement was reached Friday, according to a statement by the B.C. Public School Employers’ Association, which negotiates on behalf of the provincial government
“Teachers play an incredibly important role in the lives of their students and their communities,” said Leanne Bowes, executive director of labour relations for the employers. “The dedication of teachers throughout the pandemic has brought much needed support to so many families.
“We are pleased to have negotiated a tentative collective agreement that will continue supporting teachers into the future.”
The details of the agreement have not been made public but BCTF president Clint Johnston said it comes with significant salary and other gains for teachers.
“If ratified, this agreement will take us from near the lowest-paid teachers in Canada into the top tier,” Johnston said in a statement. “I am deeply grateful to the members of the team who worked so hard to get us to this point.”
Johnston said the agreement was reached after more than 50 days of bargaining and the union executive is recommending that its members ratify the contract. The union represents nearly 49,000 teachers in B.C.’s public school K-12 system.
In the statement sent Sunday, Johnston said the annual pay for teachers at the top of the salary grid will be $10,000 to $13,500 more per year than it is now by the third year.
“For the first time ever, experienced B.C. teachers will cross the $100,000-per-year threshold putting you much closer to, or even above, teachers in places like Calgary and Toronto,” he said.
By the end of the three-year term, Johnston said, new members’ annual salary will be approximately $6,000 to $8,500 per year higher than it is now, depending on their grid placement and category.
Other improvements in the deal include 10 additional minutes of preparation time for elementary teachers, improvements to heath and maternity benefits and a provincial minimum standard for professional development funding, the statement said.
Bargaining for a collective agreement began March 15. Both the members of the employers’ group and BCTF members will have to ratify the tentative deal. A vote will be held by each union local between Nov. 16 and 18.
Catching up to Canada’s best-paid teachers has been a priority for the federation for years, and the gains, if ratified, will help address recruitment and retention challenges, the statement said.
B.C. Public School Employers’ Association said the agreement follows the provincial shared recovery mandate, which sets out specific wage increases, including inflation protection, while ensuring the government has the resources to protect services and support economic recovery.
The mandate promises a flat salary increase of 25 cents per hour plus 3.24 per cent in the first year, a 5.5 per cent salary bump in year two and a two per cent increase in year three. The final two years also include potential cost-of-living adjustments.
The union said there were challenges and frustrations of negotiating teacher workloads, but the bargaining team feels the agreement is the best it could get.
“Personally, I do not believe that any form of job action would result in any significant changes to workload at this time,” Johnston said in the statement.
Meanwhile, another B.C. union has announced it has reached a tentative agreement with Victoria.
The Professional Employees Association representing 1,200 professionals including agrologist, foresters, pharmacists, engineers and psychologists, has been at the negotiating table with the B.C. Public Service Agency for 28 days.
The tentative agreement includes general wage increases over three years.
In the first year, workers will receive a 25 cent increase per hour and a 3.24 per cent general wage increase. In year 2, the increase ranges from 5.5 per cent to 6.75 per cent depending on the rate of inflation, while in year 3, the inflation-dependent increase is two to three per cent.
The agreement also include increases in the top wage scale, a five-day sick leave for workers and cultural leave for Indigenous employees.
Voting on ratification runs Nov. 8-22.
The successful round of bargaining followed failed talks that started in April but reached an impasse in May after the union said wage proposals failed to address rising cost of living. Members voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike in June, and a 72-hour strike notice was issued in August.
Both tentative deals come two weeks after the B.C. General Employees’ Union, the largest union representing B.C. government workers, ratified a new three-year agreement by a slim margin.
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