Iker and Clark on What Deal Means: A Study in Contrasts

Neither government nor the teachers' union will provide many details on a proposed teachers' contract until the province's teachers get a chance to review and vote on the deal this Thursday. But what both sides revealed today indicates each believes they are getting enough to sell the deal to their constituents.

But while Premier Clark makes sweeping, upbeat claims for the agreement, calling it "historic" and the start of better relationship between government and teachers, the union leadership isn't reflecting such an optimistic forecast for B.C.'s educational politics.

At a press conference with Education Minister Peter Fassbender this afternoon, Clark confirmed a rumour that the proposed deal is six years, though she did not give specifics on the wage increase, which other media has speculated to be 7.25 per cent overall. The contract, the longest in the teachers' union history if accepted, would mean labour peace with teachers for at least five years.

"A negotiated settlement is really important, because it allows us to reset that relationship [between teachers and government] that has been dysfunctional for so long," Clark said.

Fassbender added that if teachers vote to ratify the deal on Thursday, Sept. 18, his greatest concern will be to move ahead and "make our education system even better than it is today."

'We had a five-year deal back in 2006'

Union president Jim Iker was less optimistic about the impact on their relationship, telling media in a late-afternoon press conference that he is always hopeful for an improvement but "we had a five year deal back in 2006" and relations between government and teachers remained sour.

Union members will be sent electronic and written copies of the proposed agreement over the next 24 hours. Iker, who also served as chief negotiator for the B.C. Teachers' Federation during the 19-month bargaining session, recommends teachers vote yes. Members have never voted against a union executive's ratification recommendation.

"It was a tough series of negotiations, but there are meaningful achievements for teachers and students," he said, including separate funds for hiring hundreds of new specialist teachers annually, and for settling grievances related to B.C. Supreme Court rulings on Bills 22 and 28 dealing with class size and composition rights stripped from teachers' contracts when Clark was education minister in 2002.

He added students should be back in classes "sometime next week" if teachers accept the deal.

Government, not districts, funding deal

Government says it's in talks with school districts about ensuring students get a full school year, especially students in Grades 11 and 12.

"Superintendents and administrators are working on plans, and we will be announcing that as soon as the vote is ratified by both the teachers and the trustees," Fassbender said.

Contract details, including the deal's overall cost, won't be divulged until after the teachers' ratification vote.

Fassbender said the proposed deal is within the government's fiscal framework -- it had previously offered teachers seven per cent over six years. Unlike the 2013 CUPE support workers' agreement where school boards had to pick up the tab, he said the government would cover the cost of the teachers' deal.

He said that taxes will not be raised, nor will government go into deficit to cover the cost.

Iker said in addition to the separate funds for settling grievances and for hiring more non-enrolling teachers like special education teachers and teacher librarians, the deal replaces controversial E80 clause with a "mutually agreed process to address any future court decision," and increases elementary teacher prep time, salary and benefits.

"Also, no concessions," said Iker, referring to any clause taking away teachers bargaining rights or rights won through the ongoing court cases over Bills 22 and 28. He refused to say if the deal is less money than teachers wanted.

Teachers were seeking an eight per cent wage increase over five years, plus an annual increase equalling the difference between the projected and actual gross domestic product, and a $5,000 signing bonus.

Including benefits, government had said the union's proposals were more than twice what government had agreed to with other unions.

Districts, however, will be forced to pay the government 100 per cent of all strike savings accrued in September. In May, the Education Ministry announced that districts would repay 80 per cent of strike savings to government.

Earlier this month, the government said strike savings would be used to pay for the $40-a-day childcare reimbursement aimed at parents with children 12 and under.

Court case unaffected

Both sides said the proposed fund for handling retroactive class size and composition grievances dating back to 2002 will not impact the outcome of the impending B.C. Court of Appeal case on the Bill 22, ruling that found teachers contracts were stripped illegally.

Government contests that ruling, which ordered the government to restore teacher bargaining rights stripped from their contracts in 2002 and pay the union $2 million in damages.

"We've agreed that we will settle the outstanding grievances that are there, and that was a major step forward on both sides. But it was key to making the agreement work at the end of the day," she said.

"There was a major potential financial liability predicted to the education system, and we decided that it was worth settling that liability for a smaller number, ultimately, in setting aside those grievances in the context of this agreement."

That means that grievances dating back to 2002 will not be subject to the upcoming ruling. Still at issue would be the $2 million in damages, class size and composition bargaining in future, and whether the government bargained in bad faith during the 2012 negotiations.

Iker showed 'courage': premier

Clark said the only pressure she felt to reach a deal came from British Columbians, not the Chinese government, as had been suggested by media after the Chinese consulate reportedly met with the provincial government over concerns that the ongoing strike would impact their students studying in B.C. China is one of the largest sources of international students in the province.

She said credit for the deal goes first and foremost to parents and students for their patience during the strike. But Clark gave equal credit to mediator Vince Ready and negotiators for the teachers and their employer, singling out union president Iker for "showing real courage" in accepting the proposed deal and "stepping away from what was really a dysfunctional relationship" between teachers and government.

Neither she nor Fassbender, who credited Clark's leadership for allowing both sides to reach a deal, mentioned the employers' association's chief negotiator Peter Cameron by name.

Iker did not thank government, but praised his fellow union members who he called his "inspiration" during the three-and-a-half month strike and preceding job actions that began in March. He also thanked provincial and federal labour unions that showed their support for the province's teachers, both financially and on the picket line.

Pickets will remain in front of the province's schools until a return to work agreement is settled with government as part of ratification.