K-12 Education

Over the last two weeks I have received many hundreds of emails from the constituents of Oak Bay Gordon Head as well as from ridings across British Columbia. The message is abundantly clear, British Columbians want the government to end the teachers’ labour dispute and get children back in the classroom.

The BCTF opened the door to finding a deal. They agreed to seek binding arbitration, a position I advocated for at the end of August, and one they have never agreed to before. Binding arbitration is a time-tested means of ending labour disputes once face-to-face meetings and mediation have failed. This is clearly the case in the present dispute.

Saturday’s announcement by Minister of Education Peter Fassbender rejecting BCTF’s proposal to seek binding arbitration demonstrates a clear lack of leadership, an inability to compromise and a fundamental lack of support for public education.

But it’s not too late for the government to change their mind. That is why today, in response to your comments and concerns, I put together a petition that I hope you will consider signing.

A downloadable copy is available here.

The petition states:

Whereas a stable and robust public education system is essential for the social, economic and environmental future of the province;

and Whereas there is much to be proud of in our public schools including well-educated, hard-working teachers; parents who advocate passionately for their children; and students who consistently perform strongly in the Programme for International Student Assessment;

and Whereas the education and livelihood of BC children, their parents, their teachers and school support staff and many others throughout BC are being adversely affected by the ongoing labour dispute;

and Whereas the British Columbia Teachers’ Federation has agreed to seek binding arbitration to settle their labour dispute;

and Whereas face to face negotiations and mediation have broken down;

Therefore, be it resolved that the BC government reverse its decision and agree to binding arbitration in order to settle the labour dispute with BC teachers.

Media Statement: September 7th 2014

Government Leadership Lacking in Teacher’s Dispute

For Immediate Release

Victoria B.C. – Yesterday’s announcement by Minister of Education Peter Fassbender rejecting BCTF’s proposal to seek binding arbitration in their ongoing labour dispute demonstrates a clear lack of leadership, an inability to compromise and their fundamental lack of support for public education.

Teachers, students and parents face a second week shut out of classes with absolutely no end in sight. By suggesting binding arbitration, a position Andrew Weaver recommended at the end of August, the BCTF opened the door to finding a deal.

“The government campaigned on reaching a 10-year deal with teachers; they campaigned on putting families first; they campaigned on hyperbolic promises of wealth and prosperity from LNG. But they’ve failed on all three fronts” said Andrew Weaver, MLA for Oak Bay Gordon Head. “It’s become clear to me that the government’s campaign promises were nothing more than empty rhetoric. British Columbians deserve better”.

The government’s position that resolution will only be achieved through negotiation belies the fact that over two months have passed with few, if any, substantive talks between parties. Even mediator Vince Ready has pointed out that both sides are too far apart on substantive issues for mediation to proceed.

In response to the Minister’s statement that the BCTF proposal “was another empty effort to give parents and teachers a false hope that there is a simple way to resolve the dispute” Weaver notes that “binding arbitration is a time-tested means of ending labour disputes.” To this Weaver adds “the fact that the government dismissed it suggests that they are not interested in reaching a fair settlement”.

If the government were serious about ending the strike then rather than rejecting binding arbitration out-of-hand they could have agreed to it provided there were no preconditions. Together the government and the BCTF could then have appealed to the Chief Justice of the BC Supreme Court to appoint an arbitrator.

In yesterday’s statement Minister Fassbender claimed that “the BCTF leadership is trying to avoid having the tough conversation with their members about what is realistic and achievable at the bargaining table.” Weaver counters that “in fact it is the government that is trying to avoid having the tough conversation with British Columbians about what it takes to make education of those who will be the drivers of tomorrow’s economy a priority”.

“It is time to end this strike. It’s time to stop playing politics with our children, teachers, and parents” said Andrew Weaver “and it’s not only educators, support staff and families who have lost confidence in this government, there is tangible public anger out there. It’s time for Minister Fassbender and Premier Clark to do what is right, to do what is clearly in the public interest, and to agree to what is really the only fair solution to ending this strike: binding arbitration.”’

Media Contact

Mat Wright – Press Secretary Andrew Weaver MLA
1 250 216 3385
mat.wright@leg.bc.ca

Media Statement – September 5th, 2014

Andrew Weaver Welcomes BCTF call for Binding Arbitration

For Immediate Release

Victoria B.C. – Andrew Weaver, MLA for Oak Bay-Gordon Head and Deputy Leader of the BC Green Party welcomes the call today from the BC Teachers Federation for binding arbitration in the ongoing education dispute.

“It’s time to resolve this dispute and get our children back into the classroom,” says Andrew Weaver. “The signs are clear that mediation isn’t working; we need another way to bring the two sides together. Binding arbitration is a perfectly reasonable request. The government will look entirely unreasonable if they do not agree”.

Andrew Weaver called for binding arbitration on Sunday after talks with Vince Ready broke down, leading to another week of strikes in a dispute that has already stretched on for months.

The announcement today from the BCTF offers a realistic, fair and practical means of ending the ongoing labour dispute.

Together, both the BCTF and the government could apply to the Chief Justice of the British Columbia Supreme Court to appoint an arbitrator. Schools could be reopened as the arbitration process progresses.

“I have been inundated with emails from parents and teachers from all over British Columbia” notes Andrew Weaver, “it is clear to me that most British Columbians from all corners of this province would support the call for binding arbitration”

Media contact

Mat Wright – Press Secretary, Andrew Weaver MLA
1 250 216 3382
mat.wright@leg.bc.ca

Today I have the honour of speaking at a rally for public education (video below).

More than a thousand teachers and parents rallied at the Legislature on September 2nd calling on the BC Government and the BC Teachers Federation to get the deal done and start the school year. This was meant to be a day where teachers were greeting their new classes and preparing for a complete academic year, but with a squandered summer and no signs of bargaining in the near future, schools remain closed.

Speech at the Legislature Rally

The level of funding allocated to our public education system depends on the priorities of the government. Spending on health care has remained a priority since 2000, ranging between 7 and 8% of provincial GDP. Education funding as a percentage of the provincial GDP has declined from a high of about 6.4% in 2001-2002 to an estimated low of about 5.0% in 2014-2015 (a decline of about 22%). If British Columbians deem education to be as important as I do, surely this drop needs to be rectified.

In terms of student achievement, our public education system ranks as one of the best worldwide. Every three years the Programme for International Student Assessment evaluates the performance of students internationally in three subject areas: mathematics, science and reading. The Council of Ministers of Education, Canada further breaks down the Canadian results on a province-by-province basis. British Columbia consistently performs extremely well. In 2012, for example, British Columbia was the top Canadian province in reading and science and was second only to Quebec in mathematics. In fact, British Columbia students even performed better than students from the much touted education system in Finland in reading and mathematics. While Finland scored slightly ahead of BC in science, the difference was statistically insignificant.

The success of our students is due, in large part, to the quality, professionalism and dedication of our school teachers, administrators and support staff.

Without a labour deal that addresses the main concerns of teachers, who battle daily to support their students, we risk losing not only a substantial portion of this school year but also the exceptional standard of education that we have come to be so proud of.

It is time to once again make education a priority in British Columbia.

Media Statement – August 31st 2014

Andrew Weaver Calls on BCTF and Government to Agree to Binding Arbitration

For Immediate Release

Victoria B.C. – Andrew Weaver, the MLA for Oak Bay – Gordon Head is calling on the British Columbia Teachers Federation, the British Columbia Public School Employer’s Association and the Provincial Government to immediately agree to binding arbitration to resolve the ongoing contract dispute, and to suspend the strike and lockout.

The departure of mediator Vince Ready from the talks this weekend portends to more than the first few weeks of September without classes for the over 550 000 students enrolled in public schools, their 41 000 teachers, and the thousands of support staff who were due to begin the school year this week.

The government has stated it will not recall the legislature early or introduce back to work legislation when MLAs return for the fall session in October. A framework to continue bargaining has not been established and no talks are scheduled leaving teachers, students and parents with little hope for an early resolution.

“The signs are clear that this dispute could stretch for months which will severely disrupt the lives of students, their parents and teachers, as well as their school support staff. I have been inundated with calls and emails from educators and parents desperate for a solution as the realization is hitting home a good part of the school year could be lost.” said Andrew Weaver. “There is a path forward, there is way to get classes started, and that is with the BCTF and government agreeing on binding arbitration and an immediate suspension of the strike. It takes leadership and resolve to do what is in everyone’s best interest.”

Media contact
Mat Wright – Press Secretary, Andrew Weaver MLA
1 250 216 3382
mat.wright@leg.bc.ca