Teachers on the Sunshine Coast are “very hopeful” about a recent ruling that will allow the B.C. Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) to bring its concerns around class size and composition to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Last week the BCTF was granted leave to appeal a 2015 B.C. Supreme Court ruling that said the government acted in good faith when it consulted teachers leading up to the 2012 introduction of Bill 22, which took away class size and composition limits found in the School Act.
The BCTF will begin its appeal of that ruling through the Supreme Court of Canada within the next few weeks.
“Unless the Supreme Court changes the timelines, I believe that we have a month to put in our first starting arguments and then there will probably be a hearing sometime in the early fall. We’re hoping that we’ll have a decision within the year, so hopefully by January [2017] we’ll have the decision,” BCTF president Jim Iker said.
He noted the class size and composition issue has been a matter before the courts since 2002, when then Education Minister Christy Clark imposed a new contract and Bill 28, which officially stripped class size and composition language from teacher contracts.
In 2011 the court sided with the BCTF regarding Bill 28, saying government didn’t have the authority to take away collective bargaining rights of teachers. However, in 2012 the government passed Bill 22, which reintroduced parts of Bill 28 that stripped contract language around class size and composition.
In January 2014, teachers won a Supreme Court ruling on Bills 22 and 28 but in February the Ministry of Education appealed and it ultimately won that appeal in April 2015.
Now the BCTF is appealing once again, this time to Canada’s top court.
“It’s been 14 years since the original unconstitutional legislation that stripped our collective agreements, but B.C. teachers are still very committed to our efforts to win back those important working conditions for teachers, which are also our students’ learning conditions,” said Iker.
B.C. Education Minister Mike Bernier didn’t have much to say about the BCTF’s plan to head to the Supreme Court of Canada this week, except to note that the government was “confident” in its legal position and that it would “appreciate any further guidance the court may provide.”
“We’ve always said that the BCTF’s application to have their case heard in the Supreme Court of Canada is part of the democratic process,” Bernier said, adding: “While we’re going through this process, I can’t comment on the legal aspects of it.”
Sunshine Coast Teachers’ Association (SCTA) president Louise Herle said teachers on the Coast are “in high spirits and very hopeful about the ruling.”
“We have been waiting 14 years for justice to be served! Teachers have sacrificed time and money on the picket line to protest this injustice on behalf of students, parents and our society,” Herle said.
“Parents and students I have talked to are also very happy about the ruling – they know that every child deserves a quality public education system with smaller class sizes and attention to students with special needs and specialist teachers like teacher librarians in every school.”
Bernier said while the appeal winds its way through the court system, the government will continue to work closely with the BCTF to implement the new curriculum and ensure teachers are property trained to deliver it starting next year.
“It’s worth noting that, since the last round of bargaining, government’s relationship with the BCTF has never been better,” he said.
