Negotiations stall between BCTF, province over proposal on Bill 28

The negotiations between the province and the BC Teacher’s Federation over Public Education Flexibility and Choice Act (Bill 28) have been suspended.

On May 5, Education Minister George Abbott appointed Paul Straszak to consult with the BC Teacher’s Federation on government’s behalf.

He has had five consultation meetings so far, with the last taking place Sept. 9.

At that meeting, Straszak tabled a proposal that included the provision of a Class Organization Fund, which would supplement existing resources, allow school-level planning for vulnerable learners and address complex class organization issues.

The fund would target classrooms with the highest needs and would be allocated on the basis of input from classroom teachers, BCTF representatives and school administrators. This fund could be used, for example, to provide additional teaching staff or teacher assistants.

The BCTF suspended their participation in talks following that proposal.

Straszak’s team submitted to the BCTF a revised proposal that includes $165 million in funding over a three-year period and $75 million each subsequent year to help teachers in classrooms with class-composition issues.