BCPSEA, Gov't and Trustees: Proposing Wisconsin North?

Staffroom Confidential blog

Tara Ehrcke

GVTA President

June 23, 2011

Teachers were shocked to see the proposals put forward by BCPSEA at the bargaining table this week. On behalf of government and school Trustees, BCPSEA wants to gut teachers' collective agreements. They want almost total control over hiring, firing and placement. They want to eliminate seniority rights and due process rights. The proposals include:

• A teacher evaluation system with no rules or processes, except that they must be "aligned" with Ministry and District priorities
• The ability to fire a teacher after a single evaluation
• The ability to move a teacher to a different job or school at any time with one month's notice
• The elimination of seniority rights for teachers who wish to move positions, assignments or schools

The proposals represent a wholesale gutting of hundreds of existing provisions in agreements across BC that provide reasonable processes for teacher evaluations and fair and transparent hiring processes for teachers already hired to a District.

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