The provincial government has called in one of its labour negotiations experts to try to end the seven-month old teachers' strike.
Trevor Hughes, the assistant deputy minister of industrial relations, after a request by Education Minister George Abbott, has been instructed by the Ministry of Labour, Citizens' Services and Open Government to meet with BC Teachers Federation and the BC Public School Employers' Association over the next two weeks to help instigate a negotiated settlement.
Hughes gained 16 years of public sector experience in labour relations and direct collective bargaining before he joined the ministry in October 2008. Part of the mandate of the ministry's industrial relations branch is to monitor and offer assistance in collective bargaining disputes that have an impact on the public.
"Minister Abbott has asked for and I have agreed to seek an expert assessment of whether or not the parties will be able to reach a negotiated settlement," said Margaret MacDiarmid, Minister of Labour, Citizens' Services and Open Government, in a prepared statement.
"During this process, I encourage the union and the employers' association to continue working towards an agreement and hope they can reach a resolution to this matter on their own."
See Friday's Citizen for more.
