Other than no recess at elementary schools, parents and students should not see any big changes as a result of the teachers' job action when the first full day of school begins this morning, says school board chair Lyn Hall, unless the campaign stretches into report card time.
"Things will seem probably as they did last year," Hall said Tuesday. "Still carrying on with the education of the students, still carrying on with the educational programs, whether it be elementary school or high school."
With negotiations with the provincial government over a new contract at a standstill, teachers have launched a "phase one" job action that will see them refusing to perform administrative tasks such as filling out forms, collecting data, meeting with principals or other administrators, supervising on playgrounds, or writing report cards.
It has meant there will be no recesses at elementary schools although the school day will be shortened to make up for the time and non-union staff will continue supervisory duties at the start, when students arrive for school, and at the end, when they go home.
Prince George and District Teachers Association president Matt Pearce noted that School District 57 is one of only four school districts who've taken such a step.
"They know that this could be a very long job action and they're right off the bat trying to make it as easy as possible on their management personnel," Pearce said.
From the parents' perspective, perhaps the most noticeable change will be that no report cards will be coming home if an agreement is not reached in time.
However, Hall said that does not preclude parents from contacting principals and vice principals to get updates on their sons' and daughters' performances. Pearce had a similar comment, saying teachers will still talk to parents via e-mail, phone and in person.
"Generally, we see far fewer parents than we'd like to see," Pearce added. "We want parents on board as partners and it actually helps us a great deal in the work that we do when parents are involved and supporting the learning at home."
The B.C. Teachers Federation (BCTF) and the B.C. Public School Employees Association (BCPSEA), which behalf of B.C.'s 60 public school boards and the provincial government, have been in negotiations since March but have made little if any progress.
The previous five-year contract, which gave teachers an average 16-per-cent pay raise and $4,700 bonus expired on June 30.
The teachers, who have yet to table their new wage demands, say they want a raise because their pay has fallen to eighth-place from third in Canada. The employer disputes the eighth-place ranking, saying B.C. teacher wages have dropped to fourth in Canada from third during the last contract or seventh in the country from sixth depending on which provincial scales are used.
BCPSEA has been given a net-zero mandate, meaning any increases in salaries must be offset by reductions in other areas, and claims benefit demands for leaves, holidays and pensions add up to $2.1 billion, with wages still not on the table. BCTF disputes the figure.
Net-zero contracts have been reached with about two-thirds of B.C. public service workers.
"The simple fact is that the union's demands for increased benefits and wages come at a time when the vast majority of public servants in British Columbia have agreed to no wage increases at all," education minister George Abbott said in a statement. "This recognizes the very difficult economic situation the province is in.
"We are continuing to battle the economic storms that are still battering North America and the world and we are trying to get ourselves back on track financially by coming to terms with the provincial deficit."
Teachers also want more say in the size and composition of classrooms and point to a April 2011 B.C. Supreme Court decision that found provincial government legislation that stripped away that ability was a violation of their Charter rights. However, the court also gave the provincial government a year to come up with a response.
