Striking Burnaby teachers said they were getting more enthusiast honks on the picket lines Tuesday morning after news a tentative agreement had been struck at the provincial bargaining table.
In the wee hours of Tuesday morning, mediator Vince Ready announced the B.C. Teachers’ Federation and B.C. Public School Employers’ Association had reached a deal that teachers around the province will put to a vote Thursday.
No details had been released by press time Tuesday afternoon, but Burnaby Teachers’ Association president Rae Figursky said local teachers were hopeful.
“People are excited about the prospect of a deal that actually might be something that would meet kids’ needs and teachers’ needs for the coming few years,” she said.
But enthusiasm on the picket line was tempered by caution, according Cariboo Hill Secondary home economics teacher Jayne Roberts.
“We know there’s been give and take on both sides, but the government’s lied to us before,” she said. “If we’re in, I’m relieved. I didn’t think we’d get a paycheque before the end of October. I thought they would be legislating us back.”
If the deal is ratified Thursday, local teachers hope to get back into their classrooms by Friday to organize before facing students Monday morning.
“This is the first time in 20 years I’ve ever had to leave it in such a mess,” Cariboo fine arts teacher Helen Geddes said of her classroom.
Not having had a chance to wrap up year-end business before walking out in mid-June will create all kinds of challenges for the new year, according to teachers.
“I’m lucky that I even know the courses I’m teaching,” Cariboo math teacher Lori Bernard said. “There’s other teachers that aren’t even completely sure of the courses that they’re teaching. Newer teachers are going to come in to courses that they’ve never taught before.”
Even getting handouts ready for Monday morning could be challenge, according to Roberts.
“For all of us the biggest lineup’s going to be for the photocopier to get all our materials ready,” she said.
Repairing relationships strained during the strike will be another challenge, according to some teachers.
“A lot of rebuilding needs to be done, the whole trust factor,” Armstrong Elementary teacher Jude Comeau said. “I personally refused to say goodbye to my kids because I was positive we were coming back in June. No closure whatsoever. It was a mad rush to get them out the door at 3 o’clock on that Friday, and we haven’t seen them since … I feel I’ve bonded with my colleagues, but I haven’t seen many of the parents, and I need to see the kids; I really do.”
Burnaby school board chair Baljinder Narang said the logistics of school startup will be outlined once the details of the tentative agreement are revealed.
She said the district is bracing for a range of challenges from organizing schedules to sorting through possible financial implications.
She too was concerned about relationships bruised during the labour dispute.
“We need to work together, we need to pull in the same direction now,” she said, “so that’s going to require a lot of engagement with staff and students and parents and CUPE, everyone.”
Despite the challenges ahead, Narang said the board was “delighted” at the prospect of a negotiated settlement and “very optimistic.”
“When things went south last week, really bad, I was worried,” she said. “I guess you have to hit rock bottom, and I guess that’s where we were, and then people decided the only way was up.”
