Dear Editor:
I would like to address the current provincial bargaining situation that continues to chip away at the valuable relationships upon which we depend in our highly successful school district. Students, parents, teachers, administrators and trustees were all disappointed that an agreement was not reached before a full strike took effect. This year has not ended as we would have liked, but that in no way negates all of the excellent teaching and learning that has gone in our district this past year. For that we are thankful to all of our staff.
As trustees, we have done our utmost to influence those at the bargaining table and we continue to advocate for a negotiated settlement. This board, and previous boards, have continually advocated for increased funding of our entire system by directly working with the BC School Trustees Association, lobbying and writing letters to current and past ministers of education and meeting personally with MLAs. As recently as this spring, we wrote to the chief negotiator, Peter Cameron, regarding salary harmonization to support our teachers. Education funding is at the top of our agenda.
Despite these efforts we find ourselves facing some of the most difficult times the province has ever seen in public education, and it is of grave concern to all West Vancouver school board trustees.
We hear a lot about there being "two sides" to this ongoing dispute; but I believe there is also another side, and that is the middle ground. Both parties want a stable solution that benefits students, teachers, families and communities. We encourage them to get back to the bargaining table so that learning can continue. We believe that a negotiated agreement is possible provided there is a renewed commitment from both parties.
On behalf of the board, I want to express our very strong commitment to a stable and quality public education system for our staff, students, parents and community. We would like to see a fair negotiated settlement and labour peace for a significant period of time so that our conversations can be about students and teaching and learning.
Cindy Dekker
Chairwoman, West Vancouver Board of Education
