The Labour Relations Board has ruled that the teachers may walk off the job for three consecutive days, giving two days notice.
The teachers can then walk off the job once a week, with weekly Labour Relations Board assessments starting March 12th.
The provincial government announced an hour later that they will bring in legislation and a mediator to end the dispute. It could take one week to pass bill, so a strike could still happen up until that time.
Once the bill passes, strike action will be illegal and teachers and the BCTF will face fines if they strike.
These decisions come after the BCTF met with with board Monday night.
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In what was described as a “few tense hours of deliberation”, the B.C. Teachers Federation (BCTF) went in front of the Labour Relations Board (LRB) on Monday night to seek approval to escalate job action.
Late on Monday night it was announced that a decision will be handed down Tuesday morning, and school will continue as normal on Tuesday.
As teaching is deemed an essential service, the LRB must approve any further action by teachers.
There are two options on the bargaining table.
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The BCTF is proposing ‘limited action’, meaning for a two week period, instruction can be withdrawn for four days a week, then teachers return to their current job action before possibly pursuing full-blown strike action.
The BC Public School Employers’ Association is negotiating for the existing teachers’ action to be over (this includes filling out report cards and supervising breaks, among other duties). They say one day in 10 off the job is enough, with two school days notice, and the other nine ‘work as directed’; rather than withdrawing instruction for four days a week for two weeks.
“The continued withdrawal of those activities will result in an immediate and serious disruption to student educational programs in the current school year, for summer school, which is coming up, and for the coming school year, because of critical planning that must occur,” said the employers’ association’s lawyer, Delayne Sartison.
“The continued withdrawal now will result in the immediate disruption of the employer’s ability to provide programs in each of those contexts.”
However, union lawyer Carmela Allevato said the teachers’ proposal struck “the right balance”.
Allevato said the legislation is designed to prevent an “immediate and serious disruption” to education services, which she argued doesn’t mean teachers can never strike.
“The big determination that has yet to be decided by the (Labour Relations) Board is at what point do we reach the threshold established in the legislation of a serious and immediate disruption to the delivery of educational programs?” Allevato told the hearing in Vancouver.
“We say that (the union’s proposal) ensures the disruption is not serious and immediate, and it allows the teachers on a limited basis to engage in a meaningful withdrawal of their labour.”
On Tuesday morning the government is expected to introduce legislation that would bring an end to the teachers’ current job action.
Susan Lambert, head of the BCTF has said that all teachers want is a negotiated end to the contract dispute, and to avoid a strike at all costs.
The teachers will vote on the decision on Tuesday and Wednesday, and could walk out as early as Friday.
The LRB will also decide on whether teachers have to give 24 hours strike notice, or two school days notice.
With files from the Canadian Press
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