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Five-year agreement nearly done |
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Thursday, 17 January 2008 |
If everything goes according to plan in the rest of the province, it will be back to business as usual for Alberta's teachers, school boards and students for five years.
As more and more Alberta Teachers' Association locals and school boards give the thumbs up to the five-year deal now on the table, this province is on the cusp of unprecedented labour peace - in at least one sector.
The threat of job action for Alberta teachers and boards is a common theme in some districts, although the very serious last-resort step thankfully does not happen all that often.
With the local ATA voting in favour of the agreement last week, Taber-and-area teachers have put the ball in the court of the Horizon School Division board of trustees, who will officially vote on it tomorrow at its board meeting.
It is expected the board will put its rubber stamp on the agreement, and likely with a more unanimous tone than the local ATA did.
After Taber teachers voted last Tuesday, they were told the 79-per-cent yes vote locally was one of the lowest, if not the lowest, yes percentage in the province up to this point.
While local teachers may have had concerns about their total compensation packages, which are at the lower end provincially, a 79-per-cent yes vote still shows a solid resolve to move on and get down to the business of educating our children.
As was made clear by the local ATA president, the five-year deal should bring stability to education. Teachers will not have any worries in the back of their minds, worries which tend to spring up as a short-term contract is set to expire, or months into a school year when a contract has not been reached. School boards will be able to budget much more effectively and efficiently, with a better handle on what their costs will be from year to year.
And last, but certainly most importantly, the students will have five years of guaranteed uninterrupted schooling, by teachers who will have one less thing on their plates.
That last positive certainly rings true for parents as well, who can look forward to five years of labour peace.
More school boards and local teachers' associations still have to ratify the agreement before the end of the month before it becomes 100-per-cent official but if and when it is all finally completed, it should be a win-win situation for students and teachers alike. |
