BCTF Claims and Facts...

Courtesy of BC Government:

British Columbia Teachers’ Federation Claim	FACT
700 fewer Special Needs teachers	2,100 additional special needs teaching assistants in B.C. classrooms.
Ninth-best paid in Canada	B.C. teachers’ salary plus benefits is fourth-best among provinces.
Seniority eroded under Bill 22 - Education Improvement Act	Seniority remains key factor but qualifications also considered. Math teachers teaching Math; Science teachers teaching Science.
Contract demands are reasonable	A 15 per cent wage increase at a cost of $2 billion is completely unreasonable, given the current economic reality.
Wage increases are modest	Teachers’ union demands would cost $2 billion, which would raise taxes on all B.C. families.
Eliminated class sizes	Class-size caps on all grades with exceptions made by principals and superintendents.
Reject net-zero wage mandate	130 net-zero contracts signed. 25,000 CUPE employees signed net zero contracts.
Teachers have not been fairly compensated	Teachers received a 16 per cent wage increase; $3,700 signing bonus for their last contract.
12,000 overcrowded classes	Of 65,000 classes, fewer than 1,500 have more than 31 students. Fewer than 600 have more than 33 -- most of these are band, choir and theatre.