Surrey - The Editor, Re: "Lack of trust means more melodrama," the Now, May 27.
The teachers' and province's bargaining teams are at it again and are both letting the public in on how unfair the opposing side is.Blah, blah, blah.As somebody who has been around the block for some 80 years, I have picked up some common observations regarding employer and employee expectations.The first observation is this: when listening to the most successful company heads, they all mostly say they could not have realized their success without the total dedication of their employees. This dedication and commitment is assured by fair and valued treatment of their employees and wages, which are in the top quartile for similar work.Currently, as they have been for more than 10 years, the teachers of B.C. have been in the bottom quartile for teachers pay in Canada. Their efforts have certainly not been highly valued by their employer, the government and, to some extent, the general public as well.The government lowers the perceived value of the teaching profession when it compares teachers' compensation with GEU members. In order to become a teacher, one must spend four to five years in a recognized university program. This is not the case for all GEU members.If the teachers of B.C. wish to enjoy an above-average compensation for their work, they must be prepared to offer a top product and go the extra mile. It is perceived by the public and from our own family experience that some teachers should not remain in the classroom due their very poor performance. In some cases, this poor performance can damage a child for life. The teachers and their union must figure out how to weed out these under-performing people.Summing up this predicament, it appears that both parties are so entrenched with their own expectations, there is little hope for attaining common ground and reaching an agreement that will satisfy both sides.It is time for Mr. and Mrs. John Q Public to wake up and insist this mess is fixed.R. McDonaldSurrey