How will essential services work for schools?

Deputy Premier and Minister of Education, Christy Clark, described her government's promise as a "value" statement. Now that amendments to the Labour Code have been introduced to make education an essential service, we find that it will take a strike to find out just what the Campbell Liberals really mean.

From 1987 through 1992, education was deemed essential under the Socreds, but no ruling was made under the Labour Code. The Campbell government has indicated that it is including the Labour Relations Board in its review of administrative justice agencies, while at the same time as that review, it has amended the Labour Code to give the Board the authority to define and implement the Campbell election promise. An awful lot of controversy is being needlessly generated by a government that won't say what it means.

In 1992, the NDP removed the world "education" from the essential service section of the labour code and argued that since it had never been used, the words health, safety and welfare were sufficient. Gary Collins was the opposition critic. He then said "Why can't the minister make that minute, clear statement to the general public to give some direction to the Labour Relations Board as to what this actually means?" (Hansard, Dec 14, 1992) Now, with the roles reversed, the Campbell government won't say what it actually means.

Bill 14 amends the Labour Code so that the LRB can determine what staffing levels are "...necessary or essential to prevent immediate and serious disruption to the provision of educational programs." Note the word "AND". After making these changes a central part of its election platform, the government won't say what they really mean. We will have to wait to see what the LRB considers a "serious disruption".

In health care, that government demonstrated that it didn't trust the essential service ruling of the LRB. Government quickly set essential services aside and legislated no strikes while making the employers' offer the law. Maybe we'll find that essential services in education is the same kind of deception.