The Case of the Legislating Letter

(with apologies to Mickey Spillane)

It was a dark day.  I was sitting in my small, unheated, windowless office when I heard a noise.  Looking up from the Postscript crossword puzzle, I spied an envelope lying on the floor.  Crossing the office in one and a half steps I picked it up, careful not to smear any fingerprints on it.  It was addressed to me, personally, using my full name.  The return address was indistinct, but bore the name William Douze.  Never heard of him.  Inside, was a typed letter.  In essence it said I was about to have my membership terminated unless I paid up.

I was offered three options:  pay up, relinquish, or just forget it.  I was torn.  I had belonged for years.  Not that it was an exclusive club, there were thousands of us.  But we had a special status.  Then the phone rang.  The phone kept on ringing.  Apparently I wasn’t the only one who got a letter.

Callers demanded action.  What was being done about this outrage?  A team of wily investigators was assembled.  We gathered what info we could.  No one had heard of this Willy Douze.  He might be new in town, although he gave the impression of having been around for awhile.  Then we got the goods on this Billy Boy and wrote to his boss.  Where did this Douze guy come from so suddenly and why is he trying to alter our status?  We demanded a meet with the powers that be and got one just before the Yuletide celebrations.  Yes, it was late in the year, but still ahead of the deadline stated in the letter we had received out of the blue just weeks before. The ministry’s 2iC came through with some info – Douze is in charge of the date and even the subsequent actions.

Then the year was over, dead and gone.  The deadline passed.  Members had had to make their decisions, some to pay up, some to quit, some to wait.  The tough bit was that some members had not yet even seen this letter, but had lost their membership status.

The first meeting led to a second meeting.  We went right to the top – Mr. Big himself.  By now his henchman, Bill Douze, was well known and had to explain himself.  Questions flew.  What about these options?  What would our status be?  Could there be a special fee?  Answers, information, discussions, future plans; it all happened right there in that little room overlooking the harbour.  Leaving, we felt we had made progress, we were on a new footing.  Things were looking up, not great, but up.

Back in my office, unheated but cozy, I looked at the unfinished puzzle, still wondering about 37 across, but felt I must inform the members about the status of our membership now and in the future.  Picking up my pencil stub I found a scrap of paper and began to write….

Colleagues,

                                                                                                February 6, 2012

For us it all started with a letter.  In mid-November we each received a letter from the BC College of Teachers stating that our present status would be changed forever on January 6, 2012.  These letters were greeted with surprise, shock, and outrage.  The BCRTA sent off an official letter to the Minister of Education, and many letters from individuals and branches followed.  The Advocacy Committee was designated to plan our responses and asked for a meeting with the ministry before Xmas.  On December 22 we met with the Deputy Minister, James Gorman, and his associates at the BCCT offices in Vancouver.  We asked for an extension of the deadline, but were told it was a legislated date and only the legislature could change it.  We asked to be able to maintain our present ‘non-practising’ status.  We were told there would be only one classification of certification, that of active teachers.  We asked about Options 2 and 3.  We were told that those retired teachers who did not renew their certification would have no black marks against their names.  Their college membership merely ceased with the legislation that dissolved the college.  Personnel records would be maintained and available should a retired teacher seek to obtain a practicing certification in the future.  The Deputy Minister was very positive and concerned about our feelings.  He said there was no intention to insult or alienate retired teachers.
On February 1, 2012, we met with the Minister of Education, George Abbott, and James Gorman and Chris Sandve in the Premier’s Vancouver Office at Canada Place.  The Minister was sincere and apologized for the perceived slight the retired teachers had endured. We presented our desire to establish a transition period up to June 30, 2012, to allow those members who have not learned of the transformation and those who did not fully understand the three options to make their reasoned decisions.  We also restated our interest in maintaining our present status, at an appropriate fee, under the new regime.  Our reception was very positive, and our requests received and will continue to receive due consideration.  The Minister wishes to honour retired teachers and will explore a variety of means to do so.  We have been offered space in the new version of the College magazine where we can express our views.  We all plan to meet again in about three months.  In addition, we want to meet with the new Teachers’ Council when it is established.  It is this council that could create a certificate classification for non-practising teachers.

We have now a very good working relationship with the Ministry.  The communications we sent, individually, collectively, and officially, really established the BCRTA as a viable concern for educational issues.

The impact of Bill 12 is still being felt, and those questions that remain still need to be answered.  We are much more hopeful now than we were in November just after we received our letters.

Sincerely,

Douglas Edgar
President