The B.C. teachers' union will not be stuck with a hefty fine, for not abiding by a labour relations board decision, a B.C. Supreme Court judge ruled Thursday afternoon.
The union had been expected to receive a fine for defying a government back-to-work order of up to $150,000 a day.
Instead of fines, Judge Brenda Brown of the B.C. Supreme Court placed restrictions on how the union can use its assets.
Judge Brown essentially took control of the B.C. Teachers' Federation's assets and cash for 30 days to ensure neither union funds nor third-party donations can be used to pay strikers their $50-a-day picket pay.
Now, lest the introduction be taken the wrong way, that's not to say that original orders are a bad thing. On the contrary, it's completely necessary for courts to have the ability to look for an unprecedented solution - and that's as true in criminal sentencing as it is in civil proceedings. Bookmark your favourite wingnut's response to today's decision, and point it out next time they want to tie a judge's hands.
As for the substance of the decision, I'm very curious to see the union's response, which hadn't yet been posted in the article's current form. Counsel for the employers was happy with the outcome, and the union finds itself in an unusual position: while it's better off as an organization not to have the funds frozen, the effect of the order is to create all the more hardship for its members (who weren't exactly living large on $50 per day to begin with).
While the ruling may be a test of the will of the striking workers, that could work both ways: if they're sufficiently committed to the cause to stay on the picket lines, the strike will be seen as more of an individual sacrifice than would usually be the case. And if maintaining some say in how classrooms are run is worth that much to the teachers, it'll be an awfully heavy burden on the government to claim that it's in the right in refusing to negotiate.
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