Review Of The Case Tessler V. British Columbia Teachers' Federation

Facts: The “appellant” was Mr. Richard Tessler, a teacher employed by Board of School Trustees of School District (BCTF) No. 57 and his employment consisted of Provincial Collective Agreement between the BCTF and all school districts in the province, and a local agreement between the PGDTA and the School District. For the semester, September 2001-January 2002, the courses taken by himcomprised of Drama 9/10, Acting 11/12, and Stagecraft 11/12. The course outlines/pedagogy designed by Mr. Tessler included compulsory rehearsals and performances. He took four evening activities as director and supervisor on January 16, 23, and 24, 2004 and a dress rehearsal on Sunday, January 20, 2002.

The BCTF imposed disciplinary sanctions and penalties on him that in spite of awareness about school term ending, he scheduled the four evening activities outside the normal instructional day in the last week of January. The BCTF submitted that the activities were not only with Mr. Tessler but across the province, and were instructed to schedule within the instructional day. In the appeal, Mr. Tessler made the arguments in support of scheduling the activities in the evening by saying that he received no compensation either in time or money for the hours he spent on classes. But, the BCTF submits that the dress rehearsal and evening performances were not mandatory, therefore, extracurricular and optional.

Issue: Tessler applied under Section 10 (Case No. 49776) of the Labour Relations. In the appeal, Mr. Tessler made an argument that his rights under Labour law and Professional freedom of expression were violated. He further made argument that BCTF did the discrimination and allowed another teacher to go for 5- day ski trip, while the activities related to drama were prohibited.

Holding: In June 2002, a Screening Panel of the JC determined the allegations imposed on Mr. Tessler and then referred to the Hearing Panel of the JC for determination. In October 2002, The decision of the court was that:

1. The issue regarding evening activities taken by Mr. Tessler in this case was not the preferred interpretation of the Labour Relations Ruling; instead the issue in this case was compliance.
2. The dress rehearsal and evening performances scheduled by Mr. Tessler were extracurricular.
3. The Hearing Panel found that Mr. Tessler was guilty of breaching Procedure 44.04-1 and the Code of Ethics with respect to BCTF collective strategies in that, he attended evening performances outside the normal instructional day. For this, the Hearing Panel imposed the following penalties:

• That a letter of reprimand be issued to Mr. Richard Tessler.
• Suspension for a period of one year to hold any office, commencing 31 days after the issuance of this report.
• That Mr. Tessler be assessed a fine of $1000, for the four days on which he violated the job action plan.
• That these findings be published in the next issue of The Teacher magazine.

In discrimination issue, the case of 5- day ski trip was not comparable to Tessler’s and application falls under Section 10 (2) (a) was dismissed as being without merit. On December 20, 2003, Tessler's lawyer filed an appeal of the HP decision with the BCTF's Appeal Panel of the JC. The Appeal Panel too, determined that the activities were extra-curricular and Mr. Tessler was solely responsible to design the curriculum and action plan, but reduced the monetary penalty to a sum of $298.19.

Opinion:Mr. Tessler designed the course curriculum and had the right to do any changes to get effective learning outcomes, but claimed that he was obliged to follow the requirements set out in his course outlines. Should any teacher in the school have the right to make changes in the curriculum, outside the normal Instructional day? I am strongly of the view that a teacher can alter the course in time, to achieve best learning outcomes without disturbing the normal schedule of school. He also argued that there was no alternative for him to change the course outline and schedule at the end of the school term. I feel that, every school follows the policies that provides clarity to teachers with accountability issues or activities that are of critical importance and should be completed within stipulated time. For long term professional development, teachers must develop ability to think, express and reflect. The teachers are role model for students in the learning process for the professional growth.