Teachers who have a majority of students in difficulty in their groups could obtain bonuses of up to $8,000 if Quebec fails to open new classes or provide them with additional help, provides for the agreement in principle between Quebec and the teachers of the Autonomous Education Federation (FAE) obtained by The Press.
The composition of the class was cited as a central element of the negotiations with Quebec by many FAE teachers, who were on strike and without pay for more than a month, last November and December.
The agreement signed by the union and Quebec, which must be ratified by the 66,500 members in the coming weeks, provides for “mitigation measures” when cohorts of students are made up of too many students in difficulty.
At the primary level, Quebec puts 19.1 million on the table. It is expected that when “the accumulation of difficulties [des élèves] reaches a threshold of 60%”, the group is opened, “subject to premises and legally qualified teachers available in the targeted cohort”.
If opening a group is impossible, mitigation measures are then planned, for example classroom assistance or even special services. If none of these measures can be applied, the payment of a bonus of $8,000 is planned.
In secondary education, 14.2 million are planned to help teachers. The threshold for students in difficulty is set at 50% per cohort. We are counting “priority” on the addition of special education technicians, but the opening of groups is also planned, if teachers can be hired.
The Autonomous Education Federation did not wish to comment on the agreement in principle. “The will of the FAE remains the same: to respect the democratic process,” the union declared to The Press.
In December, while the union was still in negotiations with Quebec, the president of the FAE, Mélanie Hubert, explained that the composition of the class was a “major issue” in these negotiations.