The head of the BC Teachers Federation Jim Iker is recommending members vote yes to a six-year deal reached early this Tuesday morning with government negotiators.

“If this deal is ratified, I know teachers and students will be thrilled to be back in classes, doing what they love doing –teaching and learning.”

“Details of our negotiated settlement are going to our members. I know there’s all sorts of things out there right now, but those details will be going to our members to talk about, thank you.”

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Since picket lines went up, the government has also saved 163-million dollars.

Teachers are being encouraged to ratify the tentative agreement reached with the province.

Iker says the executive met today and is recommending members vote in favour of the deal on Thursday.

He says it was a tough series of negotiations to get to this point. “The tentative deal includes several hundred new teaching positions each year as a result of an annual education fund that will be used exclusively for bargaining unit members.”

Iker says the deal also includes a mutually agreed process to address any future court decisions and the removal of the E80 clause.

“A significant grievance remedy fund that will be used as a one-time payment to our members in improvements in elementary preparation time, improvements in salary, extended health and dental benefits, fair pay for teachers teaching on-call for every day that they work, and also no concessions,” he adds.