Prince George, BC – Northwest Community College has served notice to 35 instructors of possible layoffs, as it grapples with a budget deficit that’s projected to be close to $2-million dollars.  A move the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of BC calls "unprecedented".

A notice listing all 35 members of the Academic Workers Union was sent to the CUPE local on Friday, January 27th.  The FPSE President Cindy Oliver says, "In the 35-years that our organization has been around representing faculty, it’s unprecedented to just blanket a whole unit."

Oliver says the instructors teach university transfer courses at NWCC and, if the college follows through with the layoffs, it will reduce learning opportunities directly in the communities they serve, and indirectly throughout the vast region because students will no longer have opportunities to learn close to their home communities.  NWCC is based in Terrace and has nine regional campuses, serving 34 communities.

Instead of presenting a balanced budget last year, the college petitioned the government for one year’s grace to do some strategic planning before making any cuts – planning that was to have included consultations with community members, business and industry, students, and employees.  Oliver says, to date, there have been no consultations with the affected instructors.  She says she’s called on both the college president and board chair to go with her to plead NWCC’s unique circumstances to the Advanced Education Minister, pointing out that serving the smaller, more remote communities increases costs. 

NWCC Director of Communications, Kristine Kofoed, says the college has been pleading its case with the ministry and job cuts are not the only measures being looked at to deal with the deficit.  But Kofoed says the notice of layoffs had to be issued at the end of January, in keeping with the collective bargaining agreement, before final budget decisions are made at the end of this month.

Kofoed says the college is soliciting input from all stakeholders on its website.  "Anyone can write in their suggestions on how we can save money, streamline operations – anything and everything is being looked at at this point."

But she says job cuts are inevitable given the size of the deficit.  "There definitely will be affected employees, including management – it’s not just staff or instructors – it’s all the way across the board," says the Communications Director.  "But that doesn’t mean affected employees will be usherd out the door on February 28th, that means they’ll be given notice (for the end of the term) as per the collective agreement."

The FPSE has filed several applications with the Labour Relations Board on behalf of the local union, that Oliver says, ‘fly in the face’ of protocols in that agreement.