As the government and teachers’ union enter a third straight day of meetings with a mediator, an exclusive CTV News poll appears to show that public support for the government is waning.
Insights West polled people around the province to see how many were closely following all the details of the teachers’ dispute.
A vast majority – 83 per cent – of people said they are keeping a close eye on negotiations, and that even includes some households without children. When only parents were polled, a whopping 94 per cent said they were following the dispute very to moderately closely.
Nearly half of everyone polled said they support the BC Teachers’ Federation in the dispute, while 38% said their support lies with the government.
Last week, BCTF president Jim Iker pleaded with the government to go to binding arbitration, an option supported by 99 per cent of teachers who voted.
According to the poll, the majority of British Columbians also support binding arbitration. Nearly two-thirds of those who responded said the dispute should be sent to binding arbitration immediately, while under one-third said it should not be.
In the realm of public opinion, the poll suggests nearly half of all British Columbians believe the teachers’ union has done more to end the dispute. Only one in five people said they believe the government has worked harder to find a resolution.
The poll is based on data collected between Sept. 12 to 14, with a sample size of 800 people. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
