Education
Vernon parents, students call for an end to the strike
VERNON - Teachers have been glued to their picket lines for days, but this week, there were some new faces on the block. Vernon parents, joined by students, took to 27 Street Monday afternoon with protest signs calling for an end to the strike. “The teachers have been walking the picket line long enough, I...
Vernon teachers to escalate pressure this week
VERNON - Vernon teachers plan to intensify pressure on local and provincial government in the coming days. With school supposed to start next week and no deal reached with the province, the Vernon Teachers Association will picket outside the school board office Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of this week to push Premier Christy Clark, Education...
School district ‘extremely disappointed’ with labour strife
KELOWNA - The Central Okanagan Board of Education is ‘extremely disappointed’ in the lack of movement between the B.C. Teachers’ Federation and the B.C. Public School Employers’ Association, which could result in schools not being open next week as planned. Trustees say they have been pushing the two parties to bring in a mediator to...
Options for back to school as strike continues
KAMLOOPS - As of Friday morning, B.C. teachers are still on strike and with only three weeks before back to school it’s time to start planning for what to do with your kids if a deal cannot be made before Sept. 2. Monica van der Meulen of the YMCA says the local group will be...
VIDEO: ‘Our Voice Our Teachers’
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Two independent film makers under the name TNT Creation have joined the political battle in support of teachers this week with a video showcasing why and how Kamloops residents support B.C. teachers. The video, shot over two days, features Timo Sargent in front of the camera and Tim Unaegbu behind it. In a...
Local school board putting pressure on both sides in teachers strike to settle
PENTICTON - The local school board is writing to provincial education officials urging them to come to a settlement agreement. The board held a special meeting this morning to discuss what information trustees want included in the letter to be sent to the Ministry of Education and the B.C. Teachers’ Federation. The idea of a...
ARCHER: Trustees take a stand for students
If you’ve been following the teachers’ strike over the past few weeks, you know negotiations between the provincial government and teachers' federation have not been going… at all, really. We all feel helpless waiting for them to figure it out but think of school board trustees who are used to having some power and control...
UPDATE: Iker won’t attend teacher rally tonight, Sinclair scheduled to speak at event
KAMLOOPS – Jim Sinclair, president of the B.C. Federation of Labour, will address a teacher rally tonight at Riverside Park. Jim Iker, president of the B.C. Teachers' Federation, was expected to attend but due to a bargaining meeting he will not make it in time. Iker and Sinclair have travelled together to speak to teachers...
School bus cuts get rough ride
VERNON - A school board decision to cut Vernon bus routes is getting a rough ride from parents. School District 22 is tightening up the routes to save approximately $125,000 from its budget. Around 300 students living 2.4 km or more from their school will now have to find another way to get to class....
School doors not completely closed as teachers walk the picket line
PENTICTON - Schools have not completely shut down, despite the wall of teachers picketing the front lines. Teachers and administrators are not trying to prevent students from entering the schools at all; students needing to clean out their lockers, if they haven’t already done so, can come by their school and collect their things. Administrators...
Teachers and government ‘not even close’ to a deal
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN — There is still a major gap between the teachers' union and the government when it comes to a new collective agreement and the education minister says as it sits the union’s proposal simply is not affordable. “We are not even close to where we need to be to get a negotiated agreement,” Peter...
STAHN: Who the strike is really hurting
‘This is not the way I wanted it to end.’ It’s a line I heard over and over again during the teacher strike. It’s applicable to both retiring teachers and the students who saw their school year end with less than 24 hours notice. Many of the students, abruptly told last Thursday would be their...
School’s out, but provincial exams will be written
NORTH OKANAGAN - There will be picket-free entrances for grade 10-12 students writing their provincial exams in the North Okanagan. While school is out for students across the province, a ruling from the Labour Relations Board means grade 10-12 students will write their provincial exams as scheduled and have them marked. All other school exams...
More students means fewer daycare spots
KAMLOOPS - Enrolment is going up at the elementary age and that means more jobs for teachers and better use of district space. It also means daycares within some schools must find a new place to call home. Space at two schools will be reclaimed before the next school year and the daycares at each...
Teachers strike causes daycare to close doors
PENTICTON - The ongoing teachers’ strike is not just affecting teachers, staff and students, but parents as well. Working parents who need child care services are running out of luck, especially if their chosen care centre is located in a school. The approximately eighty families that send their kids to Kid’s Connection Daycare are now...