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strike
SD23 provincial exams will continue as planned
KELOWNA – For students in School District 23, the teacher’s strike has cast a cloud of uncertainty over how their year will end. SD23 Superintendant Hugh Gloster says regardless of whether or not the dispute is resolved, provincial final exams will go ahead as planned and all students will likely receive some form of report...
It’s summer for school zone speed limits
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - With classes cancelled due to the teacher's strike you might be wondering if school zone speed limits are still in effect until the end of the school year. "As far as I'm aware school zones are only in effect when school is in session," RCMP Const. Kris Clark says. Even though schools are...
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...
Government responds to BCTF accusations with proposal details
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN — The teacher’s union had its turn this morning to voice displeasure with the government but this afternoon the government put exact details of proposals by both parties up for inspection. B.C. Teacher’s Federation President Jim Iker said this morning the union tabled a ‘fair, reasonable and balanced’ proposal and said it was ignored for...
No deal reached over weekend, teacher strike imminent
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Though the teachers union presented a revised list of demands to the provincial bargaining group over the weekend, a deal was not reached and the union is prepared to wage a full scale strike starting tomorrow. However, there is still hope on both sides that a deal can be reached before the end...
Kelowna camps and clubs expand offerings during strike
KELOWNA – With teacher job action escalating to full strike next week, several local organizations have added programs and extended hours to help parents out. The H2O Centre will open their slides and other attractions at noon instead of 4 p.m. starting Monday, and general manager Cory Krist says they have also instituted morning and...
Family, friends and day camps to fill void
KAMLOOPS - Unless things change drastically over the next few days teachers will be entering a full strike Tuesday and parents and child care facilities around the city are scrambling to figure out what to do with all the displaced students. For many parents it will mean digging a little deeper in their pockets to...
Reactions to full teacher strike vary
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Earlier this week teachers voted to move to a full strike if necessary and Thursday morning the teachers' union gave the necessary 72 hours notice. If an agreement is not reached by the end of the day Monday teachers will begin a full strike Tuesday, June 17. Monday was declared a study session....
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...
Full strike could begin Tuesday, no school Monday
OKANAGAN - This week could be the last week of school for many students, the teachers’ union announced this morning it will be moving to a full strike beginning Tuesday unless a deal can be reached on the collective agreement. An email was sent to teachers Thursday night and quickly news spread on social media....
This could be last day of school in Kamloops
FULL STRIKE LAUNCHED KAMLOOPS — The teachers’ union appears headed to a full strike beginning Tuesday and with a ‘study session’ planned for Monday and a rotating strike day Friday, that means today is potentially the last day of school for many students in Kamloops. An email was sent to teachers Thursday night and quickly...
What parents need to know about the teacher strike
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Teachers in B.C. voted overwhelmingly in favour of moving to a full strike if contract negotiations continue to stall and that could mean an early summer break for some students and limited report cards for others. The history of non-agreement between the B.C. Teachers’ Federation and the B.C. Public School Employers’ Association, the...
Teachers agree to full strike
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN — More than 28,000 B.C. teachers voted in support of moving to a full strike, a move that could come as early as next week. In total more than 33,000 teachers took part in the vote Monday and Tuesday, with 86 per cent voting in support of stage three action. “Thank you for standing...
Teachers set for third week of rotating strikes
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN — Teachers in B.C. are preparing for a third week of rotating strikes and they will also decide early next week whether they launch a full strike before the end of the school year. The B.C. Teachers’ Federation announced Thursday afternoon rotating strikes will take place Tuesday through Friday next week. In school districts...
Less than 1% of Kamloops secondary students walkout
KAMLOOPS - Only about 50 secondary students were absent from Kamloops schools today during a province-wide student walkout—a pretty average number on any given day in the school district—but today most were protesting. Superintendent Terry Sullivan says between 47-50 secondary students, across three schools, and seven or eight elementary age students were absent today and...
STUDENT WALKOUT: Students show teachers who’s boss
PENTICTON - At 10 a.m. this morning, a handful of students left their oversized classrooms to hold signs on the sidewalk, announcing their frustrations towards their teachers who walked out of schools last week. A group of grade nine girls from Pen High said their teachers think it’s ironic the students are walking out of...
Westsyde students among those walking out Wednesday
KAMLOOPS - Students are sick of being played as pawns and at least a handful of students at Westsyde Secondary will protest Wednesday morning in an effort to get both sides of the labour dispute to think about the students stuck in the middle. “This walkout is to tell both the government and the teachers...
Teacher strike hits childrens’ festival where it hurts
"WE'RE JUST TRYING TO DO THE BEST WE CAN IN THIS SITUATION." KELOWNA - Organizers of a West Kelowna childrens' festival are worried the ongoing dispute between the BCTF and the province will hurt attendance at the 8th annual Interior Savings Fat Cat Children's Festival this weekend. Artistic director Dorothee Birker says teachers bringing kids...
Teachers have choice to attend grad, field trips
KAMLOOPS — Superintendent Terry Sullivan has been dealing with calls from irate parents as teachers announce cancelled school events and he wants to make it very clear, the district has not prohibited their participation, the choice to take part is up to each teacher. “We’re not cancelling anything,” Sullivan says. “If teachers are supervising the...
School trips cancelled because of strike
KAMLOOPS - Grade 5-7 students around the district have been looking forward to year end camping trips but this year many of them have been cancelled because of the teacher strike. Several schools have cancelled year-end camping trips to Eagle Bay Camp because of the strike upsetting students and their parents who helped raise money...
Teacher strikes to continue next week
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN — If you have kids, be prepared to find alternate plans next week because the teachers’ union has announced a second week of rotating strikes, set to take place next week. Students in the Central and North Okanagan School Districts (SD23 and SD83) will be home Monday, June 2. On Tuesday, the strikes rotate...
Teachers strike in Kamloops
KAMLOOPS - Day three of rotating strikes across the province had teachers in Kamloops hitting the pavement in an effort to move along contract negotiations with the provincial government. The B.C. Teachers Federation announced last week it would stage rotating strikes this week after the province refused to negotiate on classroom size and other key...
Kelowna parents join teachers on day of action
KELOWNA – With the second of four planned rotating job action days taking place in Kelowna Tuesday, some parents and teachers are saying they are standing together for students in danger of being left behind. Veronique Broger has two kids enrolled in Ecole de L’Anse-Au-Sable on Gordon Dr. She decided to come out and support...
Teachers on twitter: Strike news shared on social media
PENTICTON - Teachers across the province began striking this morning for better wages and smaller class sizes, among other reasons. The rotating strike is an effort to move along negotiations with the province. Here's a look at what teachers, parents and students have been saying on social media: %%Embed1%% To contact the reporter for this...