Elementary and high school students are looking at a long weekend as the BC Teachers' Federation has announced it will continue rotating strikes in Richmond on Monday.
Photos: Striking Richmond teachers
Parents are being asked by the school district to find alternative arrangements and the City of Richmond is working on a plan to host various day programs that day. City spokesperson Ted Townsend said many of the programs were well received on Tuesday when teachers last walked out. Swimming pools, ice arenas and community centres are all options and details will follow by Friday.
Teachers are presently partially locked out and losing 10 per cent of their wages as they're not allowed to work during certain hours of the day, including lunch hour. The lockout by the provincial government followed graduated job action by teachers this month that limited their supervision of students as well as communication with administrators.
Teachers are asking for wage increases and lower class sizes as well as improved working conditions, which includes more educational assistants for special needs children. The government wants a long-term deal for labour stability. Neither side appears to be willing to budge.
The government has threatened day-long lockouts at the end of June, around the time provincial exams occur.
Visit www.richmond-news.com for an update on how parents can cope with the looming strike.
Story from Wednesday, May 28 (Photos Below):
Teachers hit the streets of Richmond on Tuesday, striking against a provincial government they say has not come close to meeting their compromised demands for a fair contract.
At McNair secondary school, Jim Iker, president of the BC Teachers’ Federation, greeted dozens of teachers as well as locked out employees of Ikea.
Iker called the support from Ikea workers “priceless.”
Teachers also welcomed the support.
“It’s good to know the Teamsters are here to support us,” said Marlene Kenakin, a home economics teacher at McNair, wearing her ‘Fair Deal’ placard.
Josh Rai, of Teamsters Local 213, was one of a handful of supporters from Ikea.
“It’s all about solidarity and today is about the teachers,” said Rai, whose colleagues are past the one-year mark of a job dispute with the multinational home furnishing company.
For much of the morning Rai and Kenakin stood outside McNair on No. 4 Road. One man in a minivan stopped and handed out a box of donuts, while a majority of cars passing by honked and waved as a sign of support.
Meanwhile teachers at Mitchell elementary school and Cambie secondary seemed in good spirits, despite the prospect of more one-day strikes on the horizon and no end in sight to the dispute, which is focused on wages and class size and composition.
Iker told a throng of media at McNair he is not ruling out rotating strikes affecting Richmond next week.
“We’ll look to see if there’s any substantial movement at the bargaining table and make a decision on Wednesday whether to continue rotating strikes next week,” said Ike
“We’re still apart,” he said of negotiations that have reached an impasse on issues such as wage increases, length of term and class composition.
Iker called the latter the most important issue in the labour negotiation.
“We want to see, at least, minimal levels of our specialist teachers,” said Iker.
“You can’t underestimate the importance of individual attention,” he said, noting the B.C. Supreme Court has twice sided with the BCTF to have the rights to negotiate class composition.
Iker said public support is something the federation considers when, or if, it decides to escalate job action.
Teachers are presently partially locked out by the BC Public Employers’ Association, which is now deducting 10 per cent of their wages. Teachers are prohibited from being at school more than 45 minutes before and after classes and forbidden to work during recess and lunch.
The BCPEA has also threatened full-day lockouts at high schools during critical provincial exam periods (June 25-27).
The lockout followed graduated job action taken by the teachers earlier in the month, which saw them limit time spent at school before and after class hours, as well as supervision of children during non-class time. Teachers
have also limited communications with administrators.
Last week Minister of Education Peter Fassbender offered a six-year contract as opposed to the 10-year contract it had previously been seeking. He also offered a $1,200 signing bonus, which has since been revoked.
According to the latest reports from both sides, the province is offering a 7.3 per cent raise over the six years while the BCTF is seeking 13.7 per cent over four years.
@WestcoastWood
