Teachers may begin rotating strike action in School District 53 starting Wednesday, May 28.
That’s the word from the BC Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) in an announcement on Monday regarding their escalated job action.
Federation president Jim Iker said the decision to close schools on a rotational basis came after the provincial government’s unwillingness to offer any improvements to wages, class sizes and composition.
Rotating strikes in BC will begin on Monday, May 26 and continue May 27-29. All schools will be impacted on one of these days, with School District 53 seeing rotating strikes beginning next Wednesday. Iker said all schools will be open Friday, May 30.
“As teachers, we care deeply about our students and their education, but with another round of brutal cuts looming, we need to act now,” Iker said.
He noted the province is funding education $1,000 (per student) less than the national average.
The BCTF is calling for a fair wage deal and improvements to staffing levels for specialist teachers, as well as class size improvements.
The government recently offered a signing bonus and a six-year deal as opposed to the previous 10-year proposal. But it also threatened a wage rollback if teachers didn’t get on board.
The BCTF said rotating strikes could continue if there is no progress at the bargaining table. Iker said there is still time to hammer out a deal before next Monday.
As part of the escalated job action, it is believed that extra-curricular activities will be cancelled.
Bev Young, local superintendent of schools, said the district would be issuing a news release on Wednesday.
