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Rotating teachers strike hits the Similkameen

Similkameen Elementary Secondary School teachers set up a picket line outside the school on May 28,
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Striking teachers stage a picket in front of Similkameen Elementary Secondary School on May 28.

Similkameen Elementary Secondary School teachers set up a picket line outside the school on May 28, part of a series of province wide rotating strikes staged by the province’s school districts. The strikes are meant to be a show of support by teachers to see the province and teachers union return to the bargaining table.

“We’re more concerned about class size and composition than with wages,” said Ian Johnson, one of the teachers on the picket line last Wednesday.

“Those rights were stripped away from us in 2002 and we’ve yet to see that issue settled.”

 

Johnson said wages were a secondary issue, noting that teachers have been working without a contract for a year, with no offers of retroactive pay, although the latest settlement offer issued by the province would have provided a $1.200 signing bonus. Johnson said the province has to give negotiators the ability to come to an agreement.