Teachers plan walk-out

Photo: The Canadian Press

BC's teachers are moving to their next phase of job action, meaning schools will be behind rotating picket lines starting next Monday.

The BC Teachers' Federation has announced the union will hold one day walkouts in every school district across the province, with each district affected once between next Monday and next Thursday.

According to a list provided by the BCTF, the following districts will be affected on the following days:

• Monday - SD67 - Okanagan Skaha
• Tuesday - SD83 - North Okanagan-Thompson
• Tuesday - SD23 - Central Okanagan
• Wednesday - SD53 - Okanagan Similkameen
• Wednesday - SD73 - Kamloops Thompson
• Thursday - SD22 - Vernon
• Thursday - SD58 - Nicola Similkameen

The job action also means extra curricular activities, such as field trips, will be cancelled.

Union president Jim Iker says they're moving to Phase 2 of job action because the provincial government has made unfair wage demands and is unwilling to offer any improvements to class size or composition.

The announcement comes just days after the B.C. government made its latest contract proposal, offering a $1,200 signing bonus and a six-year contract in place of the 10-year deal that was a plank in the Liberal election campaign.

The government proposal also threatens a five per cent wage cut if a contract isn't reached by the end of the school year.