Yesterday we visited the picket lines at McBride Elementary (29th/Knight), Charles Dickens Elementary (Glen Drive), Eric Hamber Secondary (33rd/Oak), and Tupper Secondary (King Edward/Fraser).
Teachers were very upbeat and noted lot’s of support from parents and students. At McBride students brought teachers cookies and were serenading picketers with the chorus of “Solidarity Forever.” Kids were also walking the line at Eric Hamber and teachers reports lots of support from motorists on Oak St. There was also singing and guitar playing at Tupper, along with some very upbeat leadership from picket captains. At Charles Dickens a parent was delivering lunch and neighborhood kids had set up a “Coffee For Teachers” stand.
The message we heard over and over from teachers was that they didn’t want to walk-out but that the government left them no option. The concerns we heard expressed on the line mirrored those stated by the BCTF leadership: teaching and learning conditions, fair salaries in comparison to teachers in other provinces, and basic worker’s rights (e.g., the right to strike).
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