School District 20 teachers will join their B.C. colleagues when they head to the polls this week to decide whether strike action is required to get their point across.
But potential job action will not include immediate school closures or disruption for students, says Andy Davidoff, president of the Kootenay Columbia Teachers Union.
The B.C. Teachers' Federation (BCTF) strike vote will take place today through Thursday, with results announced Thursday night.
If job action is needed it will occur in stages but any initial action won't include school closures, an end to teachers participating in extracurricular activities or an impact on report cards or communication with parents.
“After a full year of bargaining and more than 40 sessions at the table, B.C. teachers have called for a strike vote to push back against major concession demands, an unfair salary offer and a deliberately confrontational attempt to reverse the recent B.C. Supreme Court decision on class size, composition and staffing levels,” noted Jim Iker, BCTF president.
Bargaining started Feb. 4 last year, basically melding from one contract bargaining table to the next.