School Strike

Both sides in the British Columbia teachers dispute will be back in the province’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, with the B.C. Public School Employers’ Association seeking stiff fines against the union.

The province’s 38,000 teachers continue to disobey a back to work court order issued more than a week ago. That court also found the teachers and their union in civil contempt.

Special prosecutor Len Doust, who was hired by the province, has decided against initiating criminal contempt proceedings, at least for now. He said Monday he is proceeding cautiously and will continue to monitor the teachers’ conduct.

The comment came as thousands of teachers and other trade unionists marched onto the lawn of the B.C. legislature in Victoria, part of a “day of action” aimed at getting the government’s attention.

The protesters ignored a heavy rainfall, demanding the province negotiate a new collective agreement, and brought the provincial capital to a virtual standstill.

The teachers’ wildcat strike is illegal because the Liberal government of Gordon Campbell has deemed that the province’s schools are an essential service.

But the appointment of a special prosecutor to follow the dispute has further irritated the situation.

“That just made us a little more angry and a little more resilient. And we’re going to be here and walk the line no matter what,” said Joan Ma, who teaches Grades 2 and 3.

Last week the B.C. Supreme Court ordered the union to stop paying teachers strike wages or giving them any other kind of financial support.

Jinny Simms, the president of the B.C. Teachers’ Federation, says teachers want smaller class sizes and accuses the premier of using the courts to attempt to silence the union.

“Teachers want to have their students back in the schools. But we need to have guarantees for our students’ learning conditions and we need to have our rights as well,” said Simms.

The dispute erupted into a wildcat strike after the government passed Bill 12. The legislation forces the teachers to accept a two-year contract with no wage increase.

About 600,000 students are affected by the strike.

But at a news conference Premier Campbell said there is “no excuse to break the law and show such flagrant contempt for the courts of British Columbia.”

Campbell says he is willing to meet with teachers, but he says it won’t be to renegotiate the collective agreement. He says the union must order its teachers back to their classrooms to avoid the possibility of criminal charges.

“I don’t want that to happen. I don’t think anybody will be served by that. But that will be the choice of the courts,” he said.

But Simms says the teachers won’t be bowed. “There is a big difference between breaking the law and having a law designed to break you. We will not be broken.”

Union leaders say they are ready to deal with the consequences of their illegal strike, even if it means jail time.

Teachers say they are determined to continue their job action, in spite of receiving no pay from their union.

“I will eat up all the canned food and frozen dinners in my pantry and visit my mother more often,” said Ma.