The head of the B.C. teachers' union is apologizing to parents who had to scramble to find care for their children during the three-day teachers' strike.

But BC Teachers Federation president Susan Lambert said her members felt they had no choice but to walk off their jobs to "resist vigorously" the provincial government legislation that forces an end to the job action of 41,000 teachers around the province.

"We don't come to this in any cavalier or light fashion," she told reporters Monday morning outside an east Vancouver elementary school. "I apologize to parents for the inconvenience."

Lambert said the strike is the last resort for teachers to protest the bill that will force an end to their job action, impose a cooling off period and bring in a government-appointed mediator.

"We just couldn't take it anymore, we just had to say something and we had to say it in a way that maybe this government finally will listen."

The strike has forced hundreds of last-minute programs for children at community centres around the province to help parents searching for a safe place for their children while they work.

The union's comments angered B.C. Education Minister George Abbott who said the union is completely manipulating and distorting the picture for its members when it claims the bill means larger class sizes.

"That's unfortunate," Abbot said on CKNW radio.

Lambert said the teachers want an independent mediator to find a compromise.

She denied teachers' demonstrations in front of schools today amount to a picket line.

"What people are doing is demonstrating in front of school or in mass groups across the province. They're not picket lines."

Lambert said teachers are complying with rules laid out by the Labour Relations Board.

About 550,000 students will be without instruction for the next three days. They'll be back for two days this week and then most will be off for spring break.

The legislation will be debated this week in the legislature and, when passed, will impose heavy financial penalties if defied by the union or individual teachers.

The federation has been staging limited strike action to back demands for better wages and benefits since September, but voted to strike last week when Abbott introduced the legislation.