With no end in sight to the ongoing teachers strike, a group of concerned parents are calling on B.C. Premier Christy Clark to get her hands dirty in the labour dispute.
Chants of “We want school!” were heard from parents and kids outside Clark’s MLA office in West Kelowna Tuesday.
The crowd seemed to side with the teachers in the dispute, but many at the rally said they just want to see their kids back in class.
“I support our teachers absolutely,” said rally organizer Sarah Neukomm. “But I am here for our kids. I am here because I want my kids back in school.”
Clark wasn’t in her constituency office and she did not address the protesters, but comments made on the premier’s Twitter account have sparked a flurry of frustrated comments online.
1/4 Unfortunately, the BCTF rejected our offer to reopen schools while the two sides enter mediation to reach an agreement.
— Christy Clark (@christyclarkbc) August 31, 2014
2/4 Instead, the BCTF is sticking to its strike and demanding twice as much money as everyone else in the public service has received.
— Christy Clark (@christyclarkbc) August 31, 2014
3/4 That's not fair for the 150,000 dedicated women and men who have reached long-term agreements with affordable raises.
— Christy Clark (@christyclarkbc) August 31, 2014
4/4 Class comp. is priority #1 -- more educators helping more students. BCTF or CUPE, it doesn't matter because students' needs come first.
— Christy Clark (@christyclarkbc) August 31, 2014
“My core message to Christy Clark is we need to have some big concessions made on both sides,” Neukomm said.
“I feel like the government is holding this out as a game, that they need to get negotiating and finish this,” said local parent Erin Goward. “That’s I guess my hope, is that we can be here and she will hear us, because she hasn’t been here.”
The parents said they hoped to get Clark more involved in the ongoing labour dispute, which has mostly been handled by education minister Peter Fassbender.
CTV News requested an interview with Premier Christy Clark but a spokesperson said the premier is not available at this time.
For more on the ongoing teachers strike, click here, and follow @CTVVancouver for the latest updates.
With a report from CTV Vancouver's Kent Molgat.
