Teachers ramping up presence on picket lines, a week before classes set to begin

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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Teachers on Vancouver picket lines say they will back their union’s strike action for as long as it takes to get changes to class size and composition.

With the BCTF and the government still in different worlds when it comes to a new deal, many teachers are bracing themselves for an extended standoff.

“We’re willing to ride it out as long as it takes to get the proper funding to provide a good education for all public school students regardless of their needs,” says teacher Jillian Maguire outside Kits Secondary.

When asked on the specific length she feels teachers can go without a cheque, she said, “Who knows? Who knows? As long as it takes to get a reasonable deal which provides good learning conditions for our students.”

Tobey Steeves is a Social Studies and English teacher who says he’s cutting down on spending and turning to credit to get by.

“Debt, debt, riding on debt,” he tells us. “Aside from debt, we’ve had to budget really smart. We’ve had to cut out buying things that we usually would be buying.”

Steeves says his situation is particularly stressful, given his pregnant wife is also a teacher.

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