Re: Teachers will be pushed to settle
I was most disappointed by your editorial about the teachers’ strike. You focused only on the financial difficulties the strike was causing to the teachers and the parents.
The teachers are taking a stand at great cost to them because the education system has been underfunded and undercut for years, to the point where they see the public schools in such crisis that they are willing to hold out for better working and learning conditions, adequate support for needy youngsters, librarians in the schools, and other things that have been spoken about in numerous articles and letters in the newspapers.
Their salary demands are not unreasonable. It is the government, as you pointed out, that holds the cards, but it is the government who is responsible for providing a strong public school system, and they should not be using their financial advantage to beat the BCTF into submission, thereby continuing the downgrading of the schools.
Citizens want a strong public school system, not a few dollars for child care.
It is time for the government to end this strike by funding the schools adequately to rebuild a school system that will again be a source of pride for the province.
Linda Picciotto
Oak Bay
