B.C. Views Will booze rules become looser? p6
Katzie had it with drug-fuelled crime. p3
THE NEws
Arts&life Her Majesty’s Horsemen in town. p23
www.mapleridgenews.com Wednesday, August 14, 2013 · Serving Maple Ridge & Pitt Meadows · est. 1978 · 604-467-1122 · Delivery: 604-466-6397
Labour strife threatens school year Workers without a contract for four years by Ne i l Cor be tt staff reporter
The prospect of a labour dispute disrupting the school year came a step closer to reality Tuesday, after a breakdown in talks between the provincial government and the union representing school support staff. “Government wasn’t ready for us,” said Leslie Franklin, who represents Ridge Meadows school district workers (CUPE Local 703) and who is also on the bargaining committee. “We were there three days, but they weren’t prepared to bargain.” CUPE represents teacher’s assistants, custodial staff, clerical workers and other vocations in the school system. They have been without a raise for four years and their contract expired more than a year ago. In June, CUPE’s school district locals took a strike vote that received broad support across the province, ranging between 85 and 100 per cent. In the Ridge Meadows local, 97 per cent voted for job action. A strike would close schools, because members of the BC Teachers’ Federation will not cross a CUPE picket line, said Franklin. “We want a settlement. We don’t want strike action,” she said. The government called the union to the table, but no progress was made. “We were there three days, but they weren’t prepared to bargain,” Franklin said, calling it “disappointing,” “extremely frustrating” and “a waste of three days.” The union issued a release saying there is a danger the bargaining delays will disrupt classes in the fall. “Our committee set aside nearly two weeks to bargain, and we came to the table with ideas for cost savings.”
COLLeen FLAnAgAn/THe neWS
Moving on to finals Emily Leo, 16, Danica Severinski, 17, Mike Podschadly, 16, Kurtis Severinski, 15 and Mark Podschadly, 14, will be part of the 4H Team BC at the Western Canadian Classic dairy show in Moose Jaw, Sask., Aug. 26-31. The group was chosen based on performance at shows such as Country Fest in Maple Ridge. See p10.
Guilty plea in violent kidnap Ian Campbell admits to taking teen at gun point by M o ni s ha M a r tin s staff reporter
A man who kidnapped a young waitress from a Maple Ridge mall at gun point in January pleaded guilty to the crime Friday. Ian James William Campbell entered pleas to four of seven criminal charges including using an imitation firearm, assault causing
bodily harm, unlawful confinement and theft. The other charges will most likely be stayed. Campbell will be sentenced in September in Port Coquitlam Provincial Court. The 25-year-old has been in custody since he was arrested in Vancouver Jan. 22 by mem- Campbell bers of the Vancouver Police Department’s Emergency Response Team and Ridge Meadows RCMP’s Street
Enforcement Unit. His arrest came after a public appeal by police for tips in the violent abduction of a 17-year-old girl from Westgate Centre on Lougheed Highway. The girl was standing outside the Fox’s Reach Pub after work when she was approached by Campbell around 8 p.m., Jan. 19. According to police, Campbell told the teen he needed help to start his car. The girl went
to help him, but Campbell pulled a gun and forced her to drive her red 1993 Honda Civic, out of the mall to a secluded area, where police say he physically, but not sexually assaulted her. Badly beaten, she still managed to fight him off, ripping a gold cross from him during the struggle. She escaped to a nearby house. After police appealed for information, several other women contacted investigators, saying they were approached by a similar man near Westgate Centre. See Plea, p14
Index
August 22nd
Live Bluegrass music with
5 On A String A&W 228th Street, Maple Ridge
Opinion Letters Looking Back Seniors Arts & Life Sports Classifieds
See Strike, p10
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