TUESDAY May 27, 2014 Vol. 29• No. 42 ••• $1.25 inc. G.S.T.
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Elevate the Arts photo contest deadline looming
Vanier Towhees win B.C. AAA girls rugby championship
RECORD page 5
A division of
Renee Andor Record Staff
Comox Valley students will not attend class Thursday as their teachers will be on picket lines. The BC Teachers’ Federation started rotating strikes around the province this week, in an attempt to increase pressure on the BC Public School Employers’ Association at the negotiating table. “We want a deal by the end of June; we don’t want this to linger on,” Comox District Teachers’ Association (CDTA) president Steve Stanley said Friday. “We’ve been without a contract for a long time and
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No school Thursday Rotating teachers’ strike hits Comox Valley May 29
page 9
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we want to get a contract going into next year … so we want to increase the pressure to make that happen.” BCPSEA has also said it wants a deal by the end of this school year, and last week announced a partial lockout in response to the BCTF issuing strike notice, which went into effect Monday. BCPSEA will cut teachers’ pay by 10 per cent per day of the lockout — which is expected to continue until an agreement is signed or teachers stop all job action — with a full lockout of secondary school teachers June 25 and 26 and all teachers June 27 planned. BCPSEA has said teachers will not be restricted from “extracurricular and volunteer activities,” including graduation ceremonies during the partial lockout, even if they’re held on school property.
... see STRIKE ■ 26
Cumberland senior still missing Scott Stanfield Record Staff
The official search has ended, but the community continues its efforts to locate Cumberland resident Jamie Sproule, who has not been seen since Thursday. The 65-year-old was reported missing from his Comox Lake Road residence when he failed to return home from a walk. Police say he left his home at about 1 p.m. Thursday. Sproule — husband of Cumberland Coun. Gwyn Sproule — suffers from dementia and Parkinson’s disease, and may have difficulty speaking. He stands 6’3” and weighs about 200 pounds. He was last seen wearing a grey Stanfield wooly work vest, khaki canvas pants and black runners. Comox Valley Search and Rescue assisted Friday with about 40 searchers, including some from Campbell River, along with a police dog, and two SAR dogs from Comox and Campbell River. “We’re continuing for a couple more days since we still have volunteers,” Sproule’s daughter Flora Wood said Monday morning. “We really appreciate all the love and support from the community.” She credits SAR personnel for being “thorough and professional” in their search efforts, which ended Saturday.
... see MISSING ■ 26
PHOTO BY RENEE ANDOR
Federal Official Opposition Leader Tom Mulcair helps unload K’ómoks First Nation-owned Pentlatch Seafoods oysters at the Comox harbour before taking a tour of the Salish Sea Foods processing facility. Comox was Mulcair’s first stop last week on his visit to B.C.
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