High volume City struggles to keep up with building permits. Page 11 accidental art Author refuses to let brain injury derail career. Page 30 Summer camp Parks and rec offers activities for fun and fitness. Page 3
Turnovers lead to loss Page 28
www.nanaimobulletin.com
TUESDAY, JUNE 10, 2014
VOL. 26, NO. 9
Employment trends look good for city I STRoNG NATioNAl economy pushing retirees out to Vancouver island and fuelling construction. By Tamara CunningHam ThE NEwS BULLETiN
GREG SAKAKI/ThE NEwS BullETIN
Spokes folks
Alison Grecht, left, Reese Beadall and Shaye Tudor compete in the 15-16-year-old girls’ division during a provincial series race Saturday evening at the Nanaimo BMX Association’s Marie Davidson BMX Park.
Teachers vote tonight on escalating to full-scale strike By Karl yu ThE NEwS BULLETiN
Nanaimo teachers are currently voting on whether to step up strike action in their labour dispute with the province, with results expected tonight (Tuesday). While there are more negotiations this week, the B.C. Labour Relations Board ruled last week that a provincially proposed 10-per cent wage cut can proceed, something that didn’t sit well with the B.C. Teachers’ Fed-
eration and its locals. According to Nanaimo District Teachers’ Association president Mike Ball, teachers will vote on whether to escalate action up to and including full withdrawal of services. While a provincewide strike is an option, teachers could opt for expansion of current one-day rotating strikes. The Nanaimo school district’s next strike is Wednesday (June 11). Ball thinks teachers will vote in favour of a full walkout, and if there
is such a mandate, a decision will be made by union executives rather quickly on which direction to go. “The executive committee will meet later [tonight] and decide how they’re going to proceed,” Ball said. “You’ll probably know [Wednesday] because if they escalate, they would have to give 72 hours’ notice to the employer, which would be the Wednesday, Thursday, Friday to the following Monday should there be an escalation.” See ‘DISTRICT’ /5
Nanaimo job hunters could start to see more help wanted signs. That’s the view of Woody Hayes, spokesman for the Institute of Chartered Accountants of B.C., who is optimistic Nanaimo is on the cusp of a positive employment trend thanks to construction activity and foreign investment. A recently released report from Statistics Canada shows Nanaimo’s unemployment rate is sitting at a three-month average of 4.2 per cent as of May, which is down from 5.7 per cent over the same period last year and lower than the provincial average. While employment outside the region has accounted for some gains, labour market experts are also giving credit to the Harbour City, which has seen its own influx of jobs because of new companies, construction activity and exports. In the first five months of this year, construction values for single-family homes reached $52 million or double the planned investment compared to this time last year. The city has also seen new employers, including Cabela’s, an outdoor retail store that plans to hire 150 employees from the area. Experts like Hayes anticipate more employment in the coming year. “I think 2014 is looking much stronger [than last year],” Hayes said. “You are actually seeing reports coming out now that you are seeing an uplift in the number of building permits.”
Repair&Wea See ‘JOB’ /4
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