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WEDNESDAY

May 22, 1996

Rock roll
renews
roac call

BY ROBERT GALSTER
Contributing Writer

YESTERDAY'S __ five-hour
closure of the Sea-to-Sky
Highway north of Squamish
has renewed calls for another
route connecting Whistler to
the Lower Mainland.

The closure came as a result of a
Sunday rockslide that reduced fong-week-
end traffic to a trickle on one open lane.

Capilano Highway Services vice-pres-
ident Don Neilson said the closure was
hecessary to allow crews to open up a sec-
ond lane.

“Their main concem ts to get two lanes
functioning smoothly and safely.” said
Neilson.

Former West Vancouver-Garibaldi
MLA David Mitchell championed the
alternative-route cause during his days in
the legislature.

Although he is no longer actively cam-
paigning for any specific option, Mitchel!
hopes the weekend mishap serves to force
the issue — especially so during an elec-
tion campaign.

“This incident really emphasized that
collectively we have to come to tenns
with this,” said Mitchell.

“To give the government a little bit of
credit, continued Mitchell, “there have
been made significant improvements to
the highway.”

Capilano Highway Services’ Neilson
added that it's unlikely the slide could
have been prevented.

He said high moisture levels probably
played a pan in the mishap. although it's
too carly to be sure.

B insights..

BN. Shore Alert..........

BD SPP... ecsscssensinerene BD
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Weather

Thursday: Mainly sunny
High 18°C, low 8°C.

NEWS photo Mike Wakefield .

. WINDSOR secondary students Erin Whittle (left) and Kristi Ferriday gathered a 128-name petition Friday against the layoffs of

seven popular teachers. The Grade 9 students pian to collect more names before giving the petition to District 44's school trustee.

Seniority means
merit counts for
little in NV layoffs

BY ANNA MARIE D‘ANGELO

News Reporter

GRADE 9 students Kristi Ferriday and
Erin Whittle don’t understand why seven
of the most popular teachers at their school
got the axe last week.

“We just believe that we should have the best
teachers we know. | don't see why we should be
losing them all” Ferriday said outside Windsor
secondary on Tuesday.

The Windsor teachers were part of 107 teach-
ers in North Vancouver School District 44 who
reevived layoff notices last Thursday. The kiyoffs
translate to about 50 full-time teaching jobs,

The teachers’ layoffs start on July | as part of

moves Outlined in government-appointed trustee
Bob Smith's plan to cut $4 million from the eash-
strapped district's budget.

Assistant: superintendent’ Paul Killeen said

that layolfs were made in accordance with the
teachers’ union contrict “its very unlikely (any
will be rehired).” said Killeen,

As with al! of the teachers Jet go, the Windsor
secondary teachers have worked in the school
district for less than two years. They taught sub-
jects ranging from science to home economics.

‘The teachers werk under a union agreement in
which seniority determines who
will be termivated in a cutback.
Qualifications may play a rote in
teachers’ fayolfs, merit does not,
according to Killeen.

A full-time teacher in his first
year of work makes $32,263 annu-
ally.

The average wage of a teacher
in District 440 is $52,301. The
provincial average is $52,323.

Said Killeen, “Our average (salary) was going
down. We will probadly go up again after these
layolls.”

North Vancouver Teachers’ Association
(NVTA) president Chuck Dison said a teacher
with [2 years’ seniority will usually make about
$22,000 more a year than a rookie in North
Vancouver.

Killeen said the 44 non-teachers also laid off

in District 44 were mainly playground supervi-
sors. The non-teachers were members of CUPE.

District 44 elementary schools will go from
two playground supervisors to one in the fall as
the result of the layoffs. Dixon said that the teach-
ers’ layoffs mean that the school district's class
sizes will be at a maximum according to the
NVTA's contract, According to that contract.

Grade 4 to 7 classes can run to a
maximum of 32 students per class;
Grade 8 to 12, a maximum of 33.

Killeen said two ta seven teach-
ers received layoff notices al most
of the schools in the district,
Teachers will be reshuffled
throughout the schools for the next
school year. Killeen) said he was
uncertain how many teachers will
be gone from each school come tie

fall.

Meanwhile the concerned Windsor students
started a petition on Friday against the teachers’
layoffs.

After one hour, (28 students in the 900-sta-
dent school had signed the petition.

“Each of these teachers mean a great deal to
the students and we cannot understand why they
are being fet go." said Ferriday.

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