While UNBC’s faculty and administration are back at the bargaining table, students are getting restless.
Around 150 students and supporters rallied at the Civic Centre Thursday afternoon, not to endorse a side, but to urge a deal gets done.
President of the Graduate Student Society Jessy Rajan (pictured) says the rally is to get community support and government attention … not intervention.
“We have looked at what other student societies have done across the country in previous strikes and they have reached out to the provincial government, and that’s exactly what we’re doing right now,” she says. “Public education in the northern part of this province is being starved, that’s the cold hard truth.”
Rajan is shocked that Advanced Education Minister Andrew Wilkinson hasn’t spoken up, yet.
“We find that completely unacceptable,” she says. “That’s why we’re here, to hear student grievances, and a plea for the provincial government to stop overlooking the North.”
The Ministry says they will not issue any statement during the strike, only their communications department commented that they would like to see a resolution reached soon.
Rajan isn’t overly enthusiastic that both sides resumed negotiations, Thursday.
“But they were not negotiating from 1 p.m. Friday (March 6th) until 8 a.m. [Thursday], that’s a long time to be away from the negotiating table,” she says. “When they left the negotiating table on Friday, I feel like that was a slap in the face to every single student that attends the university.”
However, she feels positive that they’re back and is hopeful that a resolution will be found as soon as possible.
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