The Nicola Valley Teachers' Union says it will inform parents of the progress of their children despite the labour dispute that has halted the reporting of student marks.

The ongoing labour dispute between B.C. teachers and the provincial government has left parents in the dark and without report cards on the progress of their children, at least officially. Teachers have not been filling out report cards and reporting student marks to administration as a result of a BC Teachers Federation strike that began last fall. The contract dispute has gone on since March 1, 2010.

"The Labour Relations Board has ruled that sending marks to the office is not an essential service," says Yvonne Lord, Merritt Secondary School staff representative for the Nicola Valley Teachers' Union. "We are, however, reporting to the office for the students who are graduating this June; that has been deemed to be an essential service."

Lord says some MSS teachers are also calling parents; some are sending notes home with the students, while others are drafting written progress notes, which were to be mailed Feb. 8.

The first semester at Merritt Secondary School ended Jan. 27.

"We encourage parents to call the teachers of their teenagers at the school, 250-378-5131, if they wish to confer about their children's progress. All of the teachers are concerned that parents are kept informed. We are more than willing to communicate by email, phone, or to meet in person."

The BCTF's wage demand involves a three-year agreement with a three per cent cost-of-living increase in each year as well as a three per cent wage increase in the second and third years, estimated to increase costs by $300 million. Teachers are also seeking "modest improvements" to their benefits plan, which have not been changed in 18 years.

The province is not budging on wage demands, pointing out its $3.1-billion operation deficit, and is holding out on net zero increase. It says the dispute is hurting students and parents as well as burdening school administrators with a heavier workload.

Education Minister George Abbott says the two sides are an "ocean apart."

"The strike is having a real impact on students and creating a strain in our schools and classrooms," he said in a government-released editorial today. "There is rising anxiety, frustration, and concern amongst all educational partners about the length of time this dispute has gone on and the impact on 500,000 students across British Columbia."

On Thursday, at the request of Abbott, Labour Minister Margaret MacDiarmid announced that assistant Deputy Minister of Industrial Relations Trevor Hughes had been appointed to "report on the likelihood of a negotiated settlement between the BC Teachers' Federation and the BC Public School Employers' Association."