After a prolonged disagreement over contracts between teachers and the province, 51,000 members of the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) initiated a strike on Monday morning. This action is set to impact over 730,000 students across the province, with more than 142,000 enrolled in the Calgary Board of Education (CBE).
The ATA members rejected an offer that included a 12% wage increase over four years, moving most teachers to higher salary levels, and providing complimentary access to the $100 COVID-19 vaccine for teachers without health issues. The offer was turned down by 89.5% of voting ATA members. Despite a commitment to fund 3,000 new teaching positions, the ATA insists that more than 5,000 additional teachers are required for increased class sizes and complexity, along with salary adjustments to keep pace with inflation.
Furthermore, the declined deal included a promise to hire 1,500 more educational assistants by 2028, a plan that the province still intends to fulfill. President Jason Schilling mentioned ongoing discussions with the province in an effort to find a non-confrontational path forward.
During the strike, students will have access to online learning resources like D2L and Google Classroom provided by CBE for continued education. Additionally, the province is offering free K-12 curriculum learning toolkits and temporarily lifting the annual credit limit for distance education to allow students in grades 10 to 12 to earn credits through independent schools.
Parents of students aged 12 or younger in public, Catholic, or francophone schools can apply for $150 per week from the province, with applications starting on October 14. The government will disburse the first payments via e-transfer starting October 31.
While teachers are on strike, school support staff, including bus drivers, custodians, and educational assistants, are expected to remain at work. Out-of-school care programs may provide child care for children under 13, and increased subsidies for licensed full-time child care are available for children in grades one through six.
Educational support staff at CBE and the Calgary Catholic School District will continue their work during the strike, as confirmed by both school boards. The province has left it to the discretion of the school boards to decide whether to retain support staff. Unionized workers, like those represented by Unifor and CUPE Local 40, have clarified that they will not substitute for teachers but will support them in other ways.
This strike marks the first province-wide teacher walkout since 2002, when then-Premier Ralph Klein intervened to end a similar situation involving over 20,000 teachers.