After a prolonged contract disagreement between teachers and the province, 51,000 members of the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) initiated a strike on Monday morning. Over 730,000 students in the province will feel the impact, with more than 142,000 enrolled in the Calgary Board of Education (CBE).
The ATA members, teaching in various schools across Alberta, overwhelmingly turned down an offer that included a 12% wage increase over four years, salary upgrades for most teachers, and free access to the $100 COVID-19 vaccine for teachers without health concerns. This offer, rejected by 89.5% of voting ATA members, also promised to fund 3,000 new teaching positions, which the ATA deemed insufficient. The association insists on the need for over 5,000 new teachers, along with support for larger class sizes, pay raises in line with inflation, and improved class complexity assistance.
Furthermore, the declined deal included a commitment to hire an additional 1,500 educational assistants by 2028, a plan still intended by the province. Students can access virtual learning materials during the strike, with CBE students utilizing online platforms like D2L and Google Classroom. Although teachers won’t be evaluating student work during the strike, access to these platforms has been reinstated after initially being planned for closure.
To aid students in continuing their education, the provincial government offers free K-12 curriculum learning toolkits and lifts the 10-credit limit on non-primary distance education for students in grades 10 to 12. Families of students aged 12 or below can apply for $150 per week from the province, with applications starting on October 14 and payments set to begin on October 31.
While classes are suspended, support staff such as bus drivers, custodians, and educational assistants are expected to remain at work. Unifor clarified that their members, including educational assistants and librarians, will not substitute for teachers during the strike. Additionally, CUPE Local 40, representing maintenance workers at CBE, confirmed their staff will continue working as well.
The province has stated that the decision to retain support staff lies with the school boards. This strike marks the first time Alberta teachers have walked out since 2002, when the government ordered striking teachers back to work after nearly three weeks of job action.
