Pundits suggest strike action would be warranted, but risky

The Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) has reached a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the provincial government’s bargaining committee.

The union will present the tentative agreement to its 51,000 public, Catholic and francophone school educators; teachers will vote on the deal this weekend. The ATA has said they will strike on October 6 if a deal can’t be reached.

“Teachers do not take the decision before them lightly,” ATA president Jason Schilling said in a statement. “They recognize what is on the line with this vote and remain committed to an outcome that prioritizes the future of our public education system.”

Education Minister Nate Horner said in a statement that the MOA is based on shared priorities, and “reflects elements that are good for teachers and the education system, as a whole.”

But documents obtained by the The Jasper Local and other media outlets show that the deal is largely unchanged from the one voted down in the spring. 

The offer would commit the province to funding 1,000 new teachers every year for the next three years—something that critics say should be part and parcel of Alberta’s plan to build 90 new schools.

The ATA has said the tentative agreement addresses salary and classroom complexity issues, but noted that no additional information will be available until after the ratification vote.

One new element of the MOA is that the province would hire 1,500 full time teacher assistants by 2028. Another is covering teacher’s COVID vaccinations, similar to other public sector employees.

Horner said the tentative agreement is strong on classroom investment.

“If ratified, this deal will form the basis for labour stability in the province and will be a positive path forward for a successful school year for our kids,” Horner said.

Didsbury, Alberta educator and principal Carolyn Massel has been teaching in Alberta for more than three decades. In a social media post, Massel said demands on teachers have increased exponentially while funding has not kept up. In her community the MOA represents funding less than one extra teacher and one part-time educational assistant, across three schools, by 2028.

“I will be voting against the government’s offer,” she said. “Step up UCP—we used to be the envy of other provinces. Our kids deserve better,” Massel said.

If 51 percent of members reject the MOA by Monday night, the strike will still loom. 

Political watcher Max Fawcett, lead columnist with the National Observer, suggested Albertans should wholly support teachers, noting that Premier Danielle Smith’s recent policy moves around book restrictions, and legislation around pronoun consent, have made teachers’ jobs harder.

“If [teachers] want to go to the wall we should go to the wall with them,” Fawcett said at a Canadaland podcast live taping on Monday night in Calgary. 

But Fawcett said he worries that the teachers’ message is too diffuse, and that strike action and its inherent disruptions to families could evaporate public advocacy. 

“People will support teachers on day one [of a strike]. They won’t support them on day two,” Fawcett said.

Bob Covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com