“Let me be clear,” added Schilling. “October 6 is coming quickly. The choice is theirs: solve this dispute now or face a provincewide teachers’ strike.”
Finance Minister Nate Horner says the government is offering wage hikes of 12 per cent over four years with a promise to hire 3,000 more teachers.
Schilling has said teachers have only seen a 5.75 per cent salary increase over the past decade and that doesn’t even keep up with inflation.
The union has long pointed to national statistics that indicate Alberta’s per-student funding is among the lowest in the country.
President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance Nate Horner issued the following statement Wednesday in response to the ongoing negotiations with TEBA and the ATA:
“I am pleased to hear that the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) is returning to the bargaining table to continue negotiations with the Teachers’ Employer Bargaining Association (TEBA).
“This is a long overdue step after the ATA walked away from negotiations in late August and cast a shadow of uncertainty and doubt over the start of the school year.
“I am disappointed that the ATA is using the potential disruption of the school year as leverage in its pursuit of additional compensation. Announcing a strike commencing October 6 before the parties have resumed negotiations only serves to increase stress among Alberta’s students and families.
“Alberta’s government is committed to finding a fair settlement that ensures as many resources as possible are directed to essential classroom supports.”
Peggy Wright, Alberta’s New Democrat Shadow Minister for Labour, issued the following statement regarding the government’s negotiations with both HSAA and ATA members:
“Alberta’s workers are the backbone of our communities. They show up every day in complex and demanding situations—whether it’s caring for patients, teaching our children, or keeping public services running. They deserve respect, safe working conditions, and fair wages for the critical work they do.
“Instead, these workers are facing mounting pressures. The rising cost of living is straining families, and this UCP government continues to critically underfund health care and education, sowing chaos wherever they can.
“The government needs to get to the table and negotiate fair deals with these workers. Delaying or offering inadequate agreements undermines not only the workforce, but the services all Albertans rely on.”
Meantime, officials with the Alberta School Councils’ Association (ASCA) acknowledges the difficult announcement by the ATA, noting it continues to call on the government to appropriately fund education.
“There is value in the relationships forged between students, teachers, and parents – these are cornerstones of student’s success in education,” said Ken Glazebrook, ASCA’s President, in a press release. “But that success comes at a real-world cost. We keep hearing announcements of new initiatives, but the increasing of funding is absent in those announcements.”
“We have maintained that this discussion is between the Government of Alberta and the Alberta Teachers Association, and have consistently tried to respect the bargaining process,” said Meagan Parisian, Vice President. “Given that the ATA voted with 94.5 per cent to affirm a strike vote in the spring and it appears there has not been significant movement since that time, as this conversation moves forward, it’s imperative for all stakeholders to work together to find sustainable solutions that prioritize both fair compensation for staff and maintaining essential and critical resources for students’ learning.”
(The Canadian Press. With files from rdnewsNOW)