By Kaiden Brayshaw | LiveWire Calgary
A province-wide teacher’s strike is becoming evermore likely following a heavily supported authorization vote.
An online strike authorization vote with nearly 38,000 teacher participants between May 22 and 26, finished with an approval rating of 99 per cent, signalling that Alberta teacher’s “can no longer hold up our crumbling public education system,” a Alberta Teacher’s Association press release said.
The vote was does not determine if a strike will happen, instead, it is a vote to see if teachers want to take a strike vote, according to a statement made by the the Ministry of Treasury Board and Finance.
The Alberta Teachers’ Association’s (ATA) recent strike authorization vote, which is required as part of the union’s constitution, is not a strike vote – it is a vote to see if teachers want to take a strike vote.
Crowded and increasingly complex classrooms, absence of wage increases that reflect these realities and ensure that future teachers will choose the profession as a lifelong career, are among the points of contention for teachers, the release said.
This followed an early-May vote, with members voting to reject the mediator’s report that included all previously agreed-upon items between the Teachers’ Employer Bargaining Association (TEBA) and the ATA Central Table Bargaining Committee (CTBC), according to the ATA website.
“Teachers are standing united in demanding respect and recognition for the challenges they experience in today’s classrooms. Settling for anything less than tangible solutions will not be tolerated,” ATA president Jason Schilling said.
Determining the next steps for Alberta’s teachers will be the Teachers’ Association’s Provincial Executive Council, a 20-person committee that creates ATA policies. Coming possibilities include a strike vote, “if an acceptable resolution is not reached with the province’s school boards beforehand,” according to the release.
In a statement, the Ministry of Treasury Board and Finance, said that government has tremendous respect for teachers, principals, system leaders and school divisions.
“The ATA’s membership recently rejected an offer that was endorsed by its leadership and recommended by a mediator. We are waiting to hear from the ATA on what teachers are looking for and why about 60% of those voting did not endorse the deal,” the statement said.
According to the statement, the rejected deal included general wage increase adjustments and more than $400 million in classroom improvements which would have started this fall.
“The Teachers’ Employer Bargaining Association (TEBA) is ready to return to the bargaining table at any time with the ATA and get to work on a central agreement that is fair to teachers and taxpayers.”
