Provincewide teachers’ strike on January 16
Saskatchewan teachers announced last week, a one-day provincewide strike on Tuesday, January 16. The legal requirement for notice of job action is 48 hours. Teachers initiated a five-day countdown to provide families with advance notice and extra time to prepare. Additional notice also provided government an opportunity to change course. Should government change course and allow their negotiating committee to bargain on critical issues impacting students and raising serious concerns among teachers and parents, the countdown will be stopped, and committees can return to the bargaining table. As of press time, this was not the case.
“The last thing any teacher wants is for negotiations to impact the school year, so we are exhausting every possible option to get government back to the table,” says Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation President Samantha Becotte. “At every turn, teachers have said that committees are getting us nowhere on these urgent issues, and a new deal must include items to address class size and complexity. Government remains intransigent, even after conciliation. This is not bargaining; they are making decisions based on politics and student learning is suffering for it.”
Government refuses to negotiate on class size and complexity, even after the Conciliation Board indicated support for teachers’ position that class size and complexity can be addressed through bargaining. If the government’s intransigence continues, additional job action will follow the strike on January 16.
A virtual Parent and Caregiver Information Night was being held at 7 p.m. on Sunday, January 14. STF President Samantha Becotte provided information about the status of contract negotiations, STF proposals, the potential for teacher job action and the state of education in Saskatchewan.
“Teachers and parents are united in wanting the best for their kids,” says Becotte. “We want to provide families with as much information as possible. This is a fight for the future of publicly funded education in Saskatchewan, and schools need the support of our communities. I encourage everyone across the province to reach out to your neighbours and friends, contact your elected officials, and let them know that the students of this province deserve a government that will provide them with the resources they desperately need.”