Saskatchewan teachers to lift sanctions as sides prepare to resume talks

In a letter sent to teachers — a copy of which was obtained by 650 CKOM — the teachers’ federation said all sanctions would be lifted at 11:59 p.m. Friday.

The STF letter said the Teachers’ Bargaining Committee (TBC) has been assured that the GTBC has a renewed mandate, which prompted the move to axe the work-to-rule sanctions that have been in place this week.

“The TBC and STF executive believe productive negotiations can now take place and are optimistic that a tentative agreement is within reach,” the letter said. “Negotiations with the GTBC are expected to resume Tuesday, April 16.”

Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill was on The Evan Bray Show on Friday and also sounded optimistic that a deal could be in the offing.

“At this point, we are looking forward to being back at the bargaining table next week,” Cockrill told Bray.

The sides haven’t had formal bargaining talks since mid-February, but it appears those will resume.

“I think we have had some productive discussions over the last few days here,” Cockrill said. “I think there’s a clear path back to the bargaining table for both sides.”

The STF held a media conference Friday morning to address the situation.

In a statement, STF president Samantha Becotte confirmed the government has changed its tune when it comes to the issues of class size and classroom complexity.

“We have been assured that the Government-Trustee Bargaining Committee has a new mandate to properly address all of the issues important to teachers. The Teachers’ Bargaining Committee believes this commitment by government is a positive step,” Becotte said.

“Teachers have maintained that accountability measures must accompany government funding in order to ensure resources go to support students and improve their learning experience.”

She thanked the government for its efforts to get back to bargaining, and said she’s hoping for a speedy resolution.

“We appreciate the effort made by Minister Cockrill to work with the STF in order to facilitate a return to the bargaining table,” Becotte added.

“The Teachers’ Bargaining Committee is hopeful that quick progress can be made on the remaining issues and we can reach a tentative agreement to bring to our members for ratification.”

The teachers have been without a contract since August. Talks between the sides have been stalled since mid-February, when negotiations broke down — a turn of events that had each side blaming the other.

The teachers started levying sanctions against the government in January, with job action including rotating one-day strikes and the withdrawal of voluntary support for lunch-hour supervision and extracurriculars.

The sanctions have caused issues for both parents and students, including the cancellation of major events like the Hoopla tournament, with the provincial high school basketball championships being reduced to a one-day event.

Caregivers also have been forced to make alternate arrangements.

The primary sticking points between the provincial government and teachers’ federation have been salary and issues of class size and composition.

Teachers have been pushing for increased funding to address class size and classroom complexity to be written into a new contract.

The government has acknowledged the issues, and increased funding to address them in its recent budget and guaranteed the funding over the next four years in an agreement with the Saskatchewan School Boards Association. But so far, the government has refused to include funding measures in the teacher contract.

The STF offered to take the matter to arbitration, but the government refused. The teachers’ federation has repeatedly said it won’t return to the bargaining table until those issues are included in negotiations.

The government claims funding is between it and the school divisions, but teachers have argued that classroom conditions are teachers’ working conditions, and pointed to other provinces that have stipulations on class size built into collective agreements.

The union also argued that funding could be clawed back by government in the future unless it’s enshrined in a contract.

There appeared to be a light at the end of the tunnel in recent weeks when Cockrill said he’d be open to an accountability framework on classroom support money, but the teachers’ federation didn’t sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

Becotte responded by saying the union was seeking clarification on some of the language in the MOU. As a result, negotiations have remained at a standstill.