Details on the newest offer from the province to teachers was unveiled by the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation (STF) on Thursday, following two days of virtual town halls between the STF and its members.
The term of the tentative agreement would be three years from Sept. 1, 2023 to Aug. 1, 2026.
STF president Samantha Becotte told CTV News on Thursday the agreement shows improvements on the majority of proposals that teachers have brought forth.
“There’s improvements addressing teachers’ compensation, there’s improvements in articles, items in there addressing classroom complexity and violence in the classroom, as well as several other items that teachers have brought forward,” she said.
The details of the proposed agreement include:
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An accountability framework that would be signed by the STF, government and the Saskatchewan School Boards Association (SSBA) and attached to the agreement as a Memorandum of Understanding -
An additional $18 million per year to tackle classroom complexity, which will be added to the multi-year funding agreement that was signed by the SSBA and the government -
Creation of the Minister’s Task Force on Classroom Complexity, which will be comprised of teachers, students, and parents. A final report will be presented to the Minister of Education, which will ensure input from teachers and students. -
A policy table on violence-free classrooms, which will be chaired by the Ministry of Education, and include representatives from the STF and SSBA. -
A salary increase of three per cent in 2023, an increase of three per cent in 2024, and a two per cent increase in 2025.
Becotte said while it wasn’t the exact proposal teachers put forth, there has been action and improvement made by the province.
“That’s how bargaining works. There’s always a back and forth and we meet somewhere in the middle,” she said.
Last Friday, the province and the STF announced that they reached a tentative agreement, nearly one year after initial bargaining began.
The virtual town halls were held Tuesday and Wednesday night to give teachers a chance to review the details of the agreement before making them public.
Becotte said following the town halls, she has gotten questions from teachers about what the deal will look like if it is accepted and how they will be impacted individually.
“Teachers are being very critical about what is there and what isn’t there,” she said. “In any agreement, there’s a give and a take and some teachers are expressing concern that there might not be enough there to address classroom complexity,” she said.
Becotte said last week that the teachers’ bargaining committee and the STF endorsed and recommended the tentative agreement. Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill had thanked the STF executive for their endorsement on Friday.
In a statement on Thursday, Cockrill reiterated last week’s statement, and said the agreement would support classrooms in the province and provide predictability for teachers and families.
“I want to thank parents, teachers, and students for their patience during this process. I am hopeful that the agreement will be finalized,” the statement read.
Saskatchewan teachers will vote on the tentative agreement on May 29 and 30.
Their last contract expired in August of 2023 after bargaining started in May of 2023. Impasses were declared in October and January by the STF, with job action by teachers beginning at the start of 2024.
An initial offer from the province was rejected by teachers on May 9, with 90 per cent voting “no,” and more than 92 per cent of teachers voting.
-More details to come…
-With files from Drew Postey