People march during a province-wide, one-day strike organized by members of Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation in Saskatoon on Jan. 16.Heywood Yu/The Canadian Press
Thousands of Saskatchewan teachers were out Monday on another one-day strike with the aim of getting the province to negotiate on classroom sizes and supports for students with high needs.
Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation president Samantha Becotte said the province is still refusing to negotiate on those issues.
“We are giving this government every opportunity to return to the table and engage with us to find solutions,” Becotte said in a news release.
“If they continue to flat-out refuse to bargain on class size and complexity, which are the learning conditions for Saskatchewan’s students, we will have no choice but to continue to exercise the only options we have left to bring them back into discussions.”
The union and the government have been at an impasse for months after bargaining for a new contract broke down.
Teachers went on strike for one day last week to pressure the government on class sizes and supports.
The province has said it won’t negotiate on those issues. It said it has increased funding to schools and is starting pilot projects to address student supports.
But the union said funding has not kept up with rising student enrolment and would like long-term commitments to enhance learning conditions.
The province has proposed to increase the wages of teachers by seven per cent over the next three years.
It has teachers are asking for more than that figure. But Becotte said the union isn’t making such demands. She said classroom issues are more important than wages.
Becotte also said the union doesn’t want a prolonged strike at this point and wants to avoid large school disruptions.