Saskatchewan teachers and the provincial government have signed a new collective agreement, officially bringing an end to the long-running labour dispute.
Teachers in the province have been operating without a contract since August 2023.
Last month, an arbitration board ruled that class complexity was required to be part of the new contract. However, the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation (STF) and provincial government were directed to hold further talks around class complexity provisions.
The deal signed today means that language has been formally worked out.
STF President Samantha Becotte said the negotiations over the past month were “incredibly productive.”
“Probably our two most productive days throughout the last nearly two years,” said Becotte in a phone call this afternoon.
Becotte remained tight-lipped on the details around the wording of the class complexity, saying she had yet to communicate the information to the STF’s members.
What she did confirm is that the language includes provisions for “additional teachers in schools across Saskatchewan.”
That will be in addition to a $20 million per year class complexity fund that will be used to address class complexity issues in local school divisions.
The agreement was also welcomed by Education Minister Everett Hindley.
“We appreciate the work and collaboration of the bargaining committees to achieve this result and are pleased to have a new agreement that provides certainty for teachers, students and their families,” said Hindley in a statement.
Jason Ellis, an associate professor in the faculty of education at the University of British Columbia, shares how B.C. has handled classroom complexity in its teachers’ contract and what to expect in Saskatchewan as teachers work to finalize theirs.
The deal agreed to Friday means that Alberta is now the only province or territory that does not have language addressing class complexity in its collective bargaining agreement.
Last month’s arbitration decision also awarded teachers a salary increase of nine per cent over three years: four per cent retroactive to Sept. 1, 2023, three per cent retroactive to Sept. 1, 2024, and two per cent of as of Sept. 1, 2025, STF says.
Becotte believes the contract is a win for teachers and students, even if it doesn’t meet everything teachers needed.
“It’s not a perfect solution to all of the challenges that teachers and students face within schools, but it is an important first step that we needed to take,” she said.
‘Work really never ends’
The STF organized rotating strikes and job action throughout the first half of 2024.
In June 2024, the two sides agreed to to arbitration on teachers’ pay and a classroom complexity-accountability framework.
Arbitration began in Saskatoon in December.
The new contract will be retroactive to Sept. 1 2023 and run until August 2026.
Becotte admits the STF will already be actively preparing for the next round of negotiations by consulting with its members even as this new deal starts to be implemented.
“The work really never ends even when we have a signing. But it’s exciting,” she said.
