Majority of Alberta teachers vote to strike

Alberta teachers have voted overwhelmingly in favour of going on strike. 

Of the nearly 39,000 teachers who cast their ballot in a four-day vote that ended Sunday, 94.5 per cent are ready to walk off the job.

The results were posted online Tuesday by the Alberta Teachers' Association (ATA), which represents more than 44,000 teachers in the province. 

"Alberta teachers are sending an unmistakable message," said ATA president Jason Schilling on Tuesday. "We are united, we are determined, and we will no longer hold up a crumbling public education system that this government fails to fund properly."

Teachers have 120 days to initiate a strike if an agreement isn't reached with the province.

Issues include wages, classroom size and support for students with complex needs, Schilling said. 

"Teachers want every student to thrive, but in overcrowded, undersupported classrooms, students are not getting the one-on-one attention they deserve. And my colleagues do not have the tools they need to do their jobs properly, and they're burning out under the weight of these impossible expectations," Schilling said.

Alberta Finance Minister Nate Horner said in a statement that the province has "tremendous respect for teachers, principals, system leaders and school divisions for their ongoing hard work inspiring and guiding students."

He said the mediator's recommendation that was rejected by teachers included a general wage increase of 12 per cent over four years and a grid harmonization that would increase wages further.

"The recommendation also included a government commitment of more than $400 million in classroom improvements which would have started this fall," the statement said. 

The ATA and the Teachers' Employer Bargaining Association have dates set throughout the summer to continue mediation, he said.