Sask. Teachers' Federation says province is refusing to bargain on class size, classroom complexity

The Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation (STF) says educators are disappointed with how negotiations over a collective bargaining agreement are going with the provincial government–trustee bargaining team (GTBC).

The third meeting between teachers and representatives of the government and school boards took place in Regina this week. The STF bargaining team said there has been no progress on key issues. 

The STF said the province is refusing to bargain on class size and classroom complexity solutions. 

'If teachers are successful, really that just means that students can be successful. And those students are the future of our province," said Samantha Becotte, president of the STF.

"So why are we not setting them up with the best possible learning conditions, the highest quality public education system where they have timely access to the professional resources like speech language pathology, mental health counselling, educational psychology?"

Becotte said classrooms are "bursting at the seams," and that teachers are not able to give students the one-on-one attention they need.

"More and more I am hearing from experienced teachers, teachers who have been teaching 15- and 20-plus years, or are close to retirement. Even they are saying, 'This is the hardest year I have had in education,'" said Becotte.

"You should not be experiencing the hardest year ever at your 20th year of teaching."  

The STF also claims the government said teacher retention and recruitment is not a significant issue. Becotte called this "astounding and unbelievable."

She said teachers are leaving the province, and university students who enter pre-teaching roles in Saskatchewan classrooms are deciding not to teach after experiencing the working conditions. 

"How many positions are filled by temporary teaching permits? In my opinion, it's too many."

Teacher compensation

Becotte said the teachers' bargaining team is also disappointed with the government's opening salary offer.

CBC News reached out to the Ministry of Education. In an emailed statement, the province said the GTBC's proposed offer of a seven per cent increase in compensation to teachers over three years is a fair deal for teachers and taxpayers.

The province said the GTBC is at the table to negotiate total compensation, which includes salary and benefits.

"Teachers in Saskatchewan earn salaries above the average for teachers in Western Canada, while living in one of the most affordable provinces in the country," said the Ministry of Education.

Becotte argues teacher compensation in Saskatchewan falls below the Western Canadian average. 

"From our data, from our statistics, which take into account all teachers in Saskatchewan with different levels of degrees like bachelors and masters ... our compensation in Saskatchewan falls below the western Canadian average. We do not agree with how they have calculated those numbers," Becotte said. 

She argues that Saskatchewan is actually three per cent to 4.7 per cent below the western Canadian average when teacher experience and education levels are taken into consideration. 

Other funding

The province said that outside of the bargaining process, an additional $40 million was provided to school divisions to support enrolment growth and complexity of today's classrooms. 

"With this announcement, operating funding has grown to $2.08 billion for the 2023-24 school year, an increase of $89.4 million or 4.5 per cent over the 2022-23 school year," said the Ministry of Education. 

The STF's bargaining committee and the GTBC will resume negotiations on Aug. 14 and 15 in Saskatoon. Additional negotiations are scheduled for September and October.