An order that will force an end to the Alberta Teachers’ strike, sending teachers and students back to the classroom, is set to go before the legislature next week.
Finance Minister Nate Horner is introducing Bill 2 – The Back to School Act to the Alberta Legislative Assembly, which will reportedly force teachers to return to their classrooms.
According to a statement from the Alberta Teachers Association, they know the UCP government’s plan to legislate an end to the strike. However, they say even by legislating the strikes end, it will not end the deteriorating conditions that caused it.
“These conditions are the direct consequence of a decade of underfunding, leaving Alberta as the province spending the least on public education,” the statement reads. “We remain prepared to negotiate solutions that include a student-teacher ratio. Now it’s the government’s turn to take up the challenge of solving these serious issues in cooperation with teachers who want to support their students as best as they can.”
Ahead of the opening of the Fall Session of the Provincial Legislature on Thursday, in the Speech from the Throne, the government pledged to invest $8.6 billion to open 200,000 new school spaces across Alberta in the coming years. Along with hiring thousands of new teachers and educational assistants over the next three years.
