Sask. teachers suspend all industrial action ahead of new round of negotiations

The Saskatchewan Teachers Union has suspended all industrial action after being asked by the province to resume negotiations.

“We welcome the opportunity to return to the negotiating table to discuss teachers’ proposals and the important issues facing education in Saskatchewan,” STF President Samantha Becotte said in a press release.

“We are confident that the GTBC’s new mandate will enable productive negotiations that take into account the needs of students and teachers.”

With immediate effect, the union has suspended all planned industrial action – including a nationwide strike planned for Thursday over lunchtime supervision.

The STF and the Government-Trustee Bargaining Committee (GTBC) are scheduled to meet in Saskatoon on Monday, February 12.

Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill announced the new mandate on X late Thursday afternoon, attempting to return to the negotiating table.

“We have authorized the GTBC to issue a new mandate to either negotiate an extension of the current salary offer or to negotiate a deal that would see teachers receive the same annual salary adjustments under the same salary formula as MLAs,” Cockrill said in the recorded message.

“These salary adjustments would be based on the cost of living, a compensation formula that provides for an upper limit of three percent and a lower limit of zero percent, depending on the previous year’s consumer price index.”

The main point of contention in the negotiations is the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation’s (STF) desire to include issues related to class size and complexity in the new contract – an issue the province has repeatedly described as futile, saying that only salaries and benefits should be discussed at the negotiating table.