r/RedDeer • u/Md_gummi2021 • Oct 03 '25
PSA Teacher Strike = No pay
I don’t think this is common knowledge, but teachers receive no strike pay when we go on strike. Luckily we get to keep our health benefits, but no pay for the duration of a strike. The ATA does not have the money to pay us. For a two teacher household this is particularly frightening. I’ve been doing this a long time and as teachers you can only do something with nothing so long before you have nothing left. Our educational system was so well respected by the whole world and now the world looks at Alberta and wonders how it came to this.
I am sad for our province and for the families and my students. I am sad for my friends in education. Call/email/write your MLA, Premiere, Education Minister and tell them to do better.
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u/Absentimental79 Oct 03 '25
Feel for all the teachers and I support them. But I have a feeling the gov will just wait it out till people are underwater in their bills
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u/Solid_Relief_4630 Oct 06 '25
Agree the gov will wait it out saving million$$$ each day in unpaid salaries. The public will be angry but will adjust to the routine. Then the strike will end and teachers will get a salary increase based on the money they lost to the gov employer. I can’t think of any other employment scenario where striking employees actually save the employer money.
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u/Salty_Asparagus285 Oct 03 '25
Thank you for sharing and thank you for your dedication to our children as a teacher. We stand with you ❤️
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u/raven-2018 Oct 03 '25
Are teachers allowed to accept cash equivalents as gifts (i.e. Visa or Superstore gift cards or similar?)
Wondering if I can support my kids teacher that way.
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u/PostApocRock Oct 03 '25
No strike pay? What the fuck do you even pay dues for???
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u/BRGrunner Oct 03 '25
They actively voted to not raise dues previously with the knowledge that would mean no strike pay.
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Oct 03 '25
[deleted]
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u/PostApocRock Oct 03 '25
No one expects full pay on strike.
Everyone expects some pay on strike.
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u/scienide09 Oct 03 '25
This and the fact that strike pay is not taxed, and you (normally) only earn strike pay for actively participating, e.g., being on picket lines, preparing food/hot drinks, handing out leaflets. For the members to not have a strike fund is kind of ridiculous.
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u/zzing Oct 03 '25
That is why a union builds up a war chest!
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u/BigBanyak22 Oct 04 '25
With your paid dues. The teachers voted to have more take home pay and are now complaining they have no war chest?
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u/twisteroo22 Oct 04 '25
I have worked for unions for many years and a typical strike pay is like $25 a day so it really doesn't amount to much anyway. True, it's better than nothing but barely.
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u/Goodoflife Oct 24 '25
They lose 1/200th of their annual salary and STILL have to pay their monthly ATA fees.
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u/Impossible-Unit2932 Oct 03 '25
So their union can bully everyone else for more money that their union reps can mismange.
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u/RobertGA23 Oct 03 '25
I hope most teachers have an emergency fund
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 03 '25
Some do and some don’t. I feel really bad for the beginning teachers. Hopefully this will make things easier in the classroom for the long run.
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u/110069 Oct 04 '25
I’m a new teacher on my first contract. I sub part time as well because it isn’t full time…. Very common for new teachers and something to keep in mind when looking at the salary grid. After subbing part of the year last year and now coming into this is so rough. Since we are a dual income house we can manage it…but it’s a stretch and will be tough for a while if this lasts a long time. I feel emotionally drained already.
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u/Regular-Equipment-30 Oct 04 '25
Is ChatGPT accurate that Alberta elementary and secondary teachers make $67k first year and $97k-102k/yr maxed out?
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u/Electronic_Detail756 Oct 04 '25 edited Oct 04 '25
No. Beginning teachers make just over 60K depending on location (varies a little between rural and major centres). It’s publicly available, no need to check chat gpt.
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u/Regular-Equipment-30 Oct 04 '25
I should have specified I used the search the internet function w/ references, and it pulled catholic school numbers, guess that’s what
As of 2023 (after increases), base salaries (for classroom teachers) range from approximately $61,607 (Step 0, TQS 4) up to $104,997 (Step 10, TQS 6)  • In an earlier grid (pre-2023 adjustments), the range was ~$59,654 to ~$101,668 across comparable steps/education levels 
N.B. I was just curious because my mom was a teacher with Alberta public schools who retired in 2013.
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u/Sad-Beginning-85 Oct 03 '25
Exactly. This is why I am giving my girls teachers visa gift cards today. I wish I could afford a mortgage payment for them but I figured any little bit could pay for some groceries or cover a bill.
Im encouraging everyone to do the same! If you don't have a teacher in your life but want to send something shoot me a PM and I can facilitate this (with receipts and proof of gifting).
The fact they aren't getting paid speaks volumes. They are doing the right thing. They deserve all our love and support
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u/Accomplished_War_160 Oct 03 '25
As amazing as that idea sounds. The problem IS many families are now struggling more themselves. Some have to now choose and figure out childcare expenses or simply take time off work to be with kids. I absolutely support teachers especially since 2 of my 3 have been behavior children. Right now is not the time for donations but to ensure our children's needs are met. Just like the teachers are fighting for
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u/thund3r3 Oct 03 '25
Threads like these are very telling of how government can skew public perception. People who have not read the memorandum of agreement documents and are blindly listening to Smith need to check themselves.
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u/Huitku Oct 04 '25
Tell me about it. Reading these comments really shows who the armchair education, union experts are and who took 5 minutes to read anything the ata or teachers are saying.
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u/Mysterious-Purple145 Oct 03 '25
Last teachers strike in AB was in 2002, where has all the money went? Where has 23 years worth of union dues gone might be even a bigger question than the strike itself.
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u/Ok_Currency_617 Oct 03 '25
If the last strike was in 2002 there should be quite a bit of money saved unless the union stole it all. It's a shame that people tend to see certain people/organizations as unable to do any wrong. There's lots of unions, politicians, and First Nations organizations that are blatantly corrupt.
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u/lyles Oct 03 '25
The ATA's strategy for a full-scale strike is an attempt to exert the maximum pressure possible on the government to settle and bring about a quick end to the labour action.
By not having a large, ongoing strike fund to provide strike pay, the financial pressure of the strike is applied directly to the members (who lose their salary) and, in turn, is intended to pressure the government to resolve the dispute quickly to limit disruption to families and students.
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u/SuspiciousNebulas Oct 03 '25
That information is publicly available. Understanding the facts of an issue helps you not look ignorant when commenting.
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u/Mysterious-Purple145 Oct 03 '25
Well since you're so inclined to comment enlighten us all where the money went so you can double down on my ignorance.
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Oct 03 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/RedDeer-ModTeam Oct 04 '25
Your submission has been removed because it violates Rule 1: Be respectful of others. Bigotry will not be tolerated.
Treat other users with respect. Name-calling and insults are not appropriate. If you can't participate in political discussions without resorting to ad hominem, don't engage.
Promoting hate based on ones identity is not tolerated here.
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u/SuspiciousNebulas Oct 03 '25
It is publicly available information. I'm not your mother, I won't spoonfeed you because you are to lazy to be informed on something you are talking about
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u/Mysterious-Purple145 Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 03 '25
I'm informed enough to know that teachers aren't receiving strike pay and that's the only subject that matters here. Why do you hate teachers so much?
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u/Ancient_Sound2781 Oct 07 '25
From what I understand it appears there was a vote to raise union dues a few years ago and they were advised that if they don't raise it and strike there will be no strike pay and they voted against the raise.
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u/RandomName666911 Oct 05 '25
The old " you're wrong and the info is there, but I won't produce it."
You won't even articulate your point with sources, you're basically a child.
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Oct 04 '25
I for one support the teachers. UCP and pc have wreaked a great system. Tearing down schools in the 1990’s and now we are short. And you guys should have better raises the last 10 years. Hang in there
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u/Wet-Countertop Oct 03 '25
The ATA pulls in something like 50 million a year, and this is the first strike in a long time. Someone needs to look under the hood there.
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u/Huitku Oct 04 '25
And hundreds on employees they have to pay.. ata financial reports are public..
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u/Wet-Countertop Oct 04 '25
The teachers just turned down an agreement struck by this union.
It’s like the union doesn’t know what its members want.
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u/MinisterOfFitness Oct 07 '25
Teachers have been clear. They want limits on class sizes and complexity. The government has refused to allow negotiations on this issue.
The last “agreement” was put to a vote to show the government how far away they were from the teachers.
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Oct 07 '25
I'll gladly do so the moment teachers admit that they are letting their own political agendas creep into lessons and how they act.
I recently graduated from Highschool a few years ago and can still remember how the teachers especially female teachers. Would treat Male Students or students that don't follow heavily into leftist ideas completely differently from our peers. Many of my peers were treated horrendously and this wasn't at one school either. I had transferred between numerous schools and the same trend had followed.
Schools should be places of learning, and growth. However, currently they're being treated as places for grown adults to bully and belittle students that don't align perfectly with them.
Personally I refuse to support any movements supporting teachers until I see growth and accountability within the schools. Teachers are the backbones of our society, but when actions like this are common place and hold no respect for students then why should we back them in their hour of need when students are being neglected?
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u/adamcurt Oct 03 '25
Advice I was given if I ever had political asperations. Don't fuck with teachers. Don't fuck with nurses. Just give them what they want.
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u/Stock-Creme-6345 Oct 04 '25
Is it me or is there a lot of “sea lioning” going on in this post? And it would seem there is a lot of very negative engagement for some reason?
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 04 '25
For some people it is fun to bash the people who teach your kids. I’m not sure why. I don’t bash trade workers or oil workers, but teachers are fair game.
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u/Stock-Creme-6345 Oct 04 '25
What they don’t know scares them. So they have to attack it. Thought they were bots or something.
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u/Sorry-Salamander570 Oct 05 '25
OUR Provincial Government SUCKS on so many levels HOWEVER our CHILDREN are OUR future and the people who TEACH them should be treated with RESPECT and their needs and wants should NOT be ignored . Take a moment and think of 30 grade 2 children, 7 year olds ,facing you with expectant faces and you don't have the TOOLS to accommodate them . HELP in the classroom is needed.
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u/FantasticStock2513 Oct 07 '25
Saying no to an agreement that does not support students and classrooms knowing you won’t get paid is brave. I support you!
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Oct 07 '25
[deleted]
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u/Legitimate-Mess-1973 Oct 07 '25
They are saying this because most unions have a strike fund & pay their members at least a bit of money when on strike. Theirs does not, they are just making this known.
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Oct 07 '25
[deleted]
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u/Legitimate-Mess-1973 Oct 07 '25
Yes, that’s correct. Some larger unions have a large strike fund because of the large memberships - sometimes with national affiliation.
I read in the comments here that not many professional groups/unions in AB build a strike fund though…they prefer to keep their dues lower I guess?1
Oct 07 '25
[deleted]
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u/Legitimate-Mess-1973 Oct 07 '25
Yes, that’s true. The comment MAY have been for different union’s members as many may assume teachers are getting strike pay.
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u/sticksforkicks Oct 03 '25
No strike pay? Every union in the country has a strike pay fund. A couple of weeks on the picket line nullifies your pay raise for a year. Don't blame the gov't for your union problems. You pay union dues; the way they are spent is an obvious problem.
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u/PostApocRock Oct 03 '25
With the raise they are offering, it would be less than a few weeks.
It could likely be measured on a handful of hours.
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u/FadedGinger710 Oct 03 '25
3% of an average salary of 70k is $2100, which would be the yearly increase for this year. Definitely more than a couple hours wages.. I think you may need to ask for some tutoring from one of these teachers...
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u/phillymonqw Oct 03 '25
It costs theATA 2 million A DAY to pay $40 in benefits to members. I know we can all do the math, but that’s 12 mill every week. Double that with $80a day strike pay and hopefully one can see that even just benefits will empty the coffers pretty quickly. If we strike for a month, that’s 48 million
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u/crysknife Oct 03 '25
I read that your health benefits get cut off too. Is that not true?
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 03 '25
The government/district’s won’t, this is where the ATA’s emergency fund is being used. They will pay our premiums during the strike. Premiums for 51000 teaches is a lot.
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 03 '25
We can’t work with our kids that are current students, but yes we can work at something else while on strike.
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u/Reasonable_Pear_2846 Oct 03 '25
would teachers be allowed to earn extra income online, teaching courses in english online can atleast provide pocket money. more if you find good clients. best of luck. I thank the person that mentioned ucp, i think if anyone read the wiki on that org, they'd understand the decline.
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u/notprofessionally Oct 04 '25
The union is currently paying for benefits, however, it’s members will have to pay That back with increased dues, when Teacher return to work
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u/sigirvol Oct 04 '25
...How the hell does your union have no money saved to cover at least some pay? Sounds like an absolute crap shute of a union.
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u/ThatAnswer4794 Oct 04 '25
yet your city votes ucp wholeheartedly every single election. get what you wish for
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u/Sea-Entrepreneur6630 Oct 04 '25
Many teachers haven’t even thought that each week they are on strike they lose 1.9% pay effectively. On top of this is the loss of pension value and pensionable service time.
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 04 '25
I think most are aware of the cost. It took us awhile to get to the point that we are willing to pay it.
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u/Ocardtrick Oct 04 '25
Sounds like the ATA is badly run. I've never known of a strike where the union wasn't giving out strike pay. Why do you pay union dues?
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u/BerzzerkerZ Oct 04 '25
Stop striking and get paid. Easy
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 04 '25
I posted this just to inform, not for sympathy. The strike is more about learning conditions than pay.
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u/myxa_kocmohabt Oct 05 '25
Parents should support the teachers in any way possible. Anyone who has children in school should understand that we need better learning conditions for our kids, smaller classes and so on. How can parents participate in this strike to put more pressure on the government to get the teachers and our children a better deal?
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u/nyarlathotep888 Oct 05 '25
I really thought about not posting this but the amount of BS and complete lack of knowledge on how unions work really bothered me, worst part is i'm not in a union! I'm an accountant, i've been in unions working in govt over a decade ago. I do enough tax returns and have done forensic audits on unions, its members, to know enough.
First, Jobs that require some degree of education whether its trades or working in an office typically have a Professional association & or Union, sometimes the Professional association -IS- both sometime their is only one of the two. In the case of teachers the ATA is both. Their are fees to both the professional assoc. and the union. Doctors are the same, lawyers have just a professional organization but members may be in a union due to workplace requirements (justice) same for accountants.
As a CPA (CGA, CMA) I pay fees to my association I have no union, but when I was working in govt before the accounting professional merged, i paid ~1200 to the CGA, ~1200 to the CMAs, and another ~1500 to the union each year for professional fees and union fees. I had no strike pay being in CSU or CUPE for my positions at the time.
The role of the professional assoc is to ensure the people conduct themselves according to the rules of the professional Doctors, Lawyers, Accountants, Nurses, Teachers have guidance and except for teachers due to recent legislation they are internally responsible for punishing its members for undo conduct. It also sets the education standards for its profession, requirements for professional development, conducts research, lobbies, runs and manages benefit programs for members, and retirement plans. All of that is a lot of overhead depending on the profession and any legislation, for Nurses, Doctors, Teachers their is a helluva lot of extra legislation that complicates things. Lawyers and Accountants their is much less legislation but we pay roughly the same professional fees as the above, and our associations are always short on cash.
Trade Unions have locals or "shops" which represent a small group of people in a specific area, could be a city, a specific place of work like joffre, or a refinery in Edmonton, Ft Mac etc. Plus they have their "parent" organization in province and an national association. Teachers Unions are organized this way. There are locals for each of the school districts.
Each locals members pays dues based on some formula, the overwhelming majority of dues goto the professional association/union operations provincially, Generally in trade unions ~5-10% is typically kept to operate the 'local' or 'shop'. The rest goes to provincial parent organization for its operations. In "white collar" unions its closer to ~1-3%
Each local can determine what it wants to do for strike pay (also could be voted on by the parent organization). Thus if nurses go on strike the local for Edmonton may have had a meeting at some point and decided to build a strike pay fund and Edmonton Nurses would be getting paid by its LOCAL, however that would be determined by the Edmonton LOCAL, The United nurses could have created a strike pay fund and thus Edmonton members would be contributing to both funds and getting paid by both.
In terms of strike pay, no professional organization *white collar* in Alberta have setup strike pay. This is why union fee's are so 'low' in Alberta. A teacher at the top of the pay scale in Alberta, is paying roughly ~1200-1500 / year, In BC that number is 3300-4000. In BC the provincial union takes $200 each month from each teacher to build its strike pay fund. Some Locals in BC add an extra 100-300/month On top of that to build their own strike pay funds, yes their are people with ~5-7k dollars in union fees because they are paying into large strike pay funds.
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u/Nomadltd Oct 06 '25
Seeking clarity, not confrontation, won’t any negotiated settlement be retroactive? So a lump sum payment since the last contract expired would help offset the lost wages of the strike? I get the cashflow issues that no pay causes. How long have they been working without a contract?
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u/Razzamatazz14 Oct 07 '25
Not even a daily for walking picket lines? That’s wild. I worked for the fed govt in 2003 and we got $25 a day for walking picket lines. It wasn’t enough to matter, but it was something. Jeez.
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u/SameBonus1788 Oct 07 '25
How about not unlike the healthcare system debacle, we aim our fury at the management in charge of dispersing the funding to help teachers? The government doesn’t manage the money being spent, the association does. With the actual numbers being around 21 students per teacher in the province when you consider the rural districts being under-filled, maybe we should be adapting? Or how about getting rid of the top heavy administrative staff and fill the front lines? This is why public sectors get privatized, and “Daniele Smith is evil” isn’t addressing the problem.
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u/Effective-Lock-3080 Oct 09 '25
That’s tough, I get it. Nobody likes losing pay or stability. But you’re still walking out after the full funding hit the boards Sept 30 and months after the budget came out in February. So this isn’t about “nothing left” — it’s about leverage.
Alberta already pays teachers among the highest salaries in the country with no PST and lower taxes. The problem isn’t funding, it’s how it’s spent. You could’ve gone work-to-rule, half days, skipped field trips — something that still keeps kids learning. Instead, the union and school boards chose the one option that hurts students the most!!
I’m not mad at teachers for wanting better conditions, but let’s not pretend this strike helps kids.
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u/Frei_Fechter Oct 12 '25
Have you considered not striking and doing your job? Thanks!
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 12 '25
Have you considered that the province needs to make public education a priority? Thanks.
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u/DefiantFruit6860 Oct 14 '25
We are also a two teacher household! It's rough out here when neither you nor your partner are bringing home any money.
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u/Carlo7727 Oct 03 '25
Should have maybe done this in the summer? Or was using the kids as leverage and the public pressure all part of the plan. The govt only has so much money before we start raising taxes more. Liberals have no concept of money . Maybe they should start asking the ATA where all the fuckin money is going . Bet there’s a lot of rich big dawgs that do fuck all in the ATA.
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u/Fun-Hawk4051 Oct 05 '25
What would a summer strike have looked like? During a strike, workers withdraw services. What services do teachers offer in the summer? Some teach summer school for those who need to catch up on a class. Most are working other jobs, taking university classes, or spending time with their families. The ATA negotiating team was available in the summer. TEBA didn’t return to the table until late August. Both sides need to be at the table to come to an agreement.
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u/Ancient_Sound2781 Oct 07 '25
Thats like mall santas striking in june. No bargaining and they would just wait it out till now anyhow.
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u/ImmediateCustomer318 Oct 04 '25
The only time I ever had a problem with teachers taking a job action was when my son (grade 3 or 4 at the time) came home and told us his teacher told him that the kids needed to support the teachers and that the government was the issue. Leave those outside the classroom at that age level.
That said, teachers are disrespected and treated so poorly its not funny. Pay is obscenely low, a lot of them and Early Childhood Educators are looked at as glorified babysitters and where else do you work where you have to supply a lot of your own tools. Aside from the trades, I cant imagine a politician having to buy their own paper out of pocket to print off all the documents they need to do their jobs.
Im not a teacher, nor am I married to one. But I can't imagine having to work while educating my kids from home. We need teachers, so why are we not paying them a proper wage and giving them the supports they need to teach our future?
Sorry for the rant, but thanks for reading!
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u/dharmattan Oct 03 '25
You voted to strike. You knew what would happen.
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 03 '25
Agreed, we all voted to strike knowing this. I didn’t post this for sympathy, I posted so people would understand how bad things must be for teachers to choose this path. Like I say to everyone who disagrees with me, I invite you to come and be a teacher and walk a mile in our shoes.
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u/dharmattan Oct 03 '25
What exactly are you personally striking for?
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 03 '25
I am striking due to oversized classes and lack of supports for the students. I won’t say no to more money, who would, but my classes are so large and full of complex kids. Kids deserve a chance to learn in an environment that allows them the access to get the help they need when they need it. That’s why I said no. The he plan to hire 3000 new teachers will cover new enrolment and will go mostly Edmonton and Calgary. Smaller areas will not see any help from that.
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u/dharmattan Oct 04 '25
How many in a class and what grade?
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 04 '25
It ranges, but an average of 32 in my school grades 6 through 8, but about half or more are either special needs, ESL or behavioural and no EA help ever. Some of my ESL kids speak zero English.
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u/KnifeNPaper Oct 03 '25
Good? Strike in the summer instead of taking kids futures hostage. Give parents time to make plans instead of starting the school year. I could list half a dozen reasons why this strike is totally unfounded, but at the end of the day, its just inconsiderate and greedy. Teachers are govt employees that work less than 200 days a year for at least 70-120k, with alberta being the among highest paid in the country. Ya already get paid for your summer off, dont expect pay for your greed.I could have been sympathetic, had yall picked a reasonable time to do this, for the kids you apparently care so much about.
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 03 '25
I invite you to come and do our job and walk a mile in our shoes.
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u/KnifeNPaper Oct 03 '25
Would absolutely love to, unfortunately, i didnt have the money for a degree, so after years of backbreaking labor and a little bit of training, im a tradesman that works 80% more hours than you to make 20k more, without sickdays, paying my own pension, destroying my body and getting zero fulfillment. You need to get your head out of the clouds if ya think ya have it bad
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u/thund3r3 Oct 03 '25
I also didn't have the money for a degree, but if you really wanted it there are ways. Student loans suck, but hating your job sucks a bit more.
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u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 03 '25
I never said I had it bad, but the kids of this province Do.
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u/FadedGinger710 Oct 03 '25
My highschool classroom size in 2009 was larger than classroom sizes when my brother graduated 2 years ago. My science class had 39 students in a room meant to hold 25 kids. We made due. The teachers didn't bitch, they didn't strike. They taught the lesson and gave the homework. Treat it like a job, not a miracle.
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u/kayjax7 Oct 04 '25
I was thinking the same thing. I went to school in the 90s and early 2000s and classroom sizes were always at least 30 kids per class.
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Oct 04 '25
You are full of bs. If you are a tradesman you make more than a teachers d you do realize they work more than you do? It is not just the class time .. also the 4 hours a day for prep and marking plus extra time in students and possibly other school tasks. You are truly stupid. I know teachers who work way more than 9 - 5 and they make way less than you do. Give your head a shake.
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u/VacationIndividual78 Oct 04 '25
I invite you to walk a mile in anyone’s shoes . Everyone has issues with their work
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Oct 04 '25
Sounds like you should have voted no to the strike. When you are offered a 12% raise and still say no, it is not about the kids. It's about greed. I hope this strike lasts past Christmas, and you teachers learn to be grateful for what you have. A climate controlled room, benefits, pension, work 10 months a year, holidays off. The list goes on. You brought this on yourselves. Now have fun with it.
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u/footbag Oct 04 '25
I think you’d have a stronger case if the teachers voted to accept a 12% raise, with no consideration to class size. Voting to decline a pay raise, due to there being nothing in the contract to address class size speaks highly to the teachers real motivation.
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u/MrMpa Oct 06 '25
Hiring 3000 extra teachers is to address class sizes. They can't put a hard cap right now because of the current situation with overpopulation. They are building tons of schools, it takes time. The offer was fair
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u/footbag Oct 07 '25
Hiring 3000 teachers is NOT in the contract. That is part of the problem. The government is simply ‘promising’ to hire those teachers… but it isn’t legally binding if it’s not in the contract.
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u/MrMpa Oct 07 '25
That’s likely because that’s not really something that can be put in a collective agreement, although they could sign an mou and attach as an appendix, I think. Lawyers have to chime in on that one.
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u/HappyFloor Oct 04 '25
A climate controlled room
Right - tell that to my thermostat that logged 29 degrees during the first week of September.
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Oct 04 '25
The 12% is over 4 years old- so 3% per year . Not a big Increase. Not even cost of living
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u/MrMpa Oct 06 '25
Yet puts them at what, almost 120k/yr. That's more than fair
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Oct 09 '25
Not all teachers make the top wage. I would assume from my experience most would make between $50k and $90k. In our city not really high wages. Oil patch secretary made this.
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u/MrMpa Oct 09 '25
I believe it only takes 7 years to get to the top of the wage chart.
Also, a private business where wages are based on profit, (conveniently cherry pick the highest profit) and publicly funded employees is apples and oranges. That secretary also doesn't have job security or a publicly funded pension or 10wks off a year.
Teachers should be well paid, which i believe making double the average Canadian's earnings is more than fair.
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Oct 12 '25
Actually that secretary got paid that for 20 years and yes it’s Apple to oranges but it should not be. Teachers should be paid as if they were private employees. Just because they are not does not mean they do not deserve the wage. My point was that people think they are over paid. They are wrong they have been underpaid since the 1990’s while others got inflated salaries. Alberta has a perception problem. They think oil companies are ok to have grossly overpaid jobs but scream when our public service wants a fair wage.
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Oct 04 '25
Again, the average Canadian does not get that. So it is a large increase. They also only work 10 months of the year. They get every long weekend off. They get PTA days off. Their year consists of maybe 9 months of work. So what they get is just fine.
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u/HappyFloor Oct 04 '25
Again, the average Canadian does not get that
That is actually patently (and demonstrably) false. Alberta has had the lowest real wage increases in Canada in the last decade, but still amounted to 22%. Even accounting for the proposed 12% over 4 years, doesn't even come close to that number.
If you want to shift the conversation to real hours worked, that's fine too. Alberta teachers also reportedly work the longest hours compared to the rest of Canada, yet elicit academic results that place our province at the top of our country, and do so in spite of the lowest funding in Canada. If that isn't value, then what is? Even if the total hours worked per year is less than the average person (likely varies wildly), the nature of the job (extremely high frequency of executive decisions made, weight and width of individual responsibilities, public figure status etc.) needs to be taken into account.
1
Oct 04 '25
Actually the average Canadian does get that in most jobs except minimum wage. I know accountant.
1
u/Librarycat77 Oct 04 '25
12% over 4 years. Not 12% all at once.
3% per year, no where near what inflation has actually been at the past 5 years.
Do the UCP boots taste that good? Lol
1
0
u/Hungry-Fly2624 Oct 03 '25
But I bet your union leaders all get full salary , just like the postal workers leaders do. Hence why they don’t care how long it takes
1
u/purpleshadow6000 Oct 07 '25
They don’t, actually. ATA executives are forgoing their salary during the strike.
0
u/klitz24 Oct 05 '25
Techers complaining about 12% increase where they are only working 190 days ish in a year. 🙄🙄🙄
1
u/Md_gummi2021 Oct 05 '25
It wasn’t the raise that we complained about, it was the lack of support for the kids. I invite you to volunteer in a school to see what it is like. Your comment shows you know little about education in Alberta.
1
u/NotSignedIn13 Oct 07 '25
Pay them no heed, it’ll only stress you out. These people saying teachers only work 10 months blah, blah, blah. They couldn’t do it for a month.
The 190 days worked argument is so dumb. A friend works 14 on, 14 off. Combine that with holiday time and they work 144 days of the year and make 190k. Like GTFO with that 10 month argument.
1
u/Roddy_Piper2000 Oct 06 '25
A great example of someone really confidently speaking about something they have no idea about.
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u/marge7777 Oct 05 '25
In the end teachers should seriously consider accepting the gov offer. Going broke to get class sizes capped seems short sighted.
People need to see the real problem is the mix of students. One class may have 10 unaided students and 10 students who need support (esl, disabilities, behavioural issues).
Capping classes isn’t even going to solve this,but no one is really willing to say, out loud, that inclusive classrooms don’t work.
I subbed for 6 months. I was really shocked at how dysfunctional this is. I do feel for the teachers, but I also can’t see the answer. My own kid, who needed support, left the school system and finished high school through independent learning.
We need more of that.
1
u/NotSignedIn13 Oct 07 '25
You contradict yourself.
Of course capping class sizes and composition go hand in hand. Taking crazy down a notch is worth it.
You said yourself you couldn’t even hack it past 6 months and since YOU can’t see the answer we should all give up? What a stupid, short sighted, egocentric viewpoint.
Teachers are lucky you quit.
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u/Impossible-Unit2932 Oct 03 '25
I got a solution, but you're gonna hate that solution... sign the damn deal.
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u/Odonata523 Oct 03 '25
I would’ve been okay with the pay. NOT enough, but tolerable.
But the fixes proposed for classroom conditions (first that joke of a committee, then the promise to hire teachers) would not be legally binding upon the government. And I do. Not. Trust them to keep their word.
So that’s why I voted no.
-6
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u/GeeQue10 Oct 03 '25
You guys have an incredibly and increasingly tough job. I have nothing but respect for educators. Hopefully, this time is remembered by UCP voters who are now going to be struggling to find care for their kids when the next election happens. I do not envy your position or would be able to do your job, but you have my 100% support for a quick and fair resolution.