Province, union clash during teacher appreciation week

“Teachers are burning out (and) the added stress of negotiations is weighing on them,” said STF president Samantha Becotte.

Published Feb 14, 2024 • Last updated 5 hours ago • 3 minute read

Samantha Becotte, president of the Saskatchewan Teachers Federation, speaks at the Rally for Education at the Legislature in Regina on Saturday April 29, 2023. Photo: Larissa Kurz/Regina Leader-Post reg

The very public back-and-forth between the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation (STF) and Minister of Education Jeremy Cockrill on Wednesday lands right in the middle of Teacher and Education Staff Appreciation Week, a fact not lost on the union president.

“Instead of taking these past two days to reset and start working with teachers in good faith, this government has chosen to thank teachers by continuing to disrespect them and gaslight them,” said STF president Samantha Becotte.

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“Teachers are burning out (and) the added stress of negotiations is weighing on them.”

The province acknowledged the week on Monday, ahead of scheduled talks with the union over the next two days.

A press release affirmed government’s “commitment to listening to and collaborating with our educators to improve today’s classrooms,” before offering more details on the delivery of the new Teacher Innovation Fund and specialized classroom pilot.

Nine teacher-led initiatives have been awarded $410,000 of the $2.5 million grant fund, and the eight schools have been selected to participate in the support pilot.

On Wednesday, the ministry further announced $32 million for 45 new relocatable classrooms (portables) across the province.

Portables are used as a temporary measure to supplement facility space in schools with increasing class sizes due to enrolment volumes.

Regina and Saskatoon will receive most of the funds as the areas experiencing the most population growth. Humboldt, Llyodminster, Lumsden, Pilot Butte, Warman and Weyburn will also receive some portion.

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Relocatable projects are subject to ministry approval, as the province funds one hundred per cent of the cost for divisions. Divisions submitted their annual asks in the fall, approved as per Wednesday’s announcement.

An earlier $16 million for 23 relocatable classrooms and two moves was in the 2023-24 education budget, bringing total spending this year to $48 million.

Regina Public Schools had 334 portables deployed at 54 different schools as of January. An additional four have been approved for 2024-25.

Saskatoon Public has 169 portables at 25 schools, and had submitted a request for 36 new portables in November. The ministry has approved 22, said a spokesperson Wednesday.

At a budget of $650,000 per new installation, according to ministry provisions, Saskatoon’s request totals $14.3 million, or one-third of the province’s new budget.

The Ministry of Education said this investment “builds on” previous commitments to address classroom complexity, a $53.1 million figure Cockrill has regularly referred to.

This includes a $40-million post-budget adjustment in June, offering a conditional $20 million for classroom complexity hiring and $20 million in enrolment adjustments, and January’s $6.1 million for the two pilots.

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The last $7 million is a continued provision to hire 200 additional education assistants into the school system, promised in 2021.

Becotte has previously said the programs announced in January is an effort by the province to avoid bargaining in good faith on classroom complexity at the table.

“What they want to celebrate in the public this year as successes are the new pilot projects,” she said Wednesday.

“For those eight schools (in the classroom pilot), $3.6 million will make a significant difference, but that impacts just over one per cent of schools in Saskatchewan.”

Becotte said if the province were to expand both the classroom support and teacher innovation pilots to include all schools, the commitment would be $270 million and $600 million, respectively.

“if they’re not committing to that, they’re creating winners and losers across Saskatchewan,” she said.

— with files from Alec Salloum

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