All Sask. teachers to refuse extracurricular duties starting Tuesday: STF
Sask. Teachers' Federation escalates job action as months-long stalemate continues
Teachers across Saskatchewan won't supervise or run any extracurricular activities starting on Tuesday and Wednesday next week, the Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation (STF) said Thursday.
The federation says the province-wide job action will continue indefinitely unless the province comes back to the table with a renewed mandate to discuss class size and complexity issues.
Activities including sports, graduation planning, clubs and school trips will be affected, STF president Samantha Becotte told reporters.
"Teachers can no longer continue to meet the needs of all of their students," she said. "Government and school boards have put them all in an impossible situation."
Teachers have been on rotating strikes every day this week, withdrawing lunch supervision and extracurricular duties that have forced some schools to send students home early.
Teachers say class sizes and supports for students with complex needs are issues that need to be addressed in their collective agreement, but the government has said those issues are best addressed by local school boards.
Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill was not available for an interview on Thursday.
In a statement identical to the one sent to CBC News on Monday, the education ministry called the strikes "unfortunate" and blamed teachers for disrupting student learning and inconveniencing families.
It said $53.1 million in funding for class complexity — which includes previously announced amounts of $3.6 million for a pilot program in eight school divisions and $40 million for school divisions dealing with growing enrolment — will be made into annual commitments, a deal supported by the Saskatchewan School Boards Association.
However, teachers say they want to see commitments in their contract, so the money can't be pulled away.
When CBC News asked a follow-up question specifically about the new job action announced by the STF on Thursday, the ministry did not respond.
Becotte acknowledged the disruptions to students and their families, which she said is why teachers have so far avoided a full indefinite strike.
However, she said a total strike is not off the table, and blamed the government for the months-long bargaining stalemate.
"We don't want to be taking these actions," she said. "We recognize the frustration that comes with these actions, but that frustration is directed at government in their intransigence and their stubbornness in moving from that position that it can't be in the collective agreement."