EDMONTON — The group representing Alberta teachers says hopes are high that a deal will be reached as mediated talks resume before the school year gets underway.
Jason Schilling, president of the Alberta Teachers' Association, said Monday that while hopeful, there are a number of issues that need to be settled if this week's contract talks are to be successful.
"We'll just have to see what happens," said Schilling, whose association represents some 51,000 teachers.
"Ideally, we would like a negotiated settlement. But if we don't find that the talks are fruitful, teachers have indicated and given support for strike action."
Teachers voted 95 per cent in favour of strike action earlier this summer.
Schilling said the June vote signalled that pay, classroom conditions, crowding and resources for students were unacceptable.
"They've had enough, and we just need to make sure that government is coming to the table with serious intentions and concrete actions, as opposed to just rhetoric," Schilling said.
Mediated talks begin Tuesday and could stretch until Friday, if necessary. Schilling said if a tentative deal is reached, a ratification vote would be held in a matter of weeks.
If no deal is reached, Schilling said the union will have to consider its next steps, which could include a provincewide strike as early as next week — just as many students are set to begin the school year.
"Teachers don't want to strike," Schilling said. "They want to be working in their classrooms with their students."
The public and Catholic school divisions in Edmonton could not immediately comment Monday.
Ron Thompson, superintendent of the Edmonton Public School Board, has said the division is working on contingency plans in the event of a strike.
The Calgary Board of Education, in a statement, said it's planning for school to begin on schedule.
"We value the contributions of all employees who support student success, and we respect the provincial bargaining process," the statement says.
The public school division in St. Albert, a suburb near Edmonton, says it hopes a deal is reached soon to avoid disrupting school operations, staff, students and families.
"However, families should start planning for alternate childcare arrangements in the event of a strike in the fall," the statement reads.
At an unrelated news conference in Calgary, Premier Danielle Smith said she understands teachers are frustrated, but believes Alberta's current funding levels should be enough to solve many of their problems.
She suggested that school boards might not be spending dollars appropriately.
"We're on the brink of strike, and a lot of the issues at the heart of that is the management of the classroom, which we've delegated to school boards," she said.
"We're spending about $12,000 to $14,000 per student on a classroom. If you have a classroom of 30 kids ... that should be more than enough to have a teacher and an education assistant in every single classroom."
Schilling disagreed.
"We've taken 10 years of chronic underfunding of the education system in this province to get to this breaking point," he said.
The province's funding track record is also why the union is pushing for action on classroom issues, Schilling said.
"That's why you see a push by teachers in the province to put these things within the collective agreement," he said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 25, 2025.
Jack Farrell, The Canadian Press
