(Ecole La Prairie website)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

two years without a deal

Francophone teachers vote overwhelmingly in favour of strike action

Jan 30, 2021 | 9:53 AM

Teachers employed by Conseil Scolaire Centre-Nord (CSCN) have voted in favour of strike action against their employer.

In an Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) news release, it says 94 per cent of staff voted for the action. If they are forced to go through with it, the release states, they would be the first teachers to take such action since Parkland School Division in 2007.

CSCN includes Red Deer’s École La Prairie.

“The decision to go on strike is not made lightly or without much discussion, but the results of this vote show the solidarity of our members. We know the impact this has on parents and our students, and we are truly disappointed the board has put us all in this position, but the vote results show that our teachers believe they have no other choice,” says Eric Cloutier, President, L’Unité locale francophone No 24.

“We would prefer to be in the classroom, but we don’t believe that francophone teachers should be treated as second rate compared to the rest of the teachers in the province.”

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Teachers have offered to meet with the board on Jan. 30 in order to hopefully negotiate a settlement.

By law, strike notice could be given at any time within 120 days after the vote. The ATA must give 72 hours’ notice to the board before a strike can begin.

The situation comes after two years of work by teachers to achieve a collective agreement, which they don’t currently have. CSCN is one of just four school boards in Alberta to not have reached a settlement for the 2018/19 and 2019/20 school years.

Cloutier says teachers are seeking a deal which would reflect the same terms afforded to the other 57 school divisions in the province for those years. Those terms include access to a wellness account and language addressing administrator lieu days.

Cloutier says he is unsure why CSCN won’t agree to this.

“It is unfortunate the board refuses to accept reasonable, affordable and universal terms and has forced us to this point. They have now left teachers with no options but to take job action,” he says. “Parents need to be prepared, because a strike means teachers would not be providing any at-home learning. If parents are concerned about this, they need to contact their trustee.”

The ATA is the bargaining agent for all teachers employed in public, separate and francophone school divisions across Alberta. The Greater North Central Francophone Education Region employs approximately 278 full and part-time teachers.