It may seem puzzling that the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation is saying no to binding arbitration now when back in March, the teachers’ union was advocating for it,, but President Samantha Becotte says there is a reason. She explains that back in March there had been no movement at all from government, but since then, there were meaningful conversations with the Government-Trustee Bargaining Committee in May and again on Wednesday, and Becotte feels they are very close to a contract which would be good for everybody. As well, she notes that binding arbitration can take months. She hopes bargaining would bring them to a fair deal quicker and points to previous comments from the Minister of Education when Jeremy Cockrill said agreements are best found at the bargaining table.

Saskatchewan teachers begin work-to-rule job action on Monday, which means not taking part in extracurriculars or noon-hour supervision, unless the government agrees to get back to negotiations. STF’s President understands that there are concerns about end-of-the-year events like graduations, but points out that Cockrill and the President of the Saskatchewan School Boards Association have both said plans are in place to ensure the ceremonies can continue. Becotte stresses that if negotiations begin again, job action will be cancelled and teachers will be able to support the planning and facilitation of grad events.

She also responded to comments from the Minister of Education, who says the Federation is not listening to teachers and is blocking their voices. Becotte says they get their direction from teachers and she has never seen them more united in advocating for class size and complexity to dealt with in a meaningful way. That’s why they voted down the tentative agreement. Becotte understands it can’t all be done in one contract, but the STF wants to see an agreement that begins to address this and suggests it can be done if the government has the political will to do so.