Sanctions lifting, bargaining to resume between STF and province

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The Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation (STF) will remove all sanctions today as bargaining is set to resume early next week.

Teachers have been engaged in provincewide work-to-rule since Monday. That will cease as of 11:59 p.m., putting a pause on historic job action.

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“We have been assured that the Government-Trustee Bargaining Committee (GTBC) has a new mandate to properly address all of the issues important to teachers,” STF president Samantha Becotte said in a news release Friday morning. “The Teachers’ Bargaining Committee believes this commitment by government is a positive step.”

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Working without a contract since August of last year, talks between the STF and the GTBC have been at a standstill, with just one day of bargaining having occurred so far this calendar year.

Throughout the ongoing labour dispute, the STF has engaged in the longest string of job action by teachers in the history of the province, with classroom complexity and composition persisting as linchpin issues.

The province has held its line that such matters will not be part of the collective bargaining agreement and should be handled outside of the contract, while the STF has continued to push for the opposite.

Despite back and forth jabs since negotiations began, on Friday, Becotte thanked Minister of Education Jeremy Cockrill for his efforts “to work with the STF in order to facilitate a return to the bargaining table.”

“We are optimistic that this understanding represents a significant step forward in negotiations and brings a tentative agreement within reach,” she said in the release.

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In recent weeks, Cockrill has been more conciliatory when it comes to accountability for funding to address classroom issues. The government has moved on a number of its positions since bargaining first started, including a new multi-year funding agreement and a proposed memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Saskatchewan School Board Association (SSBA), the province and the STF.

The MOU, which has not yet been signed, sets the ground for an accountability framework which could be implemented in divisions across Saskatchewan directing how money is used for classroom supports.

The first day of bargaining is slated for Tuesday, April 16. The STF said it will not issue any new job action while bargaining is underway.

More to come …

alsalloum@postmedia.com

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