SASKATOON - Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill says binding arbitration is likely next in the labour dispute with Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation.
“We think that binding arbitration is the best path forward now to make sure that we can provide clarity for everyone, including teachers,” Cockrill said at a media conference Friday morning in Saskatoon.
The remarks came a day after STF members voted 55 per cent against the tentative deal that was presented to them this week. It is the second time in less than a month that teachers have voted down a proposed deal.
At the media availability Friday, Cockrill said they were disappointed with the vote results, and spoke of a "clear path forward that will preserve instructional time for our students, preserve activities that are important to students and families."
"I think everybody in the situation wants to get an agreement done. We've spent time at the bargaining table, we've had two tentative agreements. This last tentative agreement was endorsed by the Saskatchewan Teachers Federation leadership. I think we made progress in both of those rounds of bargaining to come to those tentative agreement. I think where we're at now is we need to provide clarity for students and parents in this province and that's why we're suggesting binding arbitration. That's why we're putting binding arbitration forward as a path forward."
The comments by the government in favour of binding arbitration are a reversal from earlier in the process, when the province rejected an invitation from STF for binding arbitration to settle the issue of classroom size and complexity. Cockrill told reporters Friday he said he did not feel had they had not spent enough time at the bargaining table to go to binding arbitration.
He gave his assessment of where things stood in the dispute and made it known that he thought there had been progress.
“I think as I said, the tentative agreement that we came to several weeks ago, we had the MOU as an appendix in the contract. We made an additional commitment to add more dollars for classroom supports. Both sides on the bargaining committees left the bargaining table comfortable with where we were at. And so, as I said, I believe progress was made several weeks ago, and again I am hoping that government’s willing to take this to binding arbitration so that we can have a fair process to get to an agreement and again, really at the end of the day provide clarity and stability for our students.”
In speaking to reporters on a conference call Friday, STF President Samantha Becotte said the teachers have extended an invitation to the Government Trustees Bargaining Committee to return to the bargaining table with a renewed mandate.
“We want to move this process forward without any delays. So if we don’t hear a response from the GTBC on a path forward to an agreement, then further sanction action will be announced in short order. As always, we will provide 48 hours notice of any action, and if we are returning to the table, any sanction actions that we have announced would be suspended or cancelled.”
