EDMONTON — The head of Alberta’s teachers union says they will abide by a back-to-work order and will not engage in illegal actions such as work-to-rule.
Jason Schilling says work-to-rule would lead to punishing fines, but he said Tuesday he is urging his colleagues to rethink going the extra mile when it comes to their own time at school.
“They need to evaluate, and re-evaluate, how they’re spending their voluntary time at school,” Schilling told a news conference Tuesday.
“For instance, I used to coach cross-country (running) and direct the drama play. Maybe I’m not going to direct the drama play next year.
“You take my rights away? Then I’m going to re-evaluate the voluntary nature of my job.”
His comments came a day after Premier Danielle Smith’s government introduced and passed through the house a bill ordering the 51,000 teachers to be back on the job Wednesday.
The move ends a three-week strike over wages and working conditions that left more than 740,000 students out of class across the province in the largest walkout in Alberta history.
The bill uses the Charter’s notwithstanding clause to shield the legislation from any court challenge on violating teachers’ constitutional rights to association.
The bill includes steep fines for non-compliance: up to $500 a day for individuals and up to $500,000 a day for the union.
Schilling says while the teachers association is still contemplating a court challenge, he declined to say what that might look like.
“We’ll have to leave it up to the experts who we work with in terms of our lawyers about how we move forward with that,” he said.
The core dispute with teachers centred around teacher demands to deliver tangible fixes to address overcrowded classrooms and faltering supports for students with special needs.
Smith’s government has promised to hire 3,000 more teachers and address class sizes and complexities with a panel.
Schilling said they expect to be full partners in that process.
“This government needs to clearly articulate a plan to make it more conducive to the level of teaching and learning that Alberta students and teachers deserve,” he said.
“Finally, we are tired simply of being invited to be participants in government committees and action groups.
“We want to partners rather than props.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 28, 2025.
Lisa Johnson and Jack Farrell, The Canadian Press
