2025 Alberta teachers' strike

2025 Alberta teachers' strike
People rallying at the Alberta Legislature Building on strike
Date	October 6, 2025 (2025-10-06) – October 29, 2025 (2025-10-29) (3 weeks and 2 days)
Location	Alberta, Canada
Caused by	Disagreements over the terms of a new labour contract
Goals	Increased pay, class-size reduction, and additional employee benefits
Resulted in	Albertan teachers ordered back to work by UCP government using the Back to School Act and the notwithstanding clause Albertan teachers unable to enact strike action until August 31st, 2028
Parties
Alberta Teachers Association Government of Alberta Alberta Ministry of Education
Lead figures
Jason Schilling Danielle Smith Demetrios Nicolaides Nate Horner
Units involved
51,000 teachers United Conservative Party caucus

The 2025 Alberta teachers' strike was a public education teachers' strike and labour dispute that took place across Alberta, Canada. The labour strike affected the province's education system, resulting in a learning pause from October 6, 2025 to October 29, 2025.

The strike, organized by the Alberta Teachers' Association (ATA), was the result of multiple disagreements with the Government of Alberta over the terms of a new labour contract.

The strike was announced on September 29, 2025, after an offer by the government was declined. ^[1] The strike began on October 6, 2025, consisting of 51,000 teachers off-work and initiating strike action. ^{[2] [3]} Due to the strike, all public education classes were cancelled, impacting 730,000 students, ^{[4] [5] [6]} and 2,500 public, separate, and francophone schools. ^[7]

On October 7, 2025, the government issued a lockout of all staff. ^[8] Alberta's premier, Danielle Smith, ordered teachers to work on October 29, which follows the passage of the Back to School Act (Bill 2). ^{[9] [10]} Teachers are not permitted to use strike action until August 31st, 2028, when the contract is repealed. ^[11]

A poster depicting Albertan premier Danielle Smith and two rallies.

Background

The ATA is seeking better working conditions, and increased pay, and class-size reduction. ^[12] Many schools reported classrooms with unreasonable capacity, with classrooms over 40 students. ^[13] Underfunding for education in Alberta was also considered to be a key contributor to the dispute. By the time of the strike, spending per K-12 student was $13,494 in Alberta, one of the lowest among all provinces in Canada. ^{[14] [15] [16]} Alberta also ranked highest in percentage of per-student funding to independent private schools. ^[17]

Rallies

After the strike announcement, multiple rallies across Alberta were organized (primarily in Calgary and Edmonton), ^[18] mainly to support educators. ^[19] Notable rallies were organized, including on October 5, 2025, which occurred at the Alberta Legislature Building, where thousands of people attended, and on October 23rd, 2025 at the same location. ^{[20] [21] [22]}

Responses

Gil McGowan, president of the Alberta Labour Union held a press conference following the passing of Bill 2, saying "We will begin the process of organizing towards a potential general strike". ^[23] He was joined by leaders from the provinces' other major unions, forming a collective known as the Common Front.

References

1. "Alberta teachers edge toward a strike with salaries a key issue". The Globe and Mail. October 3, 2025. Retrieved October 5, 2025.
2. Sousa, Aaron. "Alberta parents, schools brace for impact ahead of province-wide teachers' strike". CBC.
3. "Alberta parents, schools brace for impact ahead of province-wide teachers' strike | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
4. Villani, Mark (October 4, 2025). "Lost money, learning and fun: Students struggle with thought of prolonged teachers' strike". CTVNews. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
5. Said, Amir. "Alberta teachers are now on strike. Here's what that means for Calgary students, parents, school support staff". CBC.
6. Press, The Canadian (October 6, 2025). "Classes suspended in Alberta as provincewide teachers strike set to begin today". Toronto Star. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
7. "Classes suspended in Alberta as provincewide teachers strike begins | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
8. "Alberta teachers' strike: Teachers' union says proposal 'realistic' | Parent strike payment portal opens | Contract talks resume | Continuing coverage of the Alberta teachers' strike". Calgary Herald.
9. Bellefontaine, Michelle; Teeling, Katie. "Striking Alberta teachers forced back to work by fast-tracked legislation, notwithstanding clause". CBC.
10. "Alberta passes bill to use notwithstanding clause to end teacher strike | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved October 29, 2025.
11. Section 15(a) of Bill 2 "Back to School Act" https://docs.assembly.ab.ca/LADDAR_files/docs/bills/bill/legislature_31/session_2/20251023_bill-002.pdf
12. "Alberta teachers strike likely after union rejects contract offer | Watch News Videos Online". Global News. Retrieved October 4, 2025.
13. "Class size issues top of mind for Albertans | Alberta Teachers' Association". teachers.ab.ca. October 31, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2025.
14. "Education Spending in Public Schools in Canada, 2025 Edition | Fraser Institute". www.fraserinstitute.org. August 28, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
15. Barrow, Tyler (September 9, 2025). "Classrooms sizes and spending per student remain hot topics in Alberta teacher strike". CTVNews. Retrieved September 11, 2025.
16. "Annual expenditure by educational institutions per student, by educational level, 2022/2023". Statistics Canada . October 24, 2025.
17. Carmichael, Jackie. "'Ideological difference': Private-school funding question approved amid Alberta teachers' strike". Edmonton Journal.
18. "Albertans rally for teachers with strike set for Monday". CityNews Edmonton. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
19. "Ahead of Alberta teachers' strike, thousands rally in Edmonton to support educators". The Globe and Mail. October 5, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
20. "Thousands rally at Alberta Legislature for public education as teachers' strike looms". CBC.
21. "Alberta teachers say what they want is clear, hours before strike scheduled to start". CTVNews. October 5, 2025. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
22. "Alberta teachers rally on Legislature steps ahead of strike | Watch News Videos Online". Global News. Retrieved October 6, 2025.
23. "'General strike if necessary': Alberta unions declare intent to bring down UCP government | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved October 29, 2025.