Teachers and supporters gather in Alberta education minister's riding as back-to-work legislation looms

Protesters from across Alberta gathered Saturday in the southwest Calgary community of West Springs, located in the provincial electoral district of Calgary-Bow — a seat that's been held by Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides since 2019.

The gathering, organized by Public Interest Alberta, saw Alberta Teachers' Association (ATA) members and supporters door-knock and drop off yellow signs throughout the riding in support of strengthening public education.

About 51,000 public, separate and francophone school teachers across Alberta have been on strike since Oct. 6, leaving around 750,000 K-12 students out of school for more than three weeks.

WATCH | Teachers and Public Interest Alberta protest in education minister's constituency:About 100 people rallied in Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides' riding of Calgary-Bow Saturday. The protest was held in support of the province's teachers, ahead of back-to-work legislation expected as early as Monday.

Bradley Lafortune, executive director of Public Interest Alberta, said the gathering was an effort to "correct the course" of the province's public education, comparing it to a ship "that's at risk of sinking."

"This is [Alberta Premier] Danielle Smith's strike, and this is Minister Nicolaides' strike," Lafortune said.

"They had the power to end it before it started. But instead, we have been on strike for the past three weeks talking about complex classrooms, overcrowded classrooms, fair funding, and sustainable and equitable funding for public education."

Bradley Lafortune, executive director of Public Interest Alberta, pictured during a protest by Alberta teachers and supporters in Calgary on Oct. 25. (Chelsey Mutter/CBC)

"This Monday, going back to the legislature, they're poised to make a bad situation even worse, by introducing back-to-work legislation that will effectively take the right to strike away from teachers and force them back to work," he said.

He's referring to Bill 2, or the Back to School Act, which the province intends to table Monday.

"So why are we here? We're here to hold them accountable," Lafortune said. "We are here to call on the public to tell this minister and this premier to do the right thing instead of the wrong thing once again."

Teachers and supporters pick up signs for a protest in Calgary-Bow, the riding of Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides, on Oct. 25. (Chelsey Mutter/CBC)

LaFortune said "the right thing" constitutes negotiating a deal without legislating teachers back to work, and making a firm commitment to increase the funding allotted to public education in Alberta.

"This government is refusing to listen to teachers and families and students, and we're here today to ask that the minister and the premier hear the public," Lafortune said.

Protest not affiliated with recall petition, organizers say

A petition to recall Nicolaides as Calgary-Bow MLA is currently underway. Petition organizers, who were on-site gathering signatures, told CBC News the protest was not affiliated with their recall efforts.

That petition was officially issued Oct. 23, after receiving approval the week prior, making it the first recall petition application approved by Alberta’s chief electoral officer under the recently-amended Recall Act.

Petition organizers have until Jan. 21, 2026 — a 90-day period — to collect 16,006 signatures, which translates to 60 per cent of voters who cast a ballot in the riding in the last provincial election. If successful, that would trigger a referendum within the riding to determine whether to recall the MLA and hold a byelection.

Education task force to explore 'a combination' of solutions, premier says

On her radio call-in program Your Province, Your Premier Saturday morning, Smith said the province is moving forward with its plan to table back-to-work legislation on Monday.

"We have heard the teachers loud and clear, that the issue is around complexity, but not every issue can be bargained at the bargaining table," she said.

The premier pointed to the ATA's refusal to engage in "enhanced mediation" last week, which would have asked teachers to return to classrooms while continuing talks with the province.

"We have to make sure that we're balancing the rights of taxpayers, balancing the rights of parents and balancing the rights of students," she said. "And we're at a point now where if they don't voluntarily agree with us to return to work and do that kind of mediation ... we're just going to have to have them back [to work]."

WATCH | What to expect after province introduces back-to-work legislation for striking teachers:As the Alberta government is expected to introduce back-to-work legislation aimed at ending the teachers' strike on Monday, how soon could it be before students and teachers return to class? A labour expert lays out what could happen once the potential bill is passed.

The premier said the province is continuing to encourage the ATA to accept its proposals, which include a 12 per cent wage increase over four years and funding for 3,000 new teachers.

"And then let's work together on how we go through, school by school and classroom by classroom, addressing it, because each classroom is going to have different solutions," Smith said.

That could include a "combination" of solutions, including more classrooms, smaller classrooms, more educational assistants, or specialized learning environments for students with complex needs, she said.

"Those are things that require us to work together on a detailed task force after we've gotten the the wage settlement out of the way, and that's what we're hoping to have happen. It hasn't."

Smith said she hopes to begin working with that task force "to find out what it is that the teachers need in each of their classrooms ... as soon as next week."