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By Josh Hall | @Vancan19

strike begins monday

Exploratory talks resume between Alberta teachers and provincial government

Oct 3, 2025 | 4:22 PM

Messaging is coming from all sides Friday related to the upcoming Alberta teachers strike, which is expected to commence Monday, Oct. 6.

After the ATA announced today that exploratory conversations around a settlement have resumed, the Government of Alberta shared some new details about the supports it says it’s providing during the strike

Per the Government of Alberta, this is what they are providing:

Child care Subsidy

To ease the financial burden on families who require additional childcare during the strike, Alberta’s government will increase October funding rates for eligible children in grades 1 to 6 who are attending out-of-school care full time.

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The temporary increase in funding will come into effect after five consecutive days of a strike and apply for all of October. The rate of funding will increase to a maximum of $644 to align with the funding rates provided during summer months when children require full time care.

Distance Education

To provide continued access to learning and offer students more flexibility, Alberta’s government will temporarily lift the 10-credit per year limit on distance education. This will allow students in grades 10 to 12 to keep earning credits during a strike if they are interested in doing so. Students may also enrol in distance learning with independent schools that offer this programming at any time during the strike.

Home Education

Parents may also choose to enrol their child in a home education program with a supervising independent school. If a family chooses to do so, both the family and the supervising independent school will be eligible for up to 50 per cent of the home education grant, up to $450.50 per child.

“While I am disappointed by the ATA’s decision to strike, we remain focused on what matters most: our kids and their education. The additional supports we are introducing will help families who need child care, give students access to learning opportunities in their communities and offer more options for how and where they learn.”
Demetrios Nicolaides, Minister of Education and Childcare

Family Programming

To provide further opportunities for continued learning, Alberta’s provincial heritage sites and museums are offering free admission for all Albertans aged 18 and under for the duration of the teachers’ strike. Sites offering free admission include:

• Frank Slide Interpretive Centre, Crowsnest Pass
• Head-Smashed-In-Buffalo Jump, Fort Macleod
• Oil Sands Discovery Centre, Fort McMurray
• Remington Carriage Museum, Cardston
• Reynolds Museum, Wetaskiwin
• Royal Alberta Museum, Edmonton
• Royal Tyrrell Museum, Drumheller

Parents and family members will still be required to pay admission fees. Guests 14 and under must be accompanied by an adult. Museums will also be expanding hours.

Meantime, the ATA says it will hold rallies in Edmonton and Calgary on Oct. 5. Edmonton’s starts at 11 a.m. at the Legislature, while Calgary gets going at 3 p.m. from the McDougall Centre.

Other rallies are expected throughout the province, but are yet to be announced.

The ATA also shared Friday that while a strike has not been averted, it and the government have resumed exploratory talks.

President Jason Schilling will be marking the strike’s first day on Monday from Barnett House in Edmonton at 11 a.m.

Unifor, another union representing nearly 4,000 education sector workers in Alberta, shared today it is standing in solidarity with the ATA and its 51,000 members.

“Workers on the front lines of the education system know what the system needs. Teachers and other education workers are right to take a stand for the funding that will guarantee that our kids get the world-class education that they deserve,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne.

In a letter to the Alberta Teachers’ Association, Unifor outlined its full support for the teachers’ bargaining goals and the strengthening of Alberta’s public education system.