Front Burner (CBC)

Episode: Is Alberta headed for a general strike?

Date: October 31, 2025
Host: Jayme Poisson
Guest: Janet French, CBC Edmonton Provincial Affairs Reporter

Episode Overview

This episode explores the rapidly escalating conflict between the Alberta government and the province’s teachers, culminating in speculation about a possible general strike. At the centre of the controversy is Premier Danielle Smith's use of the notwithstanding clause to force striking teachers back to work, a move that has sparked outrage among unions and observers across the province. CBC's Janet French provides context and analysis, tracing how tense negotiations deteriorated and what could lie ahead for Alberta’s education system, workers, and political climate.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Teachers’ Demands and Government Stance

• Teacher Demands:

  • Wage increases to match and retroactively account for inflation (which rose ~21% since 2019, compared to teachers’ 3.8% in raises).
  • Improved working conditions, including legally enshrined student-teacher ratios or class size/complexity caps.
  • Support for increasing numbers of students with special needs, behavioral or mental health challenges, and language barriers.

• Government Position:

  • Refusal to negotiate enforceable class size or complexity caps.
  • Accusation that the union is being inflexible.

  “If you were to look at how many hours, or how much effort or time they're spending on their work, that's also a pay cut per amount of effort expended.” – Janet French (03:22)

2. Claims of Erosion of the Public School System

• Since 2019, policies have emphasized "school choice," increasing funding and support for private and charter schools.

• Private and charter schools can limit enrollment; public schools must accept all students.

• Changes in the law have supported school autonomy and restricted certain student rights, particularly 2SLGBTQ+ protections.

  “Public education advocates are really angry about this because...[choice policies are] increasingly siphoning [money] away from the public system.” – Janet French (07:28)

3. The Rejected Proposal and Why Teachers Walked Out

• The government touted a proposal including:
  • Raise offers of at least 12% (up to 17% for some),
  • 20% boost to substitute rates,
  • 3,000 new teachers, 1,500 new educational assistants.
• Why Rejected?
  • Wage promises were not as broad as claimed: “The numbers she's quoting are for teachers who have six years of post-secondary education. And that is not most teachers.” (09:23)
  • The hiring promises fell short, with just one or two new teachers per school, and high-need schools unlikely to benefit adequately.
  • Critically, there was no movement on class size or complexity caps, which unions say is essential.

4. Negotiation Breakdown and Potato Protest

• Teachers’ Association provided detailed proposals on class size caps, which the government rejected on cost grounds ($500 million/year), leading to “back to work” legislation.

• Premier Danielle Smith’s analogy (“more than one way to peel a potato”) was perceived as dismissive and led to protests with literal potatoes and costumes at the legislature.

  “It resulted in a giant pile of protest potatoes being piled on the steps of the legislature...Protesters dressed up like Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head.” – Janet French (12:14)

5. The Impact of Alberta’s Population Boom

• Rapid population growth (due to pro-migration ad campaigns and affordable housing) has overwhelmed schools.

• School boards have been requesting new schools for over a decade; government funding lags behind growth, exacerbating overcrowding and infrastructure strain.

• The government attributes class size increases to immigration, but Janet points out the pressure has existed for years.

  “For as long as I’ve been covering education here...enrollment has been rising at a steady pace in cities...Even in Red Deer, Grand Prairie, school divisions are adding an equivalent of one or two large high schools’ worth of students each year.” – Janet French (14:01)

6. The Use of the Notwithstanding Clause

• The government used the clause to impose a contract and freeze local bargaining until September 2028.

• Labor experts say less extreme legal mechanisms (such as back-to-work legislation and binding arbitration) were available.

  “The government will tell you that the use of that clause was absolutely necessary in this situation...I don’t think anybody was expecting the imposition of a contract.” – Janet French (18:30, 19:42)

• The clause’s invocation is described as controversial, with comparison to recent uses in Quebec and Saskatchewan on unrelated social issues.

7. Public and Political Response

• Polling: Early October poll—58% of Albertans are sympathetic to teachers; 28% of UCP voters side with teachers (20:50).

• Smith’s Framing: Premier Smith argues protecting learning time is paramount; government frames opposition as resistant to “fair” increases (20:22–21:49).

• Opposition Response:

  • Alberta NDP leader Nahid Nenshi has pledged never to use the notwithstanding clause and to restrict future government use (23:45).
  • Gil McGowan (Alberta Federation of Labor) calls the move anti-democratic and signals the possibility of wider labor action.

  “We will never, ever use the notwithstanding clause...Because we believe in human rights for everyone, not just when it’s convenient.” – Nahid Nenshi (23:45)

8. Is Alberta Headed for a General Strike?

• Unions are furious and discussing "unprecedented" responses, but mobilizing a legal general strike would require coordination across sectors and major risk-taking.

• Janet French notes there are barriers: each union must independently decide to join; risk of huge fines; solidarity across public and private sector unions isn’t assured; the window for public support may be short.

  “If it just became administratively impossible...to detain or fine, or send that many people before the Labor Relations Board...that’s the only scenario in which I think they would do it.” – Janet French (26:24)

• The social impact and public anger over rights infringement are difficult to gauge. Will this issue mobilize Albertans, or will relief at schools reopening defuse tensions?

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Rallying Cry:

  “Danielle Smith has awakened a sleeping giant. She has provided us with a rallying cry...that purpose is to topple this government.”
  – Gil McGowan (01:10)

• Government Steamrolling:

  “They’re using the notwithstanding clause to sidestep the Constitution and the courts. That leaves citizens and civil society as the final bulwark against Danielle Smith’s dangerous agenda for our province. No one is coming to our rescue. It is up to us.”
  – Gil McGowan (01:45)

• Public Sentiment:

  “It wasn’t just NDP supporters...28% of UCP voters said that their sympathies were lying with the teachers. And I think it’s because parents and grandparents can see with their own eyes what’s going in schools.”
  – Janet French (20:50)

• Political Commitment:

  “We will never, ever use the notwithstanding clause. And one of our first acts as government will be to introduce legislation restricting the use of that clause for all future Alberta governments.”
  – Nahid Nenshi (23:45)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:10] – Gil McGowan’s rallying cry and summary of union anger
• [03:01] – Janet French outlines teacher demands and government opposition
• [04:46] – Historical roots of public/private school friction, school choice, and impact on public system
• [09:19] – Analysis of the rejected contract offer and why teachers walked
• [11:56] – “Potato protest” and symbolic public response to government comments
• [12:59] – Immigration narrative and actual causes for class size issues
• [17:54] – Province orders teachers back to work using the notwithstanding clause
• [19:36] – Possibility of legal alternatives to the clause
• [20:50] – Public opinion polling on the dispute
• [23:45] – NDP vows against the notwithstanding clause
• [24:30] – Will anger be enough to spark a general strike? Weighing union logistics and risks
• [26:24] – Scenarios for a general strike and limits of union action

Tone and Takeaways

The episode's tone is urgent yet explanatory—Jayme Poisson and Janet French break down complex political and legal issues, focusing on the lived reality for teachers, families, and citizens. The use of the notwithstanding clause is framed as dangerously exceptional, raising questions about democratic norms, government priorities, and the durability of Alberta’s social contract.

The potential for a general strike, while deeply uncertain, marks a new phase of labor unrest in the province and serves as a bellwether for wider resistance to government-imposed constraints on rights and public services.

For listeners: This episode is an essential primer for understanding why a struggle between Alberta’s teachers and government could become a watershed moment in Canadian labor history, and what’s really at stake for schools, workers, parents, and democracy in Alberta.