Alberta Teachers' Association Labour Action

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ATA Strike and School Closures Effective October 6

Overview

Current Situation

On September 29, 2025, the Alberta Teachers' Association (ATA) announced that its members voted 'no' to the tentative agreement reached with the province's Teachers' Employer Bargaining Association (TEBA).

The ATA has indicated that it intends to begin strike action on Monday, October 6, 2025.

All Westwind School Division schools will be closed to students beginning Monday, October 6 and will remain closed until further notice. Families are encouraged to make alternative arrangements for childcare and supervision during the strike period.

There are no changes to school operations for the remainder of the week. All Westwind schools remain open and classes continue as usual. We will share any updates as they become available. 

 

If strike action begins on Monday, October 6:

  • All schools will be closed to students until further notice.
  • Student instruction will be paused. This would not be a shift to at-home or online learning; no classes or instruction would take place.
  • The Alberta Government will implement learning resources and financial compensation to assist parents/guardians of students during the strike period. Please see Alberta.ca for more information. 
  • Teachers, principals, and vice principals would be on strike and not report to work.
  • Support staff, including educational assistants, administrative staff, and custodians, are not part of the ATA and will continue to report to work.
  • Schools will be locked even though there will be some activity inside, including:
    • Support staff reporting to work, and
    • Community joint-use (which could consist of before- and after-school care operators or other outside organizations running programming).
  • All athletics, fine arts programs, extracurricular activities, and school-related events will be suspended from the start of the strike and remain suspended until the end of the strike period. 

Teacher collective bargaining in Alberta consists of two parts. Central bargaining takes place between the Alberta Teachers' Association (ATA) and the Teachers' Employer Bargaining Association (TEBA), which represents the Government of Alberta and all provincial school boards. This process determines teacher salaries and primary employment conditions. Local bargaining on other matters cannot begin until a central agreement is in place.

Like all school divisions in Alberta, Westwind participates in the outcomes of this provincial process but is not a party to the central negotiations.

 

For answers to common questions about the impact of a strike, please see our FAQ page.

For inquiries not covered in the FAQ, please email wsd.pr@westwind.ab.ca.