STF rally draws thousands who share union’s concerns about education

Thousands gathered outside the Legislative Building in Regina on Saturday to support the province’s teachers.

People from across Saskatchewan came to show support for the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation, which hosted a rally to voice its concerns about the state of the province’s education system.

Some signs that were seen at the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation rally in Regina on April 29, 2023. (Daniel Reech/980 CJME)

“Every child matters” was one of the many impassioned chants that echoed throughout the air during a sunny but windy afternoon.

“Stop the cuts” was another.

“The class sizes are large, it’s hard to participate in class discussions and it’s limiting my future choices,” said Anya Peppler, a Grade 11 student at Balfour Collegiate who spoke at the rally.

“I am in an AP English class and I plan to go to post-secondary. I want to have a career that I enjoy and contribute to my community and earn a good living.

“Because of the budget cuts, the advanced classes might be cancelled and taken away.”

Peppler said it feels like the provincial government doesn’t care enough about education.

“As a student, it’s very sad and hard to process and understand,” Peppler said.

“I believe education is important but how can students be expected to take it seriously when the government doesn’t take it seriously?”

The provincial budget is allocating $2 billion to the 27 school divisions in Saskatchewan.

But STF president Samantha Becotte has argued that amount is not enough to relieve the school system of inflationary pressures or deal with growing enrolment.

Becotte has previously said the province has been lagging behind in funding for about a decade.

Parents, students and teachers weren’t the only ones in attendance. Members from labour unions — including the Canadian Union of Public Employees, the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Canadian Office and Professional Employees — could be seen proudly waving their respective flags.

“The teachers have been super-kind in supporting us on our strike, so we figured it was only fair to come show solidarity at their rally,” said Brayden Hurl, a payment service officer and treasurer with the Canada Employment and Immigration Union’s Local 40811 — a union that’s part of the ongoing PSAC strike.

“At the end of the day, we only have each other to support ourselves, so the more support we can show for ourselves, the stronger we are, the more motivated we feel and more importantly, the more connected we feel.”

Thousands were in attendance at the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation Rally on April 29, 2023. (Daniel Reech/980 CJME)

The STF said in a media release that Education Minister Dustin Duncan was invited to speak at the rally, but he declined.

Heather Crichlow is a substitute teacher with Regina Public Schools. She went to the rally to show support for teachers and demand the government take education more seriously.

Crichlow has serious concerns about the state of education.

“It has gotten really terrible,” she said. “It’s really frustrating for teachers, it’s frustrating for kids because kids are not able to have their (needs met).

“(The government has) cut EAs (educational assistants) who would support the kids (and) they’ve cut funding. Teachers have to go on Google to get information for classes, class sizes have grown extremely large and there’s no one to help in the classroom.”

Crichlow said if the government does not invest in its students, Saskatchewan will have a poor future.