Alberta teachers dismayed by proposed back-to-work order

The idea of being forced back to work doesn't sit well with Alberta teacher Ewelina Warchol.

"That's a really hard blow," said Warchol, an Edmonton-based teacher of 17 years. "It's taking away a lot of our rights and our possibility to fight for our future."

Warchol was one of thousands of teachers and supporters who jeered, chanted and dumped protest potatoes at the door of the Alberta legislature Thursday.

It came as Premier Danielle Smith announced her government would, absent a negotiated deal at the bargaining table, pass back-to-work legislation Monday to end the strike that began Oct. 6.

She told reporters there's still time to get a deal done, but it's up to the Alberta Teachers' Association.

That deal needs to include proper support for teachers, Warchol said.

"It's become really, really hard and difficult to be able to accommodate every single (student) need and to be able to work within the system that is failing us," she said.

Lynne Zwicker, a teacher and parent, said her child comes home from school with stories of desks being thrown because there are too many kids and too few educational supports.

By not investing in public education, she said the province is "failing our future."

"They are forgetting about the 748,000 little ones who need to have the best education they possibly could," she said. "We used to have the best education in the world and I don't want that to ever go away."

Jason Schilling, president of the Alberta Teachers' Association, said the union knew the legislation was a possibility, but said it doesn't make him any less angry.

"They have put their heart and soul into public education," he said. "They have put it all on the line for the last three weeks to stand up for what they care about.

"To move forward with this is such a disrespect to the profession."

For Shelby Olsen, not a day goes by that she doesn't wish to get to know her students on a deeper level. But with out-of-control class sizes, that's simply not possible, she said.