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On October 28, 2025, the Legislative Assembly of Alberta passed Bill 2: Back to School Act (the "Act"), which has the following stated purpose:
"[...] to end the strike by the employees that started on October 6, 2025 and lockout by the [Teachers' Employer Bargaining Association ("TEBA")] that started on October 9, 2025 by establishing the central terms and local terms of new collective agreements under this Act."
Background
TEBA is a statutory corporation created by the Public Education Collective Bargaining Act. It has the exclusive authority to collectively bargain certain terms and conditions of employment on behalf of Alberta's public, separate, and Francophone school boards (the "Employer School Boards"), and to bind the same in a collective agreement determined through central bargaining.
The Alberta Teachers' Association ("ATA"), a corporation formed under the Teaching Profession Act, has exclusive authority to bargain on behalf of teachers employed by the Employer School Boards in Alberta.
As part of the bargaining process, TEBA and ATA bargain "central terms" which are common to all teachers employed by the Employer School Boards. The ATA and each Employer School Board bargain local terms that are unique to the teachers employed by each particular Employer School Board.
Not having reached a collective agreement, Alberta teachers commenced province-wide strike action on October 6, 2025. On October 9, 2025, TEBA locked out the teachers.
The Act ended the Alberta-wide teacher job action by establishing collective agreements for each of the Employer School Boards and dealt with both central terms (typically bargained by TEBA and the ATA) and local terms (typically bargained by the various school boards and francophone authorities with the ATA). The collective agreements are from September 1, 2024, through August 31, 2028.
The Act removed the potential for a strike and lockout under the Labour Relations Code. It is also made with the provision that it apply notwithstanding aspects of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the "Charter").
The Charter
Section 2(d) of the Charter provides that everyone has the freedom of association. The Supreme Court of Canada has held that s. 2(d) protects a meaningful process of collective bargaining, which includes the right to strike.
Section 33 of the Charter, commonly known as the "notwithstanding clause," permits Parliament and provincial legislatures to pass legislation that overrides certain provisions of the Charter – including the right to freely associate under section 2(d).
Section 3 of the Act
Section 3 of the Act reads:
Declaration re Charter, Bill of Rights and Human Rights Act
3. This Act shall operate notwithstanding
(a) sections 2 and 7 to 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms,
(b) the Alberta Bill of Rights, and
(c) the Alberta Human Rights Act.
By its application, the Act overrides sections 2 and 7 to 15 of the Charter and thus precludes a Charter challenge to the Act.
What's Next
While the Act, through the use of the notwithstanding clause, is intended to be final and beyond the reach of court review, we may still see legal action by the ATA.
In January 2025, the Supreme Court of Canada granted leave in English Montreal School Board, et al. v. AG of Quebec, et al. to hear a constitutional challenge to Quebec's 2019 secularism law (referred to as Bill 21), which prohibits public workers in positions of authority from wearing religious symbols in the exercise of their functions and requiring those persons to perform their functions with their face uncovered.
Quebec's Bill 21 contains a provision through which Quebec exercised the override power (pursuant to s. 33 of the Charter) to apply Bill 21 notwithstanding certain rights and freedoms.
We anticipate the Supreme Court of Canada's ruling in English Montreal School Board, et al. v. AG of Quebec, et al. will examine the text, purpose, and context of section 33 of the Charter, including its relationship with parliamentary/legislative sovereignty.
General Strike
There has been speculation about the potential for a general strike. Such action would be unlawful under the Labour Relations Code, which prescribes the circumstances and preconditions necessary for workers to lawfully strike. Lawful strikes require that there be no current collective agreement, that mediation has failed, that a cooling off period has been served, and that a strike vote has taken place. In the past, both unions and workers have faced sanctions for such unlawful action.
Employers facing illegal strike action, including any collective efforts to reduce or withdraw work and services for a strike-related purpose, are entitled to seek relief and protection from the Alberta Labour Relations Board and should obtain legal assistance to address and explore their options.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
