NSTU members ratify new contract

Ryan Lutes is the president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union. (Nova Scotia Teachers Union YouTube channel)

The 10,000 members of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union have ratified a new contract with the province.

The deal was reached on April 26. Some 91 per cent of members voted on the contract on May 22. And 80.5 per cent voted to accept it. 

“This agreement contains several important gains for teachers, and while it doesn’t address all the challenges our schools are facing, it is a fair agreement that serves as a solid stepping stone to future progress,” NSTU president Ryan Lutes said in a news release this week.

“This would not have been possible without the strength and solidarity members demonstrated when they provided the bargaining team with an overwhelming strike mandate earlier this spring.”

The agreement includes an 11.47 per cent salary increase over three years for full-time teachers. Substitute teachers will also get an extra 12 per cent raise and will require eight fewer days to qualify as a full-time teacher.

Teachers will also be getting more time for marking and preparation. Beginning Aug. 1, they will have a minimum of 15 per cent of instructional time for marking and classroom prep.

The number of school counsellors will also increase. And the Nova Scotia government has guaranteed that neither class sizes nor the school day will increase for the term of the contract.

The teachers’ previous contract expired last July 31. The salary increases are retroactive to Aug. 1 of last year.