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19h ago

Alberta Unions Form Common Front After Bill 2 to Prepare for a Possible General Strike

The government ended the teachers’ strike by imposing a contract using the notwithstanding clause.

Premier Danielle Smith talks about the passing of Bill 2, which will force teachers back in the classrooms. Finance Minister Nate Horner, listens on during an Oct. 27, 2025 press conference in Edmonton.
Alberta Federation of Labour president, Gil McGowan, speaks on behalf of the Alberta labour movement in response to Bill 2, the Back to School Act, and the invocation of the notwithstanding clause by the provincial government on Wednesday, October 29, 2025 in Edmonton.
Workers and members of UFCW local 401 watch helplessly as a busload of meat inspectors with the Canada Food Inspection Agency cross the picket line at the Lakeside Packing plant in Brooks in 2005 after they were forced back to work by a Court of the Queens Bench order.
Canadian Labour Congress president Bea Bruske.

Overview

  • Bill 2 passed in the legislature and forced teachers back to work under a four‑year contract by invoking the Charter’s notwithstanding clause.
  • The Alberta Teachers’ Association says members returned under threat of fines up to $500 per day and it is preparing legal challenges to the legislation.
  • ATA leaders are urging teachers to limit activities outside required duties rather than continue an illegal strike.
  • AFL president Gil McGowan says unions will organize toward a potential general strike, with no immediate walkout planned and timelines still unspecified.
  • A reported Common Front of about 24 unions has signed a solidarity pact as polling cited by Postmedia shows weak public approval for the government’s handling, and recall efforts targeting the education minister have been filed.