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2025 Teacher Strike FAQs

Updated October 17 at 12:30 p.m. |  Have a question that is not included here? Email communications@sd76.ab.ca 

Looking for your Alberta Student Number (ASN)? Click on the Student Learning & Academics section below for step by step instructions. 

Communication & Updates

How will families be informed of updates? 
Medicine Hat Public School Division (MHPSD) will send updates via email and will post to our website. If you are not receiving emails from MHPSD, please contact your child's school office to ensure that your contact information is up to date.  

I am hearing comments on social media that are different from what the schools are saying. How do I stay informed? 
Rely on official communication from MHPSD via email and through the MHPSD website for accurate and timely information. Read through these FAQs and email us your questions to communications@sd76.ab.ca if you need more information.

Where can I find the most current information?
The MHPSD website will be the primary source for updates. Social media will not be used for strike-related communication.

How can I ask questions or share concerns?
Families can email questions to communications@sd76.ab.ca. MHPSD will update the Strike FAQ page on the website as new questions arise.

Who can I contact for more information?
All communications will come from MHPSD, through email and then posted to mhpsd.ca. Information will not be shared through social media. Email us with your questions communications@sd76.ab.ca, we will update our Strike FAQ page as more questions come in.

If I have other questions that you haven't answered yet, where can I find answers?
School staff will not be communicating with families during the strike. All communication will come from MHPSD Division office, through email and then posted to mhpsd.ca/news. Information will not be shared through social media. Email us with your questions at communications@sd76.ab.ca We will post updates to the Strike FAQ page as more questions come in.

What happens when the labour action ends?
Once an agreement between the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) and Teachers’ Employer Bargaining Association (TEBA) has been reached, MHPSD will receive notification from the Government of Alberta. We will update our families through automated voice message, email as well as updating our website. Classes will resume immediately following a negotiated settlement or a return to work order.

Once a resolution is reached and a collective agreement is in place, MHPSD will move forward together to continue delivering high-quality public education.

Timing & Duration

When will the strike begin?
Labour action in the form of a strike will start at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, October 6, 2025, unless an agreement is ratified prior to that time.

How long will the strike last?
We do not know the duration of the teacher strike. We understand that labour action affects staff, students and families and we will update families via email (as well as a callout for issues that require your urgent attention) and will post updates to our website at mhpsd.ca/news.

If the strike happens, will schools close on October 6?
Yes. Schools will be closed to students and the public, with the exception of Play and Learn programs. There will be no in person classes or online learning provided by MHPSD.

The education and childcare minister announced on September 30 that a payment program (for children 12 and under) and learning supports will be offered to parents. This information will be available at the Government of Alberta website. 

School Operations & Closures

Are all Alberta school divisions striking?
Yes. The Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA), which represents teachers and school administrators across the province, have voted to reject the proposed agreement that was tabled September 27 to 29, 2025.

Can the public, families or students access school buildings during the strike?
Our intention is to keep support staff employed for as long as feasible during a strike. Support staff include custodians, EAs, clerical, FSLWs, CYCWs, success coaches, central office and facilities.

Public Access | Even though there will be staff onsite, schools will be closed to the public, families and students, with the exception of parents picking up and dropping off their children from the Play and Learn program and the independent childcare centres.

  • Scheduled school events, activities, school council meetings, fundraisers, etc. will be cancelled and/or rescheduled for when schools reopen. Please watch for an email from your child’s principal about how this change may impact your school. 
  • All school sanctioned clubs, sports and extracurricular activities will be paused. 
  • Joint use agreements with the City of Medicine Hat will be paused during a strike.

We have a school council event planned, can parents still run the event?
All scheduled school events will be cancelled and/or rescheduled for when schools reopen. If societies have bingos or casinos scheduled during this time, they are able to proceed, without the support of teachers or school administrators. 

We have a school fundraiser and need to drop off orders to families.
If there are school council fundraiser drop offs, please watch for an email from the school to coordinate alternate plans.

Will joint use agreements be impacted?
Yes. All joint use agreements will be suspended during the closure.

Will my fees be paid back from school fees, team fees, field trips, etc if the strike is lengthy?
Yes. As we do not know the duration of the labour action, pre-paid programs, academy, extra curricular, field trips, or other time-sensitive fees will be addressed as the labour action progresses or concludes. 

Can students bring personal items home?
Students are encouraged to take home any personal items they may need and to clear lockers of perishable items before the strike begins.

Who is involved in striking? 
All teachers who are members of the ATA will be striking, this includes all teachers, principals and vice principals. They will not be available once labour action begins. Superintendents are teachers, however they are not members of the ATA. 

Student Learning & Academics

How will a strike impact student learning?
During the strike and resulting school closures, students will miss course and class work. Because we don’t know how long the strike will last, we are not yet in a position to address the loss of learning. We know that student learning will be impacted and will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.

Will students still have online access to Google Classroom and online learning tools during the labour action?
Yes. Students will continue to have access to their online accounts and profiles for learning if they choose to access them (google classroom, email, online learning tools, etc.) Students will be able to log on to their MHPSD managed Chromebooks. Teachers will not be monitoring google classrooms during the strike. Google meet for chat and video will NOT be available. Edsby will be temporarily disabled and will not be available to students or families. Disabling the login for parents/students will not reset Edsby passwords or invites, it just stops the login process.

If there is a strike, how will student learning loss be addressed? Will they have extra school days, homework, etc? Will their credits be impacted? Will they have to make up for missed academics next term or next year?
The decisions on how to address lost time or learning loss will not be made locally. When we know more, we will share that information with via email and through the strike page on our website.  

My child is in grade 12, how will the learning loss impact their diploma examinations?
Oct 17, 2025 update: The GOA shared the following, “with instructional time in schools disrupted due to the teacher strike, the November 2025 diploma exams will now be optional for students. Students who wish to write a diploma exam may request to do so, and their school boards will accommodate the request.” 

November diploma examinations are administered for students who are part of a quarter system. MHPSD does not operate on the quarter system (with diploma examinations in November). In MHPSD, all high school students are on the semester system, with diploma examinations in January and June. As the teacher strike continues, we anticipate that the GOA will provide updated direction on January diploma examinations for students in the semester system. 

What is the Alberta government doing to help with learning during the strike?
The Government of Alberta has announced supports for parents during a strike, including a 

  • Parent Support Payment ($150 per week for children 12 and under), 
  • Families of children with active FSCD agreements who are enrolled in schools affected by the strike will be eligible for the following financial supports:
    • $30 per child per instructional day for children 12 and under
    • $60 per child per instructional day for children 13 years and older
       
  • Parent Learning Tool Kit with curriculum resources
  • Child Care Subsidy
  • Family Programming 

Parent payment program

The parent portal to apply for the payment program is anticipated to open on October 14 and parents can begin applying for the payment at this time. 

To help ease the extra costs families may face while children are home during labour action, we are introducing a parent payment program. This support will be available to parents and guardians of students aged 12 and under who attend a public, separate or francophone school affected by the disruption. 

Eligible parents and guardians would receive $30 per child for each day of labour action. For a 5-day school week, this would equate to $150 per week, per child.

Payments will be retroactive to October 6 and will continue for the duration of the labour disruption. Payments will be delivered through e-transfer beginning on October 31. 

Additional financial support for families with active Family Support for Children with Disabilities (FSCD) agreements. Families of children with active FSCD agreements who are enrolled in schools affected by the strike will be eligible for the following supports:

  • Additional $30 per child per instructional day for children 12 and under
  • $60 per child per instructional day for children 13 years and older

While families will be asked to provide their child’s FSCD File ID number, found on their FSCD agreement, a separate application process is not required. This funding is in addition to the previously announced Parent Payment Program, which provides $30 per instructional day for children 12 and under who are enrolled in a school impacted by teacher labour action.

Families of children aged 12 and under with active FSCD agreements are eligible for an additional $30 per child per school day. Combined with payments through the Parent Payment Program, this totals up to $300 per five-day school week.

Families of children aged 13 through 17 with an active FSCD agreement are eligible for $60 per child per instructional day, totalling up to $300 per five-day school week. Parents can apply through the online parent portal, which is open on Oct. 14. See information on where to apply below.  

Parent Payment Program - Application Information

How can I apply for the parent payment program?
The GOA's online parent portal to apply for the payment program is anticipated to open on October 14 and parents can begin applying online at this time. 

What information will I need for the parent payment program application? 
You will need demographic information for your child (name, birth date, address of current residence, school name, etc.) as well as their Alberta Student Number (ASN).

  • Please note that since the portal opened, there have been a couple issues with the address of the child's current residence not matching the parents current address. We are aware of this issue and ask that you contact our clerical staff at your childs school support. 

How can I find my child's ASN number?
You will be able to find each child's ASN number in school engage, you are able to get there using the same process that you would use for online registration.

Follow these steps to locate your child's ASN (on a desktop computer or laptop)

  1. Login to your PowerSchool parent portal account (Not sure what your username/password is? On the login page you can follow the prompts for “forgot username or password”. Or you can contact the school and someone from our clerical team will help you)
  2. Click on the SchoolEngage icon on the left menu 
  3. Choose your child's name from the student tab on the left menu 
  4. The student profile will open and their ASN number is on the first page. 

Follow these steps to locate your child's ASN (on a mobile phone)

  1. Login to your PowerSchool parent portal account (Not sure what your username/password is? On the login page you can follow the prompts for “forgot username or password”. Or you can contact the school and someone from our clerical team will help you)
  2. There is a small arrow tab (pointing right) on the left hand side, noting a drop down menu. Click here to open a drop down menu
  3. Grades and Attendance
  4. Click to select the SchoolEngage icon.
  5. Grades and Attendance 2  
  6. Once you are in school engage, click on the small arrow icon on the top right, this will open a sub menu. SchoolEngage
  7. Once you open this menu, select students and then choose your child's name.
  8. The student profile will open up and their ASN number is on the first page. 

Need help finding your ASN number?
For assistance with your powerschool login/password and locating the ASN number please contact your child's school and the clerical staff will be able to help you. Find your school contact information. 

For help, email: parentpaymentsupport@gov.ab.ca Do not include any personal information in the email. 

Child care Subsidy

To ease the financial burden on families who require additional childcare during the strike, Alberta’s government will increase October funding rates for eligible children in grades 1 to 6 who are attending out-of-school care full time.

The temporary increase in funding will come into effect after five consecutive days of a strike and apply for all of October. The rate of funding will increase to a maximum of $644 to align with the funding rates provided during summer months when children require full time care.

Family Programming  

To provide further opportunities for continued learning, Alberta’s provincial heritage sites and museums are offering free admission for all Albertans aged 18 and under for the duration of the teachers’ strike. Sites offering free admission include: 

Parents and family members will still be required to pay admission fees. Guests 14 and under must be accompanied by an adult. Museums will also be expanding hours. Families are encouraged to visit the website of each participating museum for details on hours and programming.

Parent Learning toolkit 

To give families flexibility during the labour disruption, Alberta Education and Childcare has created a free toolkit that parents can use to help support their child’s independent learning during a teachers strike and schools closure. The toolkit provides weekly resources that follow the K to 12 curriculum. Resources are available in English, French and French Immersion.

The toolkit is an optional resource that supplements instruction by your child’s teachers or school board. If you have received a syllabus, course outline, textbook, workbooks, assignments or access codes for websites and software, consider using them as well.

Need help navigating the governments online application system?
The online portal is scheduled to open on Oct 14, if you go to the GOA page and the portal is not open yet, please wait, our staff are not able to open the portal. FSLWs can help assist with the language barrier and any accessibility concerns that make it challenging for families to complete the forms online, please reach out to the Family School Liaison Worker at your child's school. 

Childcare & Early Learning Programs

Will the childcare programs that are located in MHPSD schools remain open?
Yes. The two independent childcare programs located in MHPSD schools—Kids Play and Au Chapeau—will remain open and operational. These are independent childcare programs,  not operated by MHPSD.

Will Play and Learn programs continue during the strike?
Yes. Play and Learn programs will operate as usual. These are licensed childcare programs staffed by certified Early Childhood Educators.

Will school bus transportation be available for Play and Learn?
No. Parents will need to arrange their own transportation as school bus service will not be available.

What if my child is enrolled in Play and Learn but I don’t want them to attend during a strike?
Parents have the right to make that decision on their own. If your child is registered in Play and Learn but will not attend during the strike, please contact lindsey.hodel@sd76.ab.ca.  

Can I apply for Play and Learn if there is a strike?
No, we will not accept any new applications to the Play and Learn program during a teacher strike. 

Will ELP continue to operate?
No.

Will I get a refund for the days that are missed? 
Yes. At the end of the labour action, you will be credited for any impacted days on your next month’s automatic withdrawal. For example, any days missed due to labour action in October will be reduced from the Nov 1st payment. 

The education and childcare minister announced on September 30 that a payment program (for children 12 and under) and learning supports will be offered to parents. This information will be available at the Government of Alberta website. 

External Programs & Services

Will school buses operate during a strike?
No.

Will the YMCA Before and After School Care Program still operate?
YMCA Before and After School Care in schools will be closed. However, the YMCA will offer approximately 100 care spots at two community locations, prioritizing families currently enrolled in their out of school care program. The YMCA will send communication regarding the details of school-aged care plans with families that are registered in out of school care. For questions or support, please contact Susan, Before & After School Program Manager at 403.594.0961or your child’s Site Supervisor: 

  • Leasah - 403.928.6079 (River Heights, Vincent Massey, Southview Community, Herald)
  • Maddyson - 403.928.7743 (Ken Sauer Fine Arts, Crestwood STEM, Dr. Roy
    Wilson Learning Centre, George Davison)
  • Monica - 403.580.6273 (Ross Glen, Webster Niblock, École Connaught)

As of Oct 9, The YMCA has opened their Camp program to any child that needs care, please call one of the number above for more information.  

My child accesses the brown bag lunch program, how can I get food support during the strike?
Families are encouraged to reach out to the Root Cellar for support with food. 

What will happen with the international student exchange program?
International students will continue with programming outside of school. Homestay families will receive communication about this plan from the international program coordinators. 

My child is in work experience, dual credit, RAP, or green certificate programs, how will the strike impact them? 

Dual Credit programming Letter

Dual credit is a unique program that relies heavily on our post-secondary partners, each of whom take a different approach to providing programming to their high school students. Some post-secondary institutions have created stand-alone programs that only have high school students enrolled. Other programs have high school students enrolled alongside college students within the same course.

Students enrolled in courses with Lethbridge Polytechnic, SAIT and Olds College will experience a pause in their programming. They will continue to have access to their online learner management systems, however in person programming, assignments, and related assessments will pause for the duration of the strike.  Students involved in the Health Care Aide program with Medicine Hat College will continue their program.  Please check emails from your partner school to keep updated on any changes.

Should any dual credit student require support in their dual credit program during a period of teacher job action, please contact Tracy Hensel at MHPSD Central Office by email at tracy.hensel@sd76.ab.ca.

Again, we remain optimistic that the Alberta Teacher’s Association and the Province of Alberta will reach a resolution and that the labour action will be brief. We continue to monitor both the labour negotiations as well as the post-secondary partner responses. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out, and thank you for your support of MHSPD Career Pathways programming.

Off Campus Education Letter - Impact on Work Experience, the Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP), and Green Certificate

Part of what makes off-campus programs such as Work Experience, the Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP), and Green Certificate unique is the amazing opportunities our students have to work with employers each day outside of schools in our community. During the strike, students will still have the opportunity to engage in Work Experience, RAP, and Green Certificate. Students will continue to be covered by Alberta Education’s WCB. Students in work-integrated learning within the school or K&E placements who participate in work experience or internships as part of their regular school day will NOT be continuing with their placements during the strike.

Should a student injury occur on a jobsite during teacher job action, please contact Denise Yates (403-527-3371 ext. 7165 or denise.yates@sd76.ab.ca) as soon as possible. The most important step, as always, is that students access medical attention if required. 

Students will remain responsible for completing all required hour tracking and paperwork for submission once school resumes. It is important that our students also maintain their high standard of behaviour on the jobsite at all times. Should employers have any concerns with a student, please reach out to Denise Yates.

We remain optimistic that the Alberta Teachers’ Association and the Province of Alberta will reach a resolution and that labour action will be brief. We thank you all in advance for your understanding and cooperation with our short-term protocols.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out, and thank you for your support of MHPSD Career Pathways programming.

Extracurricular & Academy Programs (Fees)

What is happening with academies? Will they continue? 
NO, academies will be paused for the duration of the strike. 

Will my fees be reimbursed?
We are finalizing the fee implications as this part of our plan and will provide direction to academy parents about reimbursement as soon as possible. 

My child is on a sports team, club or extra curricular activity, will that still continue?
All school sanctioned clubs, sports and extracurricular activities will be paused until the strike is over. We will be provide fee reimbursements for unused funds, once we know the duration of the strike we will be able to determine the totals and will communicate directly with impacted families.