Teachers in Clearview School Division have received a wage hike of 4.82 per cent.
At its regular board meeting Sept. 17, Clearview trustees fully passed a motion to raise the annual salary for 2009-2010 under a provincial agreement.
For the 2009-2010 school year, the provincial government has said that school boards should increase teacher wages by 4.82 per cent and has provided funding to cover this.
“The board has passed on to teachers all of the funding provided by the provincial government for teacher wage increases,” said Checkel.
Any debate concerning the amount of increase will be settled eventually at the provincial level.
“In the meantime, we don’t want this issue to affect the strong commitment of the Clearview board and teachers to delivering a great education to all students,” said Checkel
In 2007, the provincial government reached a memorandum of agreement with Alberta’s teachers to create a long-term (five-year) agreement that would not only determine a mechanism for future wage increases, but also resolve a long-standing dispute related to teacher pensions.
As part of that agreement, the decision was made to use the Alberta Average Weekly Earnings Index in determining teacher wage increases.
-Preliminary enrolment figures up
Early enrolment counts across Clearview indicate increased student enrolment compared to a year ago when the figure was 2,466 on opening day.
“We are pleased to see the initial student enrolment number across our division,” said Superintendent John Bailey.
“Although the official count is not taken until September 30, we are encouraged that our initial student count across the Clearview is higher than it was a year ago.”
In Alberta, funding for levels from kindergarten through Grade 9 are directly dependent upon the number of students enrolled.
-Next meeting Sept. 23
The next regular meeting of the Clearview school board will be held Sept. 23 at 4 pm at the board office in Stettler (5031-50 Street).