NSTU members ratify new contract with the province

The province and the Nova Scotia Teachers Union have a new contract.

The three-year agreement for the province’s public school teachers was ratified by NSTU members Wednesday night.

According to the NSTU, the contract gives teachers a salary increase of 11.47 per cent over three years retroactive to August 1st, 2023 — when compound interest is factored in.

Substitute teachers will also get a 12 per cent salary increase and require eight fewer consecutive days to qualify as full-time teachers.

The union says in the province-wide electronic vote, 91 per cent of NSTU members voted 80.5 per cent in favour of the deal.

Nova Scotia has around 10,000 public school teachers.

Those teachers had been without a contract since the end of July of 2023 with the latest contract negotiations starting back in June of that year.

The agreement recognizes that students are at the core of the education system.

“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,” says NSTU president Ryan Lutes in a news release.