What is assignable time for Alberta teachers?
Assignable time is the time your school division assigns you, at a set time and place: up to 1,200 hours a school year, of which up to 916 can be instruction. Here is what goes in each bucket.
Instructional time is part of assignable time, not extra to it. Both caps are in clause 8.1 of the 2024–28 teacher collective agreements, which incorporate the Back to School Act (2025). The list of what assigned time includes is clause 8.2.1, and the ATA and the Teachers' Employer Bargaining Association explained it item by item in Joint Interpretation Bulletin 1 (2017).
| Time | Counts as | Where it says so |
|---|---|---|
| Teaching your classes, and supervising instruction given by a student teacher or guest | Instructional | Bulletin 1, items 2 and 4 |
| Kindergarten and pre-K parent conferences with the child there | Instructional | Bulletin 1, item 8 |
| Operational days with no students: PD days, planning days | Assignable | Clause 8.2.1 (a), Bulletin 1, item 15 |
| Teachers' convention | Assignable, 6 hours a day | Clause 8.2.1 (a), Bulletin 1, item 17 |
| Supervision before and after classes, at recess and at lunch | Assignable | Clause 8.2.1 (c) |
| Transition time between the warning bell and class, and between classes, when you are on call | Assignable | Clause 8.2.1 (c), Bulletin 1, item 5 |
| Prep time you are assigned to spend at school | Assignable | Bulletin 1, item 6 |
| Prep time that is not assigned (you may leave) | Not counted | Bulletin 1, item 6 |
| Time you are assigned before or at the end of the school day | Assignable | Clause 8.2.1 (g), Bulletin 1, item 7 |
| Parent-teacher interviews, IPP meetings, transition meetings | Assignable | Clause 8.2.1 (d), Bulletin 1, item 8 |
| Staff meetings you are required to attend | Assignable | Clause 8.2.1 (f), Bulletin 1, item 9 |
| Lunch with no duty | Not counted | Bulletin 1, item 10 |
| Concerts, clubs, coaching, graduation, when assigned and you must attend | Assignable | Bulletin 1, item 11 |
| Activities you volunteer for | Not counted | Bulletin 4, item 1 (d) |
| Field trips: required supervision, night time on call, bus travel outside the day | Assignable | Bulletin 1, item 4 |
| PD assigned outside school hours, or teacher-directed PD set at a time and place | Assignable | Clause 8.2.1 (e), Bulletin 1, item 15 |
| Voluntary PD outside school hours | Not counted | Bulletin 1, item 15 |
| Sick days and other short paid leaves | Counted as scheduled | Bulletin 1, item 12 |
| Summer school and night school contracts | Not counted | Bulletin 1, item 20 |
| Marking and planning at times you choose | Not counted | Clause 8.2.2 |
Travel to PD
Travel to assigned PD does not count if you are paid an allowance or per diem for the travel time (mileage aside), or if the trip is no more than 80 km longer than your usual commute. Past 80 km it counts as a quarter of an hour for every 20 km. The 80 km is one way and leaves out flights. Travel to your own convention never counts (clause 8.2.3, Bulletin 1, item 16).
Part-time teachers
Your FTE is your assignable hours divided by the assignable hours of a typical full-time teacher in your school (clause 6.1). Your instruction can be at most your FTE times 916 hours. Bulletin 5 gives the example of a 0.5 teacher in a school where full-time teachers are assigned 1,100 hours: 550 assignable hours. With today's cap of 916 that teacher can teach up to 458 hours (the bulletin, written in 2019, says 453.5 from the old 907). Work outside your regular days cannot be required, but if you agree to it, it counts.
Who the caps apply to
Any teacher whose main job is instruction, including lead teachers, teachers with an allowance but no administrative designation, and teachers supervising someone else's instruction. Principals, vice-principals and assistant principals are not covered, and neither are central office staff whose main job is not instruction (Bulletin 1, items 2 and 3). If you start or return part way through the year, both caps are prorated: half way through, up to 600 assignable hours (item 13).
Sources: collective agreements 2024–28 incorporating the Back to School Act, clauses 6.1, 8.1, 8.2 (for example Edmonton Catholic, Lethbridge); ATA/TEBA Joint Interpretation Bulletin 1 (August 25, 2017), Bulletin 4 (November 7, 2017) and Bulletin 5 (October 8, 2019), as posted by ATA Local 22 (archived copies). The 2025 settlement asks the ATA and TEBA to review Bulletins 1 and 4 and send any changes to school boards by December 31, 2026. A plain-language summary, not legal advice: your collective agreement and your local decide.