Sask. school divisions ready to enforce pronoun law when classes start next week

School divisions in Saskatchewan say they will be enforcing the province's pronoun law as children head back to class next week.

Students under 16 who want to change their names or pronouns in school will need to have parental consent.

Jason Coleman, a superintendent at Regina Public Schools, says the division will comply with the legislation while being respectful of students and parents.

A spokesperson for Saskatoon Public Schools says all employees are expected to follow the legislation and its enforcement is no different than with other policies. 

Initially introduced as a Ministry of Education policy in August 2023, the pronoun rules drew immediate pushback from the University of Regina's Pride organization, UR Pride, which launched a legal challenge alongside Egale Canada.

To prevent the pronoun rules from being struck down, the Sask. Party enshrined the policy into law last October, invoking the notwithstanding clause to shield it from a potential court order.

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There’s an ongoing legal battle over whether the courts have a right to determine if the law, commonly known as Bill 137, violates the Charter rights of children and the workers tasked with enforcing it, who could face sanctions if they refuse.

Next month, the Saskatchewan government will make its case before the court of appeal, arguing that its use of the notwithstanding clause should prevent a judge from reviewing the law, even while it has no authority to strike it down.

Saskatchewan will be joined by the attorneys general of Alberta and New Brunswick in making its case to exclude the courts.

Eleven parties have joined as intervenors on the side of UR Pride, including labour groups, Amnesty International, and civil liberties organizations.

The Canadian Teachers Federation, Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour say the law sets a dangerous precedent that overrides workers’ rights into the future, and forces workers to inflict violence on children.

"Outing Saskatchewan young people in schools, in the case of Bill 137 — primarily trans students or those young people that wish to use different pronouns or different names — is a harmful and violent act," Kent Peterson, CUPE Saskatchewan president, told CTV News in July.

"Bill 137 actually forces education workers to out that student and inflict violence on them in that way."

Amnesty International has said it’s joining the fray to argue the notwithstanding clause should not be used to breach the rights of young people.

“The notwithstanding clause is not a license to discriminate against children and youth and avoid the scrutiny of the courts,” Amnesty International Canada secretary general Ketty Nivyabandi said in a news release earlier this month.

-With files from The Canadian Press