Ontario’s Colleges move closer to strike or lockout situation
College faculty across Ontario, including those at Canadore will be in a legal strike position in the new year.
OPSEU says its negotiators have requested a ‘no board’ report from the Ministry of Labour saying there has been no real progress towards a contract.
Once a no board report is issued, it’ll be 16 days before a strike or lockout can start.
“Our college system is crumbling – we can’t sit back and let its failed stewards bulldoze education,” says Michelle Arbour, acting chair of the faculty bargaining team. “Our basic demands are an antidote, aimed at protecting the core mandate of the Colleges as places of education, not cash-grabs.”
The College Employer Council says it’s shocked by the OPSEU escalation during negotiations.
“A strike at Ontario’s Colleges is wholly unnecessary and causes uncertainty, and disruption for students and faculty in a time of financial instability,” says Graham Lloyd, CEO of CEC. “Throughout this bargaining process our goal has remained the same: We want to keep our students learning and faculty in the classroom. That is why we initially proposed binding arbitration and continue to urge OPSEU to agree. We do not know why they would prefer to disrupt student learning.”
Contract talks were held last weekend (Dec. 6-8) with the two sides set to meet again for non-binding mediation early in the new year (Jan. 6-7).
The union says proposed contract language from the employer will erode working conditions, job security, and quality of education.
The colleges say the union’s demands represent vast reductions in classroom teaching time, and a maximum of 29 weeks of available teaching time in a year.
OPSEU Local 657 represents 126 full-time faculty at Canadore, with officials saying partial load numbers fluctuate.
For October’s strike vote, over 220 members from Canadore were on the voters list.
Province-wide, 79% of members voted “yes” to authorize strike action, if necessary.
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