On October 11, 2017, the College Employer Council (CEC) and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) were given 5 days to negotiate a deal that both sides would accept otherwise all part-time/full-time professors/teachers will go on strike.
The deadline was today and even hours beforehand, the official strike was announced as the CEC and OPSEU did not manage to achieve a deal both sides of the table were happy with.
The CEC reports that OPSEU demands would total around $400 million annually and cost thousands of contract jobs.
OPSEU’s demands include raising salaries 9% over the course of three years. The CEC has countered with a 7.75% increase over the course of four years.
The union also demands raising the number of full-time teachers to maintain a 50/50 ratio with full-time and part-time teachers. The CEC on the other hand has rejected this demand as the demographics are declining within colleges and it’s also too costly.
For students who narrowly avoided writing midterm exams as the result of the strike may feel some temporarily relief but these positive feelings are not widespread.
While these negotiations are taking place, students have responded with their own demands. A change.org petition has been started on behalf of Ontario college students affected and aims to seek reimbursement for every school day missed because of the strike.
One student from Humber College stated, “we spend much of our time and hard-earned money on school and it’s unfair to take away what we paid for and not reimburse us in any way.” Another student commented, “as an international student, this strike is even more difficult for myself as I am on a student visa and have limited time to finish this semester before I have to go back home”.
The most looming issue at hand stressing out a majority of students is the lack of information. Due to the nature of a strike, a set day for its conclusion cannot even be estimated. To make matters worse, professors are not allowed to communicate with students and the only way to read any general information is on any given college’s official website.
Students are unsure whether the strike will be short, as has been the case in the past or last a whole semester, as has happened to York University several years ago.
