Striking Ontario college faculty set to vote on contract offer
Posted Nov 14, 2017 05:23:54 AM.
Last Updated Nov 14, 2017 07:12:52 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
TORONTO – A strike by faculty members at Ontario colleges drags on with both sides accusing each other of spreading misinformation ahead of a contract vote in the labour dispute.
The vote is set to begin today and end on Thursday
The dispute has left about half-a-million students out of class for a month.
Some 12,000 Ontario college professors, instructors, counsellors, and librarians haven’t been at work since October 15th.
The Ontario Public Service Employees Union, which represents the striking faculty, says the dispute is the longest strike in the colleges’ history.
The colleges have said the latest offer includes a 7.75 per cent raise over four years, improved benefits, and measures to address concerns regarding part-time faculty.
But the union says the offer contains “serious concessions” that were not agreed to, and which would erode faculty rights and contribute to an unsustainable staffing model.
The council representing the province’s 24 colleges says acceptance of the latest contract offer would mean students could be back in the classroom as early as next Tuesday.
