Support staff at Ontario’s publicly funded colleges, including Loyalist College here in Belleville are on strike, as they failed to reach a new contract agreement before the deadline of midnight.
Negotiations for a new contract agreement for around 10,000 full-time college support staff across the province broke down and a strike went into effect at 12:01 a.m. today.
Almost 160 Loyalist support staff and support and faculty union presidents say they are seeking better wages, benefits, and job security in a new deal.
OPSEU Local 421, representing these workers, held a practice picket yesterday in preparation for the strike.
Members of OPSEU Local 420, representing Loyalist faculty, demonstrated in solidarity with support staff.
The union states that nearly 10,000 college faculty and staff have either been laid off or are projected to lose their jobs amid hundreds of program cancellations and suspensions since last year.
Colleges in Ontario had been increasingly relying on tuition from international students for several years due to low levels of provincial government funding and a years-long tuition freeze, and have been struggling since the federal government enacted a cap on international students.
The College Employer Council has stated that the union’s demands would expose colleges to more than $900 million in additional costs, although the union disputes this figure.
The employer council says it has offered monetary and benefit increases, enhanced severance packages, better vacation carry-over rights and more.
All Loyalist campuses remain open, and classes and academic programming will continue as scheduled.
Loyalist Library in the Parrott Centre made a post on X Thursday letting students know that all library services are temporarily suspended during the strike. The library building will remain open as a study space only with reduced hours.
College officials are asking students to please allow extra time when coming to campus, as delays may occur.
A statement on the strike from Loyalist College can be read below.
As of today, Sept. 11, Full-Time Support Staff across Ontario colleges are on strike. Loyalist College remains open.
Academic scheduling, classes and student services are continuing, and we remain committed to supporting our students throughout this time.
More information can be found on our website.
We respect the collective bargaining process and will continue to share information relevant to our community as it becomes available.
Members of the public should expect delays when accessing campus during this time.
Questions about the bargaining process should be directed to the College Employer Council (CEC), which represents all 24 Ontario colleges in these negotiations.
Bargaining is centrally managed by CEC, and we hope they will reach an agreement that is fair for all parties.
(BROCK ORMOND)
