It’s no secret that colleges and universities urgently need more funding.
As the union representing 45,000 staff and faculty in all 24 of Ontario’s colleges and 16 universities and other postsecondary institutions, we have been sounding the alarm for years.
Our members have been living and working with the consequences of three decades of defunding by government. They include:
- Increased class sizes
- Crucial programs, services and supports starved of funds or eliminated
- A piecemeal approach to higher education that does not meet the needs of students or communities.
- A shift to online learning without adequate supports
- The massive growth of a lower-paid, insecure workforce of staff and faculty
- Workload levels that are causing both total burnout and deteriorating mental health for faculty and staff.
Further, international students have been squeezed to the breaking point by a business model that depends on them to fund the system.
It is time for the Ford government to step up and undo years of damage.
A “blue ribbon” panel of business consultants and former university executives made its recommendations to the government on funding.
The panel recommended a one-time funding boost of 10% and a one-time tuition fee hike of 5%, with subsequent years’ funding and tuition increases linked to inflation.
The funding increase is not enough. And we don’t agree with shifting the cost burden to students. Postsecondary education is a public good that benefits our society and economy.
OPSEU/SEFPO sector leaders and President JP Hornick told the panel last spring that Ontario should raise per-student funding to the average level of other provinces. (Currently, Ontario lags far behind all other provinces in per-student funding.)
The funding should be tied to concrete measures that improve the student experience, including:
- Improved workloads for faculty and staff, resulting in more resources and supports for students;
- Fairness for precarious faculty and staff, resulting in a more stable workforce to help students.
As well, to limit the escalating growth in high-paying executive positions, colleges and universities should be required to follow strict financial transparency rules.
It is time for the Ford government to change course and properly fund public postsecondary education in Ontario.
Other Bargaining Updates
College Faculty Negotiations Update – April 19, 2024
Bargaining Update Highlights In response to feedback from OPSEU/SEFPO College Faculty members, we are providing this summary of the contents of this bargaining update newsletter: Final Demand Set (FDS) complete, membership engagement and delegate renewal 18 demands...
Arbitrator awards improvements far beyond those offered by Employer in negotiations
Click here to download a PDF of the bulletin The Kaplan Award affects areas including: • Equity; • Indigenization; • Partial-load job security; and acknowledges workload associated with multi-modal courses. This is an historic moment in CAAT-A’s continued fight for...
Ontario College Faculty Achieve Historic Gains in new Collective Agreement
Toronto – Fifteen months after the commencement of a round of bargaining that included the largest work-to-rule faculty job action in the history of Canadian Colleges and Universities, labour negotiations between OPSEU/SEFPO’s college faculty division and the College...
College faculty arbitration update
OPSEU/SEFPO CAAT Academic and the CEC participated in a mediation/arbitration September 7-9, 2022. Following the mediation part of the proceeding, an arbitration occurred on September 9, 2022. The arbitrator’s award will form the new collective agreement and it is...
College faculty bargaining team statement
The college faculty bargaining team has issued the following statement: Arbitrator William Kaplan has imposed a media blackout on the upcoming voluntary mediation-interest arbitration between the colleges’ and college faculty bargaining teams. There will be no further...
Joint statement by OPSEU/SEFPO and the College Employer Council
OPSEU/SEFPO’s college faculty bargaining team and the College Employer Council have issued the following statement: The parties have reached an agreement to enter binding interest arbitration and the strike that was scheduled to commence at 12:01 am on March 18, 2022,...
College faculty to resume talks with employer
Toronto – With some 16,000 college faculty set to go on strike at 12:01 Friday morning, the College Employer Council (CEC) and the faculty bargaining team have agreed to meet Thursday. “We were encouraged that the CEC replied to our letter and have agreed to meet...
College faculty set strike deadline
TORONTO – Some 16,000 faculty at Ontario’s 24 public colleges say they will go on strike at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, March 18 if the College Employer Council (CEC) does not agree to voluntary binding interest arbitration. The faculty bargaining team sent an open letter...
Work to Rule: Phase 3
Started 12:01am, March 02, 2022 Focus Work-to-rule must impact the functioning of the colleges in order to work as a bargaining strategy to bring the Council back to the table to discuss faculty’s needs. The colleges and CEC have chosen to abandon negotiations and to...
College faculty reject contract, call on employer to negotiate or arbitrate
TORONTO – Ontario college faculty have rejected a contract offer from their employer, and OPSEU/SEFPO President Warren (Smokey) Thomas hopes the result will trigger a return to the bargaining table. “I am convinced a negotiated settlement is there and within reach,”...
Legal Brief Supports Faculty Proposals
Throughout this round of bargaining, the College Employer Council (CEC) has repeatedly refused to negotiate significant issues regarding workload, staffing, or fairness for partial-load faculty. They have justified their obstinacy by claiming that changes to these...
Information for OPSEU/SEFPO members in the CAAT-Academic Division about the February 15-17 forced-offer vote
A forced-offer vote will be held in February for college faculty members represented by OPSEU/SEFPO starting February 15. The vote was scheduled after the College Employer Council (CEC) asked the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) last week to schedule the online...