Ontario Colleges Vote in Favour of a Strike

It's official. Ontario Colleges have voted 60 per cent in favour of a province-wide strike. Loyalist voted 72 per cent in favour of a provincial strike. I found out the news late last night after arriving home after work.

The following is taken from an online article from the National Post:

Posted: January 13, 2010, 10:21 PM by Barry Hertz

Nearly 60% of Ontario’s college teachers have voted to give their bargaining team a strike mandate, with mid-February the earliest possible strike date.

“Our members have delivered a clear statement,” said Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) president Warren (Smokey) Thomas. “If management is serious about reaching a settlement then it’s time they returned to the bargaining table with the singular goal of reaching an agreement.”

Dr. Rachael Donovan, chair of the colleges’ bargaining team, agrees with the need for swift negotiations, but said in a statement: “A strike mandate hasn’t made OPSEU’s positions any more affordable. It hasn’t given the colleges any more money.”

The colleges have made an offer to faculty that increases salaries by 8% over four years.


So what does that mean for me and my current program? Well, not a whole lot. A lot is still unknown and even though a strike date has been set, a negotiation could be reached by then and classes may not ever be interrupted.


Here's hoping.