The union representing 10,000 striking college support workers across Ontario and the College Employer Council will return to the bargaining table on Friday with the assistance of a provincially-appointed mediator.
In a brief message to members, who have
been on strike since Sept. 11
, the Ontario Public Sector Employees Union (OPSEU) said it had delivered its message to the College Employer Council (CEC), the province’s bargaining agent: “Get back to the table and tell the truth about your plans for our colleges.”
In a statement Thursday afternoon, CEC said it had received no formal request from OPSEU, but had been engaged with government officials and had agreed to meet in mediation.
“We hope this process will result in a negotiated agreement and put an end to this unnecessary strike,” Graham Lloyd, the president of CEC, said in a statement.
“Colleges have consistently bargained in good faith and have put forward more than $145 million in improved wages, benefits, and job security, and advised OPSEU of issues it cannot accept,” Lloyd said.
“We hope, with the assistance of a government mediator, we will be able to secure a fair deal that balances the needs of employees, students, and the long-term sustainability of the college system.”
OPSEU is calling for better job security, wages and benefits. The workers include disability support workers, library technicians, financial-aid employees and IT services staff.
On Sept. 15, CEC said
the only way forward
was for the union to drop its demands or to proceed to arbitration.
Meanwhile, OPSEU has argued that a provincial Skills Development Fund (SDF) is being used to undermine the public college system. The fund allocates $2.5 billion over three years towards training in the skilled trades and provides money to upgrade training centres, the union has argued, calling SDF “a government-led agenda to systematically defund Ontario colleges.”
Colleges across Ontario have cut programs and reduced staff as they grapple with the loss of international students and frozen tuition fees. In February, Algonquin College Claude Brulé
recommended suspending 37 programs.
In January, Ontario colleges
narrowly averted a province-wide strike
after academic staff represented by OPSEU agreed to mediation-arbitration. The two parties finalized a three-year collective agreement in July after a mediated arbitration award. The award included annual salary increases of three per cent in 2024, 2.5 per cent in 2025 and two per cent in 2026, plus a temporary enhanced severance package that expires at the end of the agreement.
On Wednesday, OPSEU urged its support staff members to attend picket lines and rallies.
“Now is the time to hold the line, stronger than ever, and drive our message home.”
