Ontario college support staff strike continues with no deal in sight

Around 10,000 support staff at Ontario colleges have now been on strike for just over a week, and rallies took place at the 24 Ontario colleges Friday to show support for the people on the picket lines.

Currently, both sides are not at the table and no deal is in sight.

“College education, public education, is a path to a better life, and for a lot of people in Hamilton, it is a path out of poverty and we want that to continue to exist,” said Susan Lau, the Mohawk College Support Staff Local Union President, “and we want the jobs that make that happen, to continue.”

The union says that’s the reason why rallies took place at Ontario Colleges Friday: to show solidarity for the support staff who are on strike, and let the employer know these jobs are important.

“This affects local economies in ways that are unprecedented, not just in terms of good union jobs that are lost on the campus, but also the graduates of the colleges — they need places they can work, and they need more than 6 to 12 week training programs,” said JP Hornick, the President of OPSEU/SEFPO.

“They need diplomas. We are in the middle of one of the largest labor adjustments, and the public colleges and the support staff are the ones that keep that engine running.”

READ MORE: Ontario college support staff reject latest offer and hit the picket lines

In Hamilton alone, at Mohawk College, the union says over 200 full-time and part-time support staff have been laid off just this year.

The union is asking for job security, and a guarantee of no more layoffs, but the bargaining agent for the college says that’s not possible.

“I think everyone can understand [that] no employer can ever agree to this, especially colleges,” said Graham Lloyd, the CEO at the College Employer Council. “We don’t know what our demands will be in six months, so to pretend we can guarantee jobs, no campus closures, no mergers, no staff reductions, is simply something colleges can ever accept.”

While the strike may be impacting current students, some recent graduates are saying it is also affecting them.

“We still don’t have an actual word on if our actual graduation is going to commence — the grad list has not been released — they have changed the dates online multiple times,” said Kelli O’ceallaigh, a recent graduate. “There were different things being said, and we didn’t get straight answers as to when our stuff was being sent to the College of Nurses of Ontario.”

Negotiations are currently not taking place.

The employer says they are willing to go back to the table if the union drops their demands for no layoffs.

WATCH MORE: Over 10K Ontario college support staff go on strike after rejecting latest offer