Bargaining Bulletin 10
It shouldn’t be getting harder for College Faculty to have good, stable jobs. Yet the Colleges are ready to sacrifice quality education by coming after student and faculty futures.
Today, we were back at the bargaining table and preparing for our first day of conciliation tomorrow. Despite the employer’s inconsistent “commitment” to bargaining a negotiated settlement, we remain focused on our goal: advancing member demands – brought to the table through our democratic processes – and fighting off dozens of serious concessions.
Concessions tabled by the CEC and the Colleges include:
- Introducing new layoff provisions, increasing job instability;
- Extending the academic year to 12 months for everyone, posing risks to our vacation blocks, 11th month overtime provisions, and non-teaching periods (11.08);
- Two-tiering workload protections, targeting faculty already facing inequitable workload pressures – including members in academic upgrading and trades;
- Reducing teaching time (e.g. asynchronous course teaching contact hours) with serious implications for workload and Partial-Load faculty seniority and status;
- Introducing a new probationary period for Partial-Load faculty – upwards of 2 years – creating new barriers to job security;
- Removing five (5) consecutive professional development (PD) days and further restricting, reducing, directing and controlling our access to PD.
Starting October 15, vote YES for a strike mandate – because quality education matters. An overwhelming YES vote will send a strong message to the Colleges that we are united behind our demands.
Faculty need a contract that carries us forward
The CEC and the Colleges are tabling no less than 30 concessions, with serious implications on faculty experiences going into the future.
The supposed efforts to “modernize” the academic year – extending it to 12 months – and create “flexibility in scheduling of high demand programs such as apprenticeship” rolls out the red carpet for the employer. The Colleges already have the ability to operate year round, and to compensate members for their work through the 11th month provision (15.01 B).
In reality, extending the academic year is a grasp for academic control: further constraining professional development in 11.08 periods, reducing the need for the 11th month, and further impacting teaching contact hour thresholds, and sessional rollover.
In addition, the CEC’s proposed “modes of delivery” definitions do not accurately represent what teaching entails. What they do is allow the CEC to actually reduce the recognition of the time involved in teaching: setting up a “bait and switch” scenario on the SWF without actually implementing the neutral chair’s recommendations from the Workload Task Force Report.
As wage gaps continue to widen while we struggle with affordability and inflation, the employer’s monetary package amounts to real time wage cuts, not gains. If the CEC honours the core mandate of the Colleges – to train Ontario’s future workforce and support student experiences – they would invest in quality education. The Colleges have money to make that commitment, with an accumulated system surplus in the billions. There’s money in the system to prioritize quality education. Nonetheless, we have indicated that we are ready and willing to work with the CEC to navigate uncertainty in the future.
From October 15-17, vote YES for a strike mandate to support the core mission of Ontario’s public colleges: teaching, learning, and student support. Remember: we get the contract we are all willing to fight for!
In solidarity,
Your CAAT-A Bargaining Team:
Ravi Ramkissoonsingh, L242, Chair (he/him)
Michelle Arbour, L125, Acting Chair (she/her)
Chad Croteau, L110 (he/him)
Bob Delaney, L237 (he/him)
Martin Lee, L415 (he/him)
Sean Lougheed, L657 (he/him)
Rebecca Ward, L732 (she/her)
Stay Informed, Stay Engaged, Get Involved
- Follow us on social media, where we are posting regular & timely updates:
- Instagram: @CAATFaculty
- X: @CAATFaculty
- Facebook: @OntarioCollegeFaculty
- Tiktok: @FacultyBargainingTeam
- Faculty proposals, bargaining updates, and other crucial resources: collegefaculty.org
- If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to reach out directly: [email protected]