OPSEU leader says college faculty made huge gains with new contract

Faculty at Ontario colleges and their employer have signed a collective agreement for the next four years.

The two parties announced the award – an agreement reached by arbitration – on Wednesday.

An arbitrator finalized the contract after the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) – the union representing college faculty members – and the College Employer Council (CEC) – which bargains on behalf of the colleges – spent months trying to reach a deal.

Talks fell flat in mid-October after three months at the table. That led to a five-week strike by OPSEU’s roughly 12,000 faculty members from Ontario’s 24 colleges.

The provincial government introduced back-to-work legislation in mid-November, forcing faculty back to classrooms.

A mediator-arbitrator took the reins from there, settling an agreement this week.

The deal gives the faculty raises totalling 7.75 per cent over four years, along with one-time payments from the colleges - $900 for each full-time faculty member and $450 for every partialload employee - to settle workload complaints after striking employees were forced back to class by the province.

There’s also a requirement for colleges to keep a roster of parttime or partial-load faculty and give them priority when full-time opportunities arise.

Liz Mathewson, president of OPSEU Local 352, which represents about 350 full-time and contract faculty at Fleming College, said faculty feel good about the contract.

“There were some huge gains,” said Mathewson.

Those gains also include a substantive increase in job security for contract faculty, unprecedented academic freedom language and a commitment to a task force to look at staffing and funding, she said. The president said she’s proud of the union’s bargaining team and of faculty for its province-wide solidarity throughout the strike.

“Nobody wins in a strike, but we are very proud of our membership for staying strong and not giving into concessions that would have impacted us on the long term,” she said.

Tony Tilly, president of Fleming College, said the award brings a sense of relief to both faculty and college leaders.

“I think it’s important for everyone to get closure on this round of collective bargaining and we have that now,” he said.

While an award rarely pleases both parties completely, Tilly said he could see evidence of careful consideration of the input from both sides.

Students are making up for missed time in the classroom at Fleming through a shorten Christmas break. They’re staying on a week later and coming back Jan. 2, instead of Jan. 8.

The semester ends on Jan. 8, with the next one starting Jan. 15.

To accommodate student’s requests for more access to college resources over the holidays, Tilly said the library and some labs will be open from Dec. 27 to 29.