Memorandum
A message from SA President Emily Ferguson on the potential for a faculty strike.
Published: March 16, 2022DATE: Wednesday, March 16, 2022
TO: The Students of Algonquin College
FROM: Emily Ferguson, President, Algonquin Students’ Association
SUBJECT: Potential for Faculty Strike URGENT AND IMPORTANT
The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) Faculty and the College Employer Council have been negotiating a collective agreement since last year. They have yet to settle on the terms and conditions, even after months of negotiations. As a result, there exists a strong possibility of a faculty strike beginning at 12:01am on Friday, March 18, 2022. The union and the council have posted their positions online.
If a strike does occur, all classes (virtual, remotely delivered, and in-person) will stop immediately on all campuses. Field and clinical placements will be suspended unless your program tells you otherwise. Co-op work terms will continue, and students will still be able to access Brightspace. Students will be welcome on our campuses in Ottawa, Pembroke, and Perth to access resources such as labs, bookstores, the AC Hub, libraries, and communal spaces to study.
The Algonquin Students’ Association (SA) remains fully operational and available to students. All SA facilities such as the Jack Doyle Athletics and Recreation Centre and the Wolves Den Restaurant and Games Room will remain open on the Ottawa Campus. The Landing, the Fitness Zone, climbing wall and gymnasium at the Pembroke Campus will remain open, as will the Fitness Zone at the Perth Campus.
We have come too far not to finish now. In the event of a strike, my best advice is for all of us to continue to study in conjunction with our course outlines, create study groups to support each other, and continue to do the work. We are almost at the end of the term, and we can succeed if we help each other and invest in ourselves.
Students have endured these past two years with grace and perseverance. It is unacceptable that students are the ones to bear this situation and the added stress, just as we can see the end of our academic year and, for many, graduation. Students belong in the classroom. The SA demands that the provincial government insert itself to resolve this situation so that we can all get back to our studies and complete our year.
You can help by contacting your Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) to insist that this issue be resolved so that a faculty strike be averted. Please click the link right now and leave a brief message to your MPP urging a speedy resolution to the collective bargaining to keep college students in class.
Your SA will remain in operation for the duration of any strike, and we urge you to contact us for all your inquiries, questions, or concerns.
Stay strong,
Emily Ferguson
President, Algonquin Students’ Association