Ontario's Colleges Call For Strike

According to the Toronto Star, the Ontario government has offered faculty members at the province's colleges a 7.5% wage hike. However, the Ontario Public Service Employees Union ("OPSEU"), has called for a strike vote in the fall—wanting to address other issues beyond compensation.

Employers and workers represented by a union negotiate working conditions through the process of collective bargaining, governed by Ontario's Labour Relations Act, 1995. Once a union has been certified or recognized in accordance with the Act (s. 16), both parties are obliged to come together and bargain in good faith to reach a collective agreement (s. 17). For sophisticated employers and unions, the scope of an agreement can be immense; covering everything from salaries, to the hiring process, and even how workers are individually scheduled for their shifts.