It’s official: as York University’s bargaining team did not meet with union representatives over the weekend, CUPE 3903, representing teaching assistants, graduate assistants, and contract faculty at York, are on strike as of March 5.
As a result, classes and services to campus will be disrupted by picket lines at the university entrances on Tuesday, March 6. CUPE 3903 will not be picketing campus on Monday, instead rallying at Queen’s Park.
While full-time faculty members and other staff are expected to work and run classes, students at York likely won’t be going to all, if any, of them. At least 60 per cent of all classes at York are taught by contract faculty. Several departments have pledged also not to run courses during the duration of the strike. Tutorials, run by TAs, would be impossible to run.
Students who refuse to cross picket lines for any reason are protected from academic reprisal due to a university policy for this specific circumstance.
All other university services (administration, libraries, cafeterias) are expected to run normally.
Another disruption due to the strike will be for students and other people who normally take the 501/A/C Queen from Brampton to the university. As in the case of all labour strikes, public transit agencies refrain from crossing picket lines. As such, the 501/A/C will be picking up and dropping off any passengers on north side of Steeles Avenue West at Founders Road and outside Pioneer Village Station. The only transit major service into campus will be the subway.
Members of CUPE 3903 have been without a contract since August 31, 2017. The university and union have been bargaining over a new contract since then.
The university claims that the demands from the union are “too far apart to reach an agreement” and that they have “done everything possible to avoid a strike.
CUPE 3903’s requests to the university include:
- protected funding for TAs
- reversal of the cutting of 800 graduate assistant positions; the union alleges this is union-busting and have filed an Unfair Labour Practices complaint
- increasing job security for contract faculty
- better equity and accessibility policies
The full list of and the details of the proposals and counter-proposals by York University and CUPE 3903 can be seen here.
The last York University strike commenced on March 3, 2015 and ended on April 1, 2015. There were previous strikes by CUPE 3903 in 1997, 2001, and 2008.