College support staff strike reaches a tentative end, but push for student reimbursement continues

After more than a month on the picket line, full-time support staff at Ontario colleges have reached a tentative deal. CTV’s Alexandra Holyk hears how the deal

Full-time support staff at Ontario’s 24 colleges will soon be returning to work as a tentative deal has been reached to end their almost five-week long strike.

Approximately 10,000 members of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) walked off the job on Sept. 11. They worked in a wide variety of positions, including in disability services, financial aid offices, employment and IT services, as well as co-op placement coordinators and library technologists.

While the tentative agreement still needs to be ratified, staff at Conestoga College in Kitchener said they were excited to get back to work.

Some students also shared in that sense of elation.

“They are coming back tomorrow, thankfully!” said Alexis Arch, a first-year pre-health science student at Conestoga College.

She started a petition asking for a partial tuition refund due to the job action.

“We were just looking for recognition, looking for our voices to be heard,” Arch explained.

Although her program brought in temporary support staff to help bridge the gap during the strike, she believed students should get some money back for the unexpected disruption to their studies.

“We still want to see compensation for all students who have suffered mental strain, physical strain, just educational strain – difficulties with life during this strike,” Arch said.

She would like to see a tuition reimbursement of 10 to 20 per cent.

“That would even out to around $110 to $220 per student,” Arch said. “At the bare minimum, just getting a statement saying, ‘Hey, we know this is happening and this is how we’re going to make it right.’”

There is no indication if the petition’s demands will be met.

In the meantime, union members are thanking students for their patience.

“It was extremely hard on our members and myself to know that this impacted the students,” OPSEU Local 238 President Vikki Poirier said. “We were also out there to ensure that the students had those resources.”

Throughout the strike, the union raised concerns with support staff’s ability meet student needs in the face of recent program cuts across the province.

Last week, a spokesperson for Conestoga College told CTV News a decision on any potential tuition refunds would be made by the provincial government, not individual colleges.

A representative for Ontario’s Ministry of Colleges did not comment on the petition but wrote CTV News an email stating, in part, “We have been clear from day one - students come first and deserve to receive their education without interruption. The tentative agreement reached by [the College Employer Council] and OPSEU supports workers while keeping students learning and campuses open.”

Arch said she won’t give up on what she believes students deserve.

“Statement, compensation, whatever it may be, recognition is all we need. And we’re going to get that one way or another,” she said.