Close to 10,000 college faculty and staff have either been let go or are projected to lose their jobs amid hundreds of program cancellations
Close to 10,000 college faculty and staff have either been let go or are projected to lose their jobs amid hundreds of program cancellations and suspensions since last year, the Ontario Public Service Employees Union said Wednesday as it warned of serious trouble in the sector.
The union representing some 55,000 college faculty and support staff said the cuts amounts to "one of the largest mass layoffs in Ontario's history" as colleges grapple with a funding crisis.
"This is bigger than the Hudson's Bay liquidation, which laid off 8,000 employees across Canada," OPSEU president JP Hornick said at a news conference outside Centennial College's Story Arts Centre campus in Toronto, which is slated for closure later this year.
Full-time college faculty across Ontario set Friday deadline
Full-time Ontario community college faculty, including about 1,000 at Mohawk College, plan to be on strike at 12:01 a.m. on March 18 unless the College Employer Council agrees to voluntary interest arbitration.
The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) which represents some 16,000 faculty, counsellors and librarians at 24 colleges, has notified the council of the deadline and sent an open letter to college presidents asking them to agree to the union’s proposal.
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In the event of a walkout, the union at Mohawk will hold a rally and food-raiser for students who need food support at 11 a.m. on Friday in front of the college on Fennell Avenue at the Governors Boulevard entrance.
Faculty collective bargaining has been at an impasse since Nov. 18 following conciliation.
OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas said: “If there was ever an argument to have a mechanism to recall politicians in Ontario, Oosterhoff is a perfect example.”
The union that represents over 155,000 public service employees across Ontario is demanding Premier Doug Ford kick Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff out of PC caucus after remarks he made in regards to abortion.
In a release issued Tuesday morning, OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas said: “If there was ever an argument to have a mechanism to recall politicians in Ontario, Oosterhoff is a perfect example.”
On May 9, Oosterhoff appeared on stage at an anti-abortion protest at Queen’s Park pledging to demonstrators “to fight to make abortion unthinkable in our lifetime.”
PC MPP’s Christina Mitas and Will Bouma were also in attendance. Oosterhoff’s comments immediately drew harsh criticism from the opposition and ignited a social media firestorm.
On Saturday, protesters dressed in red cloaks resembling costumes from the television adaptation of The Handmaid’s Tale confronted Oosterhoff at an event at the Grimsby branch of the Royal Canadian Legion.
Thomas said Oosterhoff’s views on women’s rights are unacceptable and a “chilling threat to the right of women to control their own bodies.”
The OPSEU president said in Tuesday’s release “at the very least the Premier should send a signal to women by booting him out of his caucus.”
In a time when it is so difficult to get our young people engaged in the political process, we should be applauding them for getting involved. We shouldn’t be trying to beat them out of their allowance.
OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas sent the following letter to Hon. Ted Arnott, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in response to legislative staff targeting a group of young people for so-called "sidewalk chalk vandalism" at Queen's Park.
June 22, 2019
Hon. Ted Arnott, Speaker
Room 180
Main Legislative Building, Queen's Park
Toronto, ON M7A 1A2
Dear Speaker Arnott:
I am writing to express my absolute disgust that a group of young people are being targeted for so-called sidewalk chalk vandalism at Queen’s Park. I cannot believe that legislative staff would try to shakedown a bunch of kids to the tune of $1,444.51 because they wrote a few slogans in chalk during a protest against government education cuts.
What knucklehead came up with a bill of $1,444.51 for a cleanup? Come on, a couple of buckets of water or a half decent rainfall would have taken care of it.
Chalk one up to bullying our youth by a legislative kangaroo court.
In a time when it is so difficult to get our young people engaged in the political process, we should be applauding them for getting involved. We shouldn’t be trying to beat them out of their allowance.
Kids have a right to protest like anyone else and if they made a small mess on the asphalt, it’s nothing compared to the mess your party is making of their education and their future.
Legislative staff were quoted as calling these chalked messages of protest “vandalism” and “obscene.” What is really obscene is how democracy is being trampled on by Premier Doug Ford and the vandalism this government is inflicting on Ontarians.
I hope you will see how absurd this is and since you are responsible for the legislative grounds, I hope you will rescind this invoice for “cleanup costs” that was sent to these young people.
If you don’t want to do that then send the bill to me. OPSEU applauds the dedication of these young people and stands with them. We’ll pay this ridiculous bill.
Sincerely yours,
Warren (Smokey) Thomas
President, Ontario Public Service Employees Union
"On New Year’s Eve, Rossi posted photos of expensive champagne and caviar canapes with the tone-deaf caption: “Celebrating New Year’s the 1-percenter way! Let them eat cake:-)”
Toronto – OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas says Rocco Rossi should resign as President and CEO of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce after posting an offensive tweet ridiculing people who work hard every day to keep the province running.
On New Year’s Eve, Rossi posted photos of expensive champagne and caviar canapes with the tone-deaf caption: “Celebrating New Year’s the 1-percenter way! Let them eat cake:-)”
Amid a massive public outcry, he deleted his Trump-like tweet and issued a half-baked apology, claiming his comments were meant to be “satirical.”
“An apology – if you can even call it that – isn’t enough. This fat cat has shown his true colours,” Thomas said. “He was instrumental in getting the Ford government to freeze the minimum wage and eliminate mandatory paid sick days for Ontario’s lowest-paid and precariously employed workers. Rossi’s tweet is absolutely shameful and he should be shown the door.”
Bragging about eating caviar and drinking champagne while insulting low-income workers is beyond the pale, said OPSEU First Vice-President/Treasurer Eduardo (Eddy) Almeida. It’s bullying, pure and simple.
“I talk to people every day who are struggling every day to make ends meet. They make a huge contribution to Ontario’s economy and Rossi has just slapped them in the face,” he added.
“He colluded with Ford to claw back important benefits that would help lift families out of poverty, just so CEOs like him can reap even bigger bonuses.”
If Premier Doug Ford is really “for the people,” he should publicly condemn Rossi’s comments and sit down with OPSEU to get the province on the right track, Thomas said.
“We have the expertise and knowledge to give Ford better advice than Rossi, who clearly has no idea what frontline workers are all about,” he said. “Premier, it’s time to give us a call.”
The bill introduced today capping wage settlements shows that Premier Doug Ford has no respect for the rule of law or the right to fair collective bargaining. This bill has nothing to do with Ontario’s finances. It has everything to do with Ford’s irresponsible decision to push beer and wine into convenience stores. The Premier is taking money from the pockets of front line workers to pay the likely billion dollar price tag of his decision to weasel out of the contract with the Beer Store.
The bill introduced today capping wage settlements shows that Premier Doug Ford has no respect for the rule of law or the right to fair collective bargaining.
This bill has nothing to do with Ontario’s finances. It has everything to do with Ford’s irresponsible decision to push beer and wine into convenience stores.
The Premier is taking money from the pockets of front line workers to pay the likely billion dollar price tag of his decision to weasel out of the contract with the Beer Store.
This bill shows a complete lack of respect for frontline workers who deserve better and OPSEU will use every tool, legal or otherwise to stop this dictatorial approach.
Ford didn’t even have the courage to face frontline workers, instead sending one of his puppets, Peter Bethlenfalvy to deliver words he could barely utter.
It’s hardly surprising that Ford behaves like a "rule of law outlier" given his history of paying little attention to those who turn to the courts for relief and enforcement. Just ask his sister-in-law who has filed a lawsuit against him to get access to her late husband, Rob Ford's estate.
Ontario is ranked last in per capita public service spending and falling faster than this government's popularity.
Expenditures aren't our problem. Revenues are, yet Ford insists on giving away $3.8 billion to his rich buddies and wasting millions on pals like Ken Hughes who provide zero value for the money they bleed from the taxpayer.
“I couldn’t be more proud to be in the same union as these women. They’ve helped themselves, and they’ve helped protect family health care for everybody in Owen Sound and, ultimately, right across Ontario.”
Wednesday, September 5, 2018 - 5:00pm
Owen Sound – OPSEU members at the Owen Sound Family Health Organization have ratified a collective agreement that provides decent wages and working conditions that will ensure quality family health care in Owen Sound and across Ontario.
The doctors who own the clinic are scheduled to vote on the agreement Thursday.
“These workers, who are almost all women, have won an astounding victory against overwhelming odds,” said OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas. “With strength and solidarity, they stood up against some of the most powerful members of their community because they knew they were right and they knew they were fighting for something bigger than themselves.
“I couldn’t be more proud to be in the same union as these women. They’ve helped themselves, and they’ve helped protect family health care for everybody in Owen Sound and, ultimately, right across Ontario.”
The OPSEU Local 276 members went on strike on May 22 because the doctors who own the clinic were offering laughable wage increases after four years of frozen wages. The doctors also refused to address precarious and toxic working conditions and were demanding that the members accept claw backs to their retirement contributions.
But in the new four-year agreement, the doctors addressed many of those concerns, providing substantial wage increases, no pension claw backs, and significantly improved job security.
“If these brave members hadn’t gone on strike, the owners would have got away with squeezing more and more profits out of the workers and, ultimately, out of the patients,” said OPSEU First Vice-President / Treasurer Eduardo (Eddy) Almeida. “This isn’t just a victory for workers. It’s a victory for every adult, senior, and child in Owen Sound.
The workers could be back on the job as early as Sept. 10.
“Strikes are never easy, but they’re always important. I’d like to extend sincere thanks to the people of Owen Sound for their respect and encouragement through this,” said Thomas.
“Our members faced threats and violence. But with the community’s support, not to mention the support of OPSEU members and of other unions from across the province, their solidarity and strength grew with each passing day.”
