UPEI faculty take to the picket line amid contract dispute
Members of the University of Prince Edward Island Faculty Association (UPEIFA) are on the picket line Monday after walking off the job when their strike deadline passed without a contract at Midnight.
Four to five shifts per day of 60 members are split among the university's three entrances.
The union is calling for more faculty and reduced workloads as well as more protections and better pay for part-time and contract instructors.
The university has offered to go to binding arbitration to end the dispute, but the head of UPEIFA’s negotiation team said that won’t resolve breakthrough issues, which significantly alter the workplace, like changing staffing levels.
“They’ll set that aside, and what they’ll focus on will be compensation,” said Margot Rejskind. “If this was just about salaries, we don’t need binding arbitration, we could work that out, but this is about much bigger principles and binding arbitration won’t solve those problems for us or for our students.”
A release from UPEI said it has made offers to the union through email, but union reps said the university has refused to return to the negotiating table on any of those proposals.
“What’s going to end the strike is if the employer meets with us to negotiate a settlement,” said Michael Arfken, UPEIFA president. “At this point, they’re refusing to meet with us, and so there’s not really much to be done until that happens.”
UPEI Faculty Association members and supporters walk a picket line in Charlottetown on March 20, 2023, on the first day of the faculty association's strike. (Jack Morse/CTV)
Students say they are concerned, with exams beginning in the middle of April. The UPEI Students’ Union (UPEISU) is calling for the two sides to come to an agreement.
"We are respectful of the fact that the faculty association has the right to strike, but, at the end of the day, we're here for students,” said Adam MacKenzie, UPEISU president. “We do want to see a speedy resolution and the least amount of disruption to student life as possible."
On the first day of the strike, neither the union nor the university seems to be budging, and that has students worried, particularly those looking to graduate this year or international students who must make travel plans for the end of the semester.
The lost time is hitting doubly hard after students already lost a week of class time during an extended break for the Canada Winter Games.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
'We have laws': Premier Smith says police action justified in Calgary
The actions, including the decision to use non-lethal force, to disperse pro-Palestinian protesters from the University of Calgary campus were justified, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Friday.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.