Unit 2 of York’s teaching union CUPE 3903 is no longer on strike, and classes have resumed.
Unit 2, which represents contract faculty, agreed to a new three-year contract on Monday. With Unit 2 no longer striking, classes recommenced at York on March 11.
The university initially had all three of its Units on strike.
Units 1 and 3, representing teaching assistants (TAs) and graduate lecturers, respectively, rejected the university’s deal and remain on strike.
The strike began on Tuesday, March 3, when CUPE 3903, the union representing York’s 3,700 teaching staff, did not approve an agreement regarding work contracts.
Among CUPE 3903’s priorities is to obtain better job security. The union is pushing for multi-year contracts as opposed to sessional contacts that expire after one semester.
“We believe that our comprehensive settlement offers are highly competitive with if not better than settlements reached with similar employee groups at other universities, including employees at other universities represented by CUPE,” said York University in a statement.
“York highly values the significant contributions its teaching assistants and graduate assistants make to the university. We are committed to reaching a fair and competitive settlement,” says Rhonda Lenton, provost and vice-president academic at York. The strike at York University coincides with that of the University of Toronto, whose Unit 1 has been on strike since February 27. Unlike at York, most academic activities continue at U of T despite the strike.
York University currently holds the record for the longest faculty strike at a Canadian university. The institution was on strike for 85 days in the academic year 2008-2009 before legislation ordered staff to return to work.
Undergraduates at both schools are anxious to complete their courses on time, but an academic term has never yet been lost to a strike at a Canadian university.
