Labour tensions in Ontario’s college system are set to escalate further as roughly 13,000 part-time support staff prepare to vote next week on whether to join their full-time colleagues on strike. The vote comes amid a prolonged bargaining impasse that union leaders say has dragged on for more than a year and a half without meaningful progress.
The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), which represents part-time support staff at the province’s 24 public colleges, including George Brown College, Humber Polytechnic and Centennial College, has called the strike vote for October 14 to 17. About half of the unionized part-time employees are students, working in key campus roles such as financial aid, recreation, and registrar’s offices.
Noor Askandar, chair of the union’s bargaining team, said the College Employer Council (CEC) has refused to return to the negotiating table since May and has not provided a new offer since December 2024. “We’ve given them 23 bargaining dates between July and October,” Askandar said. “They turned all of them down and offered just one date in December.”
Pay and paid sick days are two major sticking points. Many part-time student workers currently earn minimum wage, now set at $17.60 per hour. OPSEU is demanding that all employees receive at least $1 more than minimum wage starting February 2025, as well as a six per cent annual wage increase in the new collective agreement. The CEC has countered with two per cent raises for 2025 and 2026.
Workers are also seeking five paid sick days — up from zero — and clear job descriptions. Askandar said the lack of defined roles has allowed colleges to shift full-time tasks onto part-time staff during the ongoing full-time strike. Toni Pettit, a part-time worker and student at Seneca Polytechnic, said many student employees work while sick because they can’t afford unpaid days off, leading to campus outbreaks and, in some cases, students having to drop out for a semester.
The CEC disputes the union’s characterization, insisting it has bargained in good faith and offered bargaining dates in June that the union declined.
The strike vote will determine whether the union can move toward a legal strike position. A ‘yes’ result doesn’t guarantee a walkout — both parties signed a no-strike, no-lockout agreement in June — but OPSEU has taken its case to the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB), alleging the CEC violated that deal by failing to engage in bargaining. If the board sides with the union, a strike could begin as early as five days after a mandate is secured. A meeting between the parties and the OLRB is scheduled for October 15.
The part-time vote follows a walkout by more than 10,000 full-time college support workers on September 9. A simultaneous strike by both groups would have “massive impact” on campus operations, especially in student services and recreation programs, Askandar said.
As the strike vote approaches, both sides remain far apart — and the outcome could significantly shape labour relations across Ontario’s post-secondary system this fall.