The 10,000 full-time college support staff are seeking better wages, benefits and job security.
Classes are continuing after 10,000 full-time support staff walked off the job at colleges across Ontario on Thursday morning, but post-secondary institutions are warning of reduced or suspended services amid the strike.
Here is a look at how the strike will impact students at Ontario’s 24 colleges.
Will classes be able to continue?
Full and part-time professors are not on strike, allowing most classes to continue as planned.
“We don’t anticipate a lot of interruption for most of the students’ learning,” Graham Lloyd, CEO of the College Employer Council (CEC), told CP24 on Thursday morning.
Lloyd noted that courses that are “heavily lab dependent” may see some disruption in the future.
“Lab courses are dependent of support staff technologists, etc. and so those courses, they’ll push the labs out as far as they can, but there will get to a point in several weeks where we have to revisit how we manage those courses and those programs,” he added.
What jobs do striking support staff do?
Full-time college support staff, which are represented by the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), work in disability services, financial aid offices, employment and IT services, food services, and are employed as co-op placement coordinators, library technologists, student success coordinators, among other positions.
How will services be impacted on campus?
Operations at the registrar and student services offices, as well as financial aid offices, may be impacted by the strike, some schools note. Tutoring centres at some schools may also be forced to close.
“Colleges will do everything they can to minimize the impact of a strike on students. Student support services may be impacted by the strike – colleges will communicate to their college community about any impacts the strike will have on services,” the CEC said on its website.
Will daycare centres be closed?
Some schools have reported that daycare centres, including the 14 operated by George Brown College in Toronto, will be closed amid the strike.
Will libraries stay open?
While many schools say libraries will be open, some note there will be reduced hours and physical books will not be circulated.
Will convocation ceremonies continue as planned?
The CEC’s website indicates that colleges are working on contingency plans for various events, including convocation ceremonies. Updates, the council notes, will be provided to impacted graduates by schools directly.
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