Georgian College students will be in class up until Christmas.
This is the latest update from college officials as the Ontario faculty strike stretches into its fourth week. Officials say the fall semester will run until December 22nd and could push into January if the strike lasts any longer. That would mean students would return to class just over a week later.
A provincial mediator has been called in to move negotiations along between the OPSEU faculty union and the College Employer Council. The council has asked union officials to suspend the strike while negotiations are ongoing so students can return to school. Council officials also asked the union to set up polling stations in colleges across Ontario so individual faculty members can vote on the offer put forward. Union officials have turned down both of these requests. The Ontario Labour Relations Board has now stepped in and ordered all faculty to vote by ballot on the deal offered by the CEC. The vote will run from November 14th to November 16th.
Georgian College officials say no student has ever lost their academic year because of a strike. A final plan to make up for lost class time should be released by college officials once the strike is over. You can find more details on the Georgian College site.
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Georgian College officials respond to provincial faculty strike