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2d ago

Ontario College Support Staff Go on Strike After Contract Talks Miss Deadline

Union leaders cite job security concerns tied to steep international-enrollment losses.

JP Hornick, President of OPSEU/SEFPO, stands with supporters outside of Centennial College in Toronto on Wednesday July 9, 2025.
People leave Sheridan College's Hazel McCallion Campus in Mississauga, Ont., on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
Unionized college workers and supporters carry union flags and signs at a rally Wednesday, Sept. 3 outside Loyalist College. Full-time college support staff began a strike early Thursday, Sept. 11.
Students at the Algonquin College, Woodroffe campus in a file photo.

Overview

  • About 10,000 full-time support staff at Ontario’s 24 public colleges began a legal strike at 12:01 a.m. Thursday after no deal was reached.
  • Bargaining continued up to the deadline following months of talks without agreement on a new contract.
  • OPSEU says the dispute centers on protecting jobs after widespread cuts, while also seeking improvements to wages and benefits.
  • The College Employer Council calls the union’s proposals unaffordable, citing a potential cost of more than $900 million, a figure the union disputes.
  • Colleges report deep revenue strains tied to a sharp drop in international students, with the union pointing to thousands of layoffs and hundreds of suspended programs since last year.