Ontario College Students Fight Back
Donation protected
Support the independent student movement!
We are college students who proudly support our teachers, and working people everywhere.
We know that we will be entering this tough job market, and so we recognize that the struggle for quality of education and fairness at work directly affects us!
College student organizations are highly dependent on keeping the favour of college aministrators, and so have struck a pose of neutrality, or even acted against the faculty. We are independent, and act only from our beliefs, and thoughts of a better world.
Our next action is a short walkout on Dec 15. Please read about our goals and demands for this action below.
To be successful we need money for:
- banner for each shcool
- megaphone for each school
- flyer printing and modest graphic design
- paid ads on social media
- a modest stipend for hard working students doing organizing work at their schools
With $500-1000 dollars we can get started. More would let us do more, like more online ads, media training and other capacity building for our spokespeople at each school, and some money for the grassroots students doing hard the on the ground work of mobilizing students.
If this action is successful we will seek to build a larger movement of independent students for justice and fairness with chapters at all the colleges.
Please help us fight for fairness for students, faculty, and all people!
---------------------------------------
Text of petition [found here]
This system needs to change.
During the Strike, the colleges saved tens of millions of dollars in unpaid faculty wages. Now, after the strike, the colleges have shortened many programs, and again are saving money normally spent on faculty. Where is this money going?
If you or I had kept this money, we would be charged with theft! Well, it’s time to get angry and do something about it. We have been lied to, taken advantage of, had others decide what is best for us, had our sense of choice ripped out of our hands, and finally, we have watched the College Employer Council get a clean slate after walking away with our money! You signed a contract with your respected college, and they have breached that contract. Now you are forced to suffer for their greed.
The Liberal government has told the schools to give up too $500 to students who qualify for hardship during the strike. We all had to pay rent, and pay for food and daycare, and transportation – AND we lost part of our education. Did any student not have a hardship?
Now the schools are trying to weasel out of paying us this money by making it complicated and difficult to prove that you had hardship during the strike.
Similarly, the schools are trying to avoid the other punishment given to them by the Ontario government. They were told to let students withdraw from the Sept-Dec semester if they choose to. But again, the schools are playing games! They are telling students that they can not withdraw from just one or two classes but must withdraw from all classes if they want to get money back. Also, they are telling people that if they withdraw they cannot come back to school for one year. This has devastating consequences for domestic and international students alike!
The schools saved lots of money approximately 135 Million in the strike and the government has told them to pay that money to students – and now the schools are trying to avoid paying off the students!
We, Ontario Students United, were not brought to the table nor included in any conversations when the CEC extended the semester. We will lose future earning over the holidays because of the extended school year, yet the refund requirements have left out wages lost. Many students rely on that income to get by over the next three months to make ends meet. International students were promised the opportunity to work during the strike period, only to discover that this would jeopardize their visa statuses. Then, they were asked to come up with their full tuition for the Winter 2018 semester by December 30th! We can’t be in classes for January if we don’t have a roof over our heads. Furthermore, most of us won't qualify for the refund rebate as it only covers costs that occurred over the strike period.
This refund is a political Scam. It’s time to join the movement and fight for your rights. Let the CEC and the Ontario Liberal Government know that we, the domestic and international students of Ontario are fed up. Let’s stand together and fight for our right to an education that we have already paid for!
We urge all students across the province to join us on December 15, 2017, @ noon and walk out of class and make our voices heard and get our reasonable demands met! (Facebook event link here; link to page with schools walkout locations; We will meet in the main parking lot of each school)
We, the 535, 000 college students of Ontario demand:
Demand #1 of Dec 15 action: $500 for everyone no strings attached!
We demand that Premier Kathleen Wynne, Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Development, Deputy Premier Deborah Matthews, the College Employer Council, and Presidents of the 24 Ontario Colleges act collectively to begin the process of returning the relief fund into the student’s pockets where it belongs. We demand that all students are given the refund without an application process.
Demand #2 of Dec 15 action: withdraw with our full refund with no strings attached!
We demand that all funds be returned with no strings attached that include all Services Fees, Facility Fees, Parking Fees and any others fees not mentioned.
Demand #3 Fairness for International Students!
We demand that international students be treated fairly. The schools must cease intimidation of international students to prevent them from withdrawing from courses by threatening their visas. Likewise, since international students lost significant sums of money due to the strike, and were not allowed to work hours that could recoup said amounts of money, the schools must provide a fair and staggered process by which international students can pay for their Winter 2018 semester.
Demand #4 High-Quality Education and Respect for our Teachers!
To hide their mistakes the schools have shortened the semester, and in some cases cut out large parts of the semester (like practical placements). They are stealing our education from us – and saving money we paid them while they do it! At La Cite 4 faculty were suspended for opposing these unfair plans that negatively impact the quality of our education. We demand that students receive the high-quality education we pay for and that our teachers are supported in delivering this – not suspended from work. Reinstate the suspended teachers, and give teachers the academic freedom they need to help us learn. [Potential demand: Negotiate fair workloads for teachers who have returned to work facing significantly extended hours of work, but are not being compensated for such]
Demand #5 Schools Should Not Profit from the Strike!
If the schools make a profit from the strike, they will have more strikes. We demand that all saved money go back to students, or to the education that we pay for.
Fairness for Students and Workers. The schools are not businesses. They belong to the people of Ontario.
Demand #6 We Demand the Protection of Faculty Members and that the College Employer Council stop the Exploitation of all employees!
The big issues for faculty that faculty are seeing right now is regarding our Standard Workload Formula document and the Back to Work protocol that the College Employer Council has put in place. Quite simply, when they were legislated back to work, they went back to teach under the previous collective agreement. In that CA, it states quite expressly that if there is any change to a faculty member's contract (even a tiny one), then the manager must issue a new SWF (Standard Workload Formula document). Well, on Monday before our faculty started classes, some managers said they would do that. 24 hours later, there were memos sent out in all 24 colleges, and we were told that it wouldn't happen. The VP Academic at Centennial informed us that this was because the CEC had issued an order saying that the letter sent out to all faculty with new dates would serve as an SWF! This is illegal. It is doubly so because they are now working double or sometimes triple the time (i.e. massive amounts of overtime) and we are working for free. Once again, this is standard CEC bully tactics, but also, once again, who gets rich?
Demand #7 We Demand the Disband of the College Employer Council.
We want the monopoly of the administration to come to an end! We propose a new Council to be made up of 1/3 Student Body, 1/3 Faculty and lastly 1/3 Administration Personal.
Also, students can sign up for the class action lawsuit at
https://charneyclassaction.com/colleges-strike/
http://collegefeesclassaction.com/
http://collegefeesclassaction.com/faq/
Furthermore, Check out our pages for updates
https://www.facebook.com/StudentsForFacultyFairness/
https://www.facebook.com/CentennialCollegeStudentsForFaculty/
We are college students who proudly support our teachers, and working people everywhere.
We know that we will be entering this tough job market, and so we recognize that the struggle for quality of education and fairness at work directly affects us!
College student organizations are highly dependent on keeping the favour of college aministrators, and so have struck a pose of neutrality, or even acted against the faculty. We are independent, and act only from our beliefs, and thoughts of a better world.
Our next action is a short walkout on Dec 15. Please read about our goals and demands for this action below.
To be successful we need money for:
- banner for each shcool
- megaphone for each school
- flyer printing and modest graphic design
- paid ads on social media
- a modest stipend for hard working students doing organizing work at their schools
With $500-1000 dollars we can get started. More would let us do more, like more online ads, media training and other capacity building for our spokespeople at each school, and some money for the grassroots students doing hard the on the ground work of mobilizing students.
If this action is successful we will seek to build a larger movement of independent students for justice and fairness with chapters at all the colleges.
Please help us fight for fairness for students, faculty, and all people!
---------------------------------------
Text of petition [found here]
This system needs to change.
During the Strike, the colleges saved tens of millions of dollars in unpaid faculty wages. Now, after the strike, the colleges have shortened many programs, and again are saving money normally spent on faculty. Where is this money going?
If you or I had kept this money, we would be charged with theft! Well, it’s time to get angry and do something about it. We have been lied to, taken advantage of, had others decide what is best for us, had our sense of choice ripped out of our hands, and finally, we have watched the College Employer Council get a clean slate after walking away with our money! You signed a contract with your respected college, and they have breached that contract. Now you are forced to suffer for their greed.
The Liberal government has told the schools to give up too $500 to students who qualify for hardship during the strike. We all had to pay rent, and pay for food and daycare, and transportation – AND we lost part of our education. Did any student not have a hardship?
Now the schools are trying to weasel out of paying us this money by making it complicated and difficult to prove that you had hardship during the strike.
Similarly, the schools are trying to avoid the other punishment given to them by the Ontario government. They were told to let students withdraw from the Sept-Dec semester if they choose to. But again, the schools are playing games! They are telling students that they can not withdraw from just one or two classes but must withdraw from all classes if they want to get money back. Also, they are telling people that if they withdraw they cannot come back to school for one year. This has devastating consequences for domestic and international students alike!
The schools saved lots of money approximately 135 Million in the strike and the government has told them to pay that money to students – and now the schools are trying to avoid paying off the students!
We, Ontario Students United, were not brought to the table nor included in any conversations when the CEC extended the semester. We will lose future earning over the holidays because of the extended school year, yet the refund requirements have left out wages lost. Many students rely on that income to get by over the next three months to make ends meet. International students were promised the opportunity to work during the strike period, only to discover that this would jeopardize their visa statuses. Then, they were asked to come up with their full tuition for the Winter 2018 semester by December 30th! We can’t be in classes for January if we don’t have a roof over our heads. Furthermore, most of us won't qualify for the refund rebate as it only covers costs that occurred over the strike period.
This refund is a political Scam. It’s time to join the movement and fight for your rights. Let the CEC and the Ontario Liberal Government know that we, the domestic and international students of Ontario are fed up. Let’s stand together and fight for our right to an education that we have already paid for!
We urge all students across the province to join us on December 15, 2017, @ noon and walk out of class and make our voices heard and get our reasonable demands met! (Facebook event link here; link to page with schools walkout locations; We will meet in the main parking lot of each school)
We, the 535, 000 college students of Ontario demand:
Demand #1 of Dec 15 action: $500 for everyone no strings attached!
We demand that Premier Kathleen Wynne, Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Development, Deputy Premier Deborah Matthews, the College Employer Council, and Presidents of the 24 Ontario Colleges act collectively to begin the process of returning the relief fund into the student’s pockets where it belongs. We demand that all students are given the refund without an application process.
Demand #2 of Dec 15 action: withdraw with our full refund with no strings attached!
We demand that all funds be returned with no strings attached that include all Services Fees, Facility Fees, Parking Fees and any others fees not mentioned.
Demand #3 Fairness for International Students!
We demand that international students be treated fairly. The schools must cease intimidation of international students to prevent them from withdrawing from courses by threatening their visas. Likewise, since international students lost significant sums of money due to the strike, and were not allowed to work hours that could recoup said amounts of money, the schools must provide a fair and staggered process by which international students can pay for their Winter 2018 semester.
Demand #4 High-Quality Education and Respect for our Teachers!
To hide their mistakes the schools have shortened the semester, and in some cases cut out large parts of the semester (like practical placements). They are stealing our education from us – and saving money we paid them while they do it! At La Cite 4 faculty were suspended for opposing these unfair plans that negatively impact the quality of our education. We demand that students receive the high-quality education we pay for and that our teachers are supported in delivering this – not suspended from work. Reinstate the suspended teachers, and give teachers the academic freedom they need to help us learn. [Potential demand: Negotiate fair workloads for teachers who have returned to work facing significantly extended hours of work, but are not being compensated for such]
Demand #5 Schools Should Not Profit from the Strike!
If the schools make a profit from the strike, they will have more strikes. We demand that all saved money go back to students, or to the education that we pay for.
Fairness for Students and Workers. The schools are not businesses. They belong to the people of Ontario.
Demand #6 We Demand the Protection of Faculty Members and that the College Employer Council stop the Exploitation of all employees!
The big issues for faculty that faculty are seeing right now is regarding our Standard Workload Formula document and the Back to Work protocol that the College Employer Council has put in place. Quite simply, when they were legislated back to work, they went back to teach under the previous collective agreement. In that CA, it states quite expressly that if there is any change to a faculty member's contract (even a tiny one), then the manager must issue a new SWF (Standard Workload Formula document). Well, on Monday before our faculty started classes, some managers said they would do that. 24 hours later, there were memos sent out in all 24 colleges, and we were told that it wouldn't happen. The VP Academic at Centennial informed us that this was because the CEC had issued an order saying that the letter sent out to all faculty with new dates would serve as an SWF! This is illegal. It is doubly so because they are now working double or sometimes triple the time (i.e. massive amounts of overtime) and we are working for free. Once again, this is standard CEC bully tactics, but also, once again, who gets rich?
Demand #7 We Demand the Disband of the College Employer Council.
We want the monopoly of the administration to come to an end! We propose a new Council to be made up of 1/3 Student Body, 1/3 Faculty and lastly 1/3 Administration Personal.
Also, students can sign up for the class action lawsuit at
https://charneyclassaction.com/colleges-strike/
http://collegefeesclassaction.com/
http://collegefeesclassaction.com/faq/
Furthermore, Check out our pages for updates
https://www.facebook.com/StudentsForFacultyFairness/
https://www.facebook.com/CentennialCollegeStudentsForFaculty/
Organizer
James Fauvelle
Organizer
North York, ON
