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Classes continue as OPSEU support staff strike begins

/ 91X FM CJLX
Lindsey Harren
Sep 11, 2025 | 6:37 AM


Classes continue as OPSEU support staff strike begins

OPSEU Local 421 President Tim Prewer on the picket line with members. / Lindsey Harren

A strike by over 10,000 support staff has started today across all 24 Ontario Colleges, including Loyalist.

The strike mandate by the Ontario Public Employees Union kicked in at the start of the day, after the union could not reach at deal with the College Employer Council. OPSEU has claimed that the CEC “walked away” from the negotiation table after failing to respond since 4 p.m. yesterday afternoon.

91X spoke with Local OPSEU 421 President Tim Prewer at Loyalist today.

Loyalist College has 159 support-staff currently. They had 200 members at the start of the year.

Local OPSEU 420 and 421, which represents Loyalist College full-time faculty and support staff, continues to state that the combination of underfunding by the Ford Government, cuts to international student numbers, and major infrastructure projects at Loyalist have led to a tipping point.

The College Employer Council issued a statement last night, noting that OPSEU’s demands are not financially viable. The CEC’s final proposal before the strike deadline included more than $145 million dollars in wage and benefit improvements. The CEC adds that it included a 2 per cent wage increase every year of the contract, along with enhanced health care, severance, and on-call and shift premium rates.

OPSEU has posted a fact sheet on its website today, adding that it is not true that the support staff demands would bankrupt colleges.

Loyalist College has issued a statement on social media, advising that all campuses remain open and classes continues as scheduled. Loyalist is encouraging people to allow extra time to get to campus. Due to the strike, all Loyalist library services have been temporarily suspended. However, the library remains open as a study space.

91X has received a media statement from Loyalist College, which is as follows.

“As of today, Sept. 11, Full-Time Support Staff across Ontario colleges are on strike. Loyalist College remains open. Academic scheduling, classes and student services are continuing, and we remain committed to supporting our students throughout this time. More information can be found on our website. We respect the collective bargaining process and will continue to share information relevant to our community as it becomes available. Members of the public should expect delays when accessing campus during this time.  Questions about the bargaining process should be directed to the College Employer Council (CEC), which represents all 24 Ontario colleges in these negotiations. Bargaining is centrally managed by CEC, and we hope they will reach an agreement that is fair for all parties.”

 

The office for Bay of Quinte MPP Tyler Allsopp, has said that he will not be commenting at this time.

 

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