A new three-year collective agreement has been ratified by full-time support staff at Ontario's 24 public colleges.
The Ontario Public Service Employees Union and the College Employer Council reached a tentative deal on October 15, ending five weeks of strikes.
OPSEU members had a five-day ratification vote that concluded on November 4. In total, 7,799 members (75 per cent) voted, with 89 per cent in support of the terms.
The tentative agreement was reached after a weekend-long private mediation session with Mediator William Kaplan.
As part of the agreement, full-time support staff employees will receive wage increases of $1.05/hr, 2 per cent, and 2 per cent over three years; enhanced severance; increased shift and on-call premiums; enhanced vacation carry-over rights; stronger protections related to technological changes and more.
"Support staff play an important role in our colleges, supporting operations and contributing to student success," said Graham Lloyd, CEO of CEC. "We are grateful to have them back to work and that they ratified the new Collective Agreement... We thank Mediator Kaplan for his efforts to help the parties reach a fair agreement that will benefit the employees, students, and college system."
The new collective agreement runs until August 31, 2028.
