Strike begins at U of M after faculty union, university fail to agree on new contract
CBC
Faculty at the University of Manitoba hit the picket lines Tuesday morning after contract negotiations reached an impasse.
About two dozen people were at the main entrance of the university on Chancellor Matheson Road just before 8 a.m., blocking traffic intermittently.
The University of Manitoba Faculty Association, the union for more than 1,000 U of M staff, has been fighting for higher wages for its members, arguing that low wages are causing persistent retention and recruitment problems.
The university ranks second to last out of the 15 research-based institutions in terms of salary.
U of M president Michael Benarroch said he thought the university made a strong offer, which included changes to the salary structure to help address retention and recruitment issues.
Overall, the deal would have led to a 9.5 per cent salary increase over two years of the contract for UMFA members, with about 5.9 per cent new money and the rest of the increases already included in the current collective agreement, he said.
"But you know, I have a feeling at the end of the day, we just really didn't put enough —or we didn't have enough — money to be able to put on the table to convince UMFA that this was what they needed at the current time," he said.
This is the second strike by University of Manitoba faculty in five years, with the last strike happening in 2016.
For some students, it's also the second strike they've been through while trying to finish their degree.
Brendan Scott, president of the U of M Students' Union, said Monday that some instructors and professors have taken down online learning materials, leaving students in the lurch.
Uncertainty is causing students a lot of anxiety, he said.
The students' union supports the professors' demands for a wage increase.
Benarroch said he feels terrible for university students and he hopes the university and union can work something out as quickly as possible.
"I want them to know that I know everybody at the U of M is going to try as hard as possible to try and resolve this and in a shorter time."