4 000 student workers enter collective bargaining with uOttawa

It’s bargaining season for the members of CUPE 2626, the union of student workers at the University of Ottawa. On Wednesday, June 8, CUPE 2626 has filed a letter of intent to begin a bargaining round to renew their collective agreement with the university.

With over 4 000 student workers, the members of CUPE 2626 represent the largest workforce on campus. Together, they make uOttawa work. They help thousands of students in classrooms, labs and offices; they conduct leading-edge research; they mark innumerable copies of exams and assignments.

During the last round of collective bargaining in 2014, the student workers have seen improvements in their work conditions, including salaries, protection against tuition fee hikes, and access to professional and academic. It is now time to tackle the real issue student workers are facing: precarious work.

Fighting precarious work

Part-time temporary contracts, uncertainty regarding future employment as a student worker, ever increasing tuition fees, vulnerability to workplace harassment : student workers at the University of Ottawa are confronted to precarious job conditions. The current round of collective bargaining offers them an opportunity to fight insecurity and financial instability with measures such as:

• Wage increase, in particular for lower-wage jobs;
• Improved job security;
• Better protection against tuition fee hikes;
• Etc.