College strike finally ended by Ontario Legislature
(Queen’s Park) – Ontario’s 500,000 community college students should be back in their classrooms this coming week, after a labour dispute lasting more than five weeks was brought to an end by the Ontario Legislature.
“There are no winners in a college strike like this, but students and their families have definitely been the losers,” said Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott. ”This strike should have never been allowed to drag on this long.”
It is unclear how community colleges, which offer a diverse range of training and education programs, will be able to make up for the lost classroom time.
In an unusual weekend sitting from November 17th to the 19th, the Ontario Legislature sat Friday, Saturday and Sunday in order to pass the required legislation. Mr. Arnott was in attendance at Queen’s Park on each of those days, which unfortunately meant he had to cancel some previous Riding commitments in Wellington-Halton Hills.
Bill 178, An Act to resolve the labour dispute between the College Employer Council and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union was passed into law by the Ontario Legislature on Sunday, November 19th by a vote of 39-18. Mr. Arnott voted in favour of it.
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Ted Arnott, MPP
Phone: 416-325-3880
Email: ted.arnott@pc.ola.org