UPDATE: BU strike averted as talks continue

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This article was published 04/03/2024 (822 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

UPDATE: The faculty at Brandon University did not go on strike Monday morning after inroads were made towards a new collective bargaining agreement.

Early Monday morning, Grant Hamilton, the director of marketing and communications with the university, e-mailed the Sun saying that Brandon University and the Brandon University Faculty Association are continuing negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement. However, the campus was closed due to the recent blizzard that swept through Brandon and Westman.

Original story as follows:

Brandon University has warned students that they might have to do independent studying and reading if classes were to be suspended due to strike action from the university’s faculty association.

In an update to the news section of the university’s website posted on Saturday, Brandon University (BU) said that it had received notice from the BU Faculty Association of their intent to commence a strike effective today.

“We remain committed to negotiating a new collective agreement that is fair for all, including students, and we are still working to avoid this strike,” the update read.

However, Allison McCulloch, president of the BU Faculty Association, told the Sun that as of 5:30 p.m. on Sunday evening, the union and the university were still at the bargaining table and that good progress had been made. The key priorities the association would like to see in a new collective bargaining agreement include fair compensation, academic freedom, collegial governance and equity, diversity and inclusion and Indigenization, she added.

“The hope is that, after a long session like today, they can reach a deal,” McCulloch said.

With daily negotiations over the past three weeks, the university’s website says university administration has seen good progress from both parties but, although they remained optimistic, they were disappointed in the faculty association’s decision to consider striking.

The post told students that they should prepare for the possibility that classes, labs and other educational activities might be put on hold if the strike were to happen. However, campus facilities will remain accessible, allowing students and non-members of the Brandon University Faculty Association to use most amenities, with the exception of certain facilities requiring faculty oversight, such as labs.

Students were also advised to consult their course syllabi for guidance on independent coursework and readings during any period of class suspension. The university is also negotiating a strike protocol with the faculty association to minimize disruption to critical areas of study, including animal-based research and laboratory maintenance..

The faculty at BU have been without a collective bargaining agreement since the last one expired on March 31 of last year, McCulloch said.

“There’s been a full year of bargaining,” she said. “A number of factors could contribute to that, but more progress should have been made by this point in time.”

The university said it would continue to update the situation through its internal e-mailing system.

The Sun contacted the university on Sunday but did not receive a reply by press time. At the time of writing, no further information had been released to the public, but the Sun will continue to provide updates on its website and in future editions.

» mleybourne@brandonsun.com

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