Jamieson Wang, Howl Staff
By now, most students should be aware of the impending threat of a TA strike. CUPE 3902 Unit 1, a division of the larger trade union, represents over 4000 teaching assistants and has been fighting for a new contract since July last year. The University’s administration has not been very cooperative with the groups requests, resulting in the setting of a strike deadline of February 24th.
This video made by the Ontario Public Interest Research Group, OPRIG briefly explains the situation and shows an example of the array of undergraduate students who support CUPE 3902. The bargaining proposals include appeals for: smaller class sizes, adequate compensation in accordance to inflation, and better funding for graduate students. All these requests would be highly beneficial not just to the members of CUPE 3902 but also to undergraduate students.
One of the major concerns to undergrad students would be that of increasing tutorial sizes. Currently, 24% of tutorials have more than 50 students. With some lectures having close to 2000 students, tutorials are the only source of that ‘teacher-student’ relationship that is vital to an effective education.
This statement on the CUPE 3902 website displays just how serious the situation could get: “While we still hope to avoid a strike, we remain in full strike-mobilization mode. If February 24th arrives and we still don’t have a contract, make no mistake: we will be ready.” As it has already been shown, during the rally that took place on February 17th, there is ample support for the movement and a large possibility that a strike could severely interfere with the academic processes that would affect all U of T students.
If you were one of the enthusiastic students who took part in the rally, great! If you missed that chance, there are still other ways in which you can get involved. First off, it’s important to stay informed about the status of the situation; check the union’s official website, follow the latest news on twitter, and visit the official Facebook Page and Facebook Group. If you’d like to get even more involved, send an email to undergradsfor3902@gmail.com to find out how.
The results of this dispute will likely have effects on the majority of the 70,000 U of T students on all three campuses, take initiative to protect and improve your education! Join the effort and support CUPE 3902!
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