The CUPE 4600 executive board and staff are proud to stand in solidarity with the Association of Teaching Professors of the University of Ottawa (ATPUO). Many Contract Instructors at Carleton are also members of ATPUO, and we are united in our fight for fairer working conditions for all education workers in the post-secondary sector.
ATPUO has been bargaining in good faith with the employer for five months in an effort to make gains on:
- Job Security: Equitable hiring practices, predictable teaching loads, and opportunities for career development and advancement.
- Fair Pay: Compensation that is equitable with other teaching professionals and that reflects all of the work performed by Teaching Professors.
- Quality of Education and Institutional Support: Strong working conditions and academic freedom to allow Teaching Professors to focus on pedagogy and fostering critical thinking.
- Recognition, Inclusion, and Collegiality: To be valued and represented within decision-making bodies such as senate.
- Equity and Faculty Unity: Equity in salary and working conditions for all education professionals and uniting the bargaining units under one unit.
These are reasonable asks and yet, the employer has refused to engage in respectful negotiations. 60% of classes at the University of Ottawa are taught by ATPUO members. The working conditions of these members directly impact the learning conditions of thousands of students.
At CUPE 4600, we know the power of collective action. Three years ago CUPE 4600 had its first multi-day strike and through job action Contract Instructors were successful in securing intellectual property rights that the University had previously denied. Since 2014, Contract Instructors have also held two seats on the Carleton University Senate, while Teaching Professors have had their demands for fair representation on the University of Ottawa’s governing bodies denied.
Across the country, public sector education is under attack, from pre-k to post-secondary. Decades of chronic underfunding from provincial and federal governments have forced universities to make drastic cuts that have degraded services, increased classroom sizes, and left workers making poverty level wages. We must stand together, from early childhood education workers who have just had their wages frozen by Doug Ford’s provincial government, to the five k-12 unions currently in bargaining with the province, to Teaching Professors at the University of Ottawa, who deserve the respect and compensation that comes with the hours of work, dedication, and care they all put into their classes.
We encourage all CUPE 4600 members to support ATPUO by joining them on their six picket line locations along Laurier Ave, Waller Street, and King Edward Ave or by sending a letter to the University of Ottawa’s Board of Governors to share your concerns about the lack of good-faith negotiations toward a fair agreement.