President Aidan Power and co-VP-Internal Ariel Rabkin-Meyer attended the 62nd annual CUPE Ontario Convention from May 26th to 30th, 2026. We met other academic locals representing teaching assistants and contract instructors including CUPE 2626 at the University of Ottawa, CUPE 3902 at the University of Toronto, CUPE 3903 at York University, CUPE 3908 at Trent University, and CUPE 4207 at Brock University. It was exciting to be able to share our recent wins on AI, academic freedom, and standardized online job postings with the other academic locals and hear from them about their ongoing efforts to combat austerity at their institutions. Moreover, it was heartening to hear of the successes of other locals in the sector in securing bargaining wins, in part through impressively organized strike practices. We are hopeful that the connections we made with these locals will be invaluable in strengthening our two units this coming academic year.
We supported resolution number 15 put forward by CUPE 2424 at Carleton calling for adequate funding and policies to support post-secondary institutions in Ontario. This was the only post-secondary specific resolution, which was disappointing, but further demonstrates the need of academic locals across the province to be coordinating far in advance of the Convention. Another resolution we supported was number 56 put forward by CUPE 2626 at uOttawa condemning the war on Iran and standing in “solidarity with the working class and people of Iran and supporting their right to freedom, equality, and self-determination without state repression or foreign interference.” There was also emphasis on preparing for the upcoming 2026 municipal and school board elections, with CUPE Ontario supporting locals who are seeking to endorse or run candidates. Given that CUPE 4600 has not traditionally endorsed candidates in elections, it is unclear at this time if or how we would engage this coming Fall.
There were no resolutions passed regarding AI, however paragraph 27 of the Action Plan states that “We must fiercely bargain protections against algorithmic management to ensure that any technological shifts benefit workers and the public good” and an amendment to the Plan was made that states we will “combat the corporate weaponization of Artificial Intelligence by demanding strict legislative protections against both the algorithmic harms and the massive ecological drain of AI infrastructure.”
Furthermore, as delegates noted multiple times on the floor, there were few resolutions put on the floor which directly address climate change. Resolution 21, which called on CUPE Ontario to publicly oppose Canada Pension Plan’s Investment Board’s investments in the fossil fuel industry, was carried. Resolution 2, which advocated for a “New Deal for Municipalities,” including “predictable, long-term funding for infrastructure, housing, transit, public health, and climate resilience,” was not voted on due to time.
We attended a picket line in support of developmental service workers represented by OPSEU Local 511 at Surrey Place and the following day also attended the Ontario Health Coalition Rally at Queen’s Park. Aidan also attended the International Solidarity Forum hosted by Avi Lewis, where panelists spoke on the situations in Cuba, Iran, and Sudan.
The over 900 voting delegates elected former secretary-treasurer Yolanda McClean as the new President, replacing the outgoing Fred Hahn, and Dawn Bellerose as the new secretary-treasurer. We supported fellow academic sector worker Jeff Cornelissen in his run for member-at-large, however he finished 7th out of a long list of candidates for 6 positions.
It is unclear what mechanisms of accountability are in place to ensure that resolutions passed at this convention will be honoured into the future, as several delegates brought up past resolutions that were not being honoured, particularly around accessibility and inclusivity. While these concerns were addressed positively in the moment by the chair, affirming the provincial organization’s commitment to protecting the rights and equity of its delegates, it is unclear what, if any, concrete action will be taken to ensure these are not overlooked in the future.
We were disappointed in the lack of time management for voting which disenfranchised delegates who were spending time and money to attend the convention in downtown Toronto. Resolutions that we were looking forward to debating and voting on that did not hit the floor before losing quorum on Saturday morning (after only 1.5 hours) included an emergency resolution in support of the OPSEU Worth Fighting For campaign; resolution 2 listed above; resolutions 46 & 50 defending freedom of expression, civic engagement, and the right to protest; and resolution 55 supporting the Arms Embargo Now campaign and declaring “arms shipments to Israel to be ‘hot cargo,’ not to be touched by workers of conscience.” Furthermore, it is only this year that a constitutional amendment was passed creating an accountability measure for reporting on resolutions which are not voted on at convention. The Provincial executive board votes on these unresolved resolutions and they are now required to report on the outcome of their votes by the end of the year. We discussed this with delegates who had attended previous conventions, and they reported that time management for voting has been an ongoing issue which the Provincial Executive has failed to address. While each sector had unread resolutions, it was clear based on the response of delegates that there are several sectors which are continually overlooked, including the university sector.
As one of the larger academic locals in the province, it is vital that we continue to send delegates to push for change, accountability, and further respect for our sector from the Provincial and National union bodies.