Ontario provincial government moves to enact law to end college teacher strike

The Ontario government has decided to enact a new law to end the month-long strike by some 12,000 college teachers who are demanding better wages and more full-time positions.

"Under the proposed legislation that we're introducing today (Thursday), all outstanding issues would be referred to binding mediation-arbitration," Premier Kathleen Wynne told reporters.

Wynne met both the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), which represents the teachers, and the College Employer Council (CEC) on Thursday after union members overwhelmingly voted against contract offers.

"I asked them to work together to find a path forward that would see students return to class by Monday," Wynne said in a news release, the CBC reported.

"That's why we are immediately tabling legislation that would end the dispute and return Ontario college students to the classroom where they belong."

Wynne during her meeting with both sides gave them a 5pm deadline to reach an agreement, which they missed.

The strike that began on Oct 16 in province's 24 public colleges has impacted more than 300,000 students. The colleges host a large number of international students who are now fearing financial losses from the prospect of a term loss.

A total of 12,000 full-time and partial-load instructors those who teach anywhere from seven to 12 hours a week hit the picket lines at 24 college campuses demanding 50-percent full-time positions and better wages.

Meanwhile, the College Employer Council said the union’s demands will cost $250 million and would lead to the loss of thousands of contract positions.

It also argued that half of all teaching hours are covered by full-time professors and that its final offer to the union gives preference to full-time hiring.

The Council also said, "depending on how it was calculated, full-time faculty represent about one-third of all teachers strictly by headcount, and by teaching hours they represent about 50 percent.