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Supporters of the union that represents professors, instructors, archivists and librarians at Manitoba’s largest university gathered outside a Winnipeg hotel on Saturday, ahead of the announcement of the province’s next premier.
Protesters said the candidate who is elected the next leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba – and becomes the new premier – must stop interfering in the collective bargaining process between the union and the university.
They met on Saturday afternoon outside the Victoria Inn in west Winnipeg, where the Progressive Conservatives will announce their leadership.
The University of Manitoba Faculty Association, which represents 1,170 people, says its members are on the verge of leaving their jobs due to five years of wage freezes and government interference.
“It is really the government that is preventing the university and us from reaching an agreement that can allow us to recruit and retain excellent faculty and maintain the quality of education needed by Manitoba students,” said Erik Thompson, vice-president of the faculty. association.
The association voted earlier this month to authorize the strike and set a bargaining deadline of October 31 and a strike deadline of November 2.
Retention and recruitment of faculty are long-standing issues at the university, as the administration has imposed salary freezes and below-inflation increases in response to government mandates.
The provincial government introduced a bill to legislate to freeze the wages of public sector employees in 2017. The law was overturned by the courts, but earlier this month the government won its case in appeal of this decision.
U of M staff on average earn the second lowest salary among 15 research universities in Canada, according to the association.
Thompson and the faculty association want the next premier – either Shelly Glover or Heather Stefanson, the two leadership contenders for the party – to focus on running the province and avoid interfering with the university, as they say former prime minister Brian Pallister did it.
“I certainly hope this time it’s an obvious decision for the leader to distance himself from Pallister’s legacy… and a policy of restraint that prevents us from investing in some of our most important institutions.”
Paws off: students supporting UMFA
Saturday’s rally followed that of Friday, in which students showed their loyalty to the teachers’ association by bringing their dogs to legislative ground, telling the government to keep its paws out of the negotiating process.
Dozens of students, staff, faculty and other supporters, along with their furry companions, gathered outside the Legislature with signs bearing messages such as “Stings of PC interference “.
A protester disguised as a cartoon Scooby-Doo dog, while others picked up dog droppings and placed them under a sign that read: “Government interference in UMFA negotiations is a bunch of,” and an arrow pointed towards the collected bags.
The protest was organized by a popular interdisciplinary group called Students Supporting UMFA.
In a letter to Higher Education Minister Wayne Ewasko posted to social media on Friday, the group said they feared that “the ensuing threats of academic disruption will significantly limit the value we can get from our post-secondary education – and to in turn contribute to the labor force.
CBC News requested a comment from the province, but a response was not immediately provided.
A spokesperson for the university said earlier this month that the U of M was continuing its meetings with the faculty association, approaching the negotiating team “with a view to reaching a collective agreement.”
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