At Home: York University Votes for Strike
Contract faculty, teaching assistants, graduate assistants and research assistants are all included in the 80% of CUPE local 3903 that voted to go on strike at York University. Over 40% of the workforce cast ballots, which was the largest turn-out in ten years, reports the Canadian Labour Reporter. These people represent over half of the teaching staff at the university, but only 8% of its budget according to the union.
Interestingly, in addition to the demands for increased job security and funding for graduate students, there was also a call to reduce the tuition fees for international students at the university.
Around the Globe:can’t Graduate? Go to the U of West Scotland!
In an attempt to become more competitive in the global post-secondary marketplace, the University of West Scotland is proposing a plan whereby international students who are unable to graduate even after attending all of the universities support and development opportunities would be able have their fees refunded. The PIE News, which is reporting this story, also reports that the Vice President of the National Union of Students in Scotland has declared their concerns with the plan, wanting to make sure that any such ideas are also “ensuring we reject any notions of marketisation or seeing students as customers of a product”
