University of Lethbridge faculty vote in favour of strike action

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Members of the University of Lethbridge Faculty Association (ULFA) have voted overwhelmingly in favour of going on strike.

The vote for strike action that took place this week saw over 90 per cent of votes cast in favour of taking strike action, with more than 80 per cent of members casting a ballot. Joy Morris, with the ULFA said they are unable to provide any information on the vote until Monday, stating they cannot confirm or deny any reports until then. The association told their members informally of the result Friday night.

Multiple people have confirmed to Postmedia the vote was for strike action. One member said they were surprised how one-sided the vote was but said it gives a strong mandate to union leaders and sends a strong message to the university.

Morris said the bargaining teams met twice this week and are scheduled to meet on Monday.

“We remain optimistic that the remaining issues can be resolved through negotiations,” said Morris.

The earliest a strike could take place is Thursday.

The faculty association and university are currently involved in collective bargaining agreements with the faculty association looking to resolve issues around pay and a number of other concerns. Statements previously issued by ULFA have said they do not want to go on strike if it can be avoided.

The University of Lethbridge did not respond to requests for comment Saturday afternoon.

A notice posted to the school’s website Feb. 3 shows the university filed a bad faith negotiations complaint against ULFA. The claim states the employer has been willing to engage in conversations and says the two sides were one per cent away on salary proposals when the faculty association left the bargaining table.

“The university bargaining team has been willing to engage in substantive discussions with the very clear intent of avoiding a labour disruption. We recognize that a ULFA strike will threaten the academic semester and the education of University of Lethbridge students,” reads the online statement. “A strike of any duration will have a negative impact on our culture, community, and the livelihoods of many not associated with the Faculty Association.”

NDP Advanced Education critic David Eggen and Lethbridge West MLA Shannon Phillips issued a statement Friday evening saying the strike vote is a byproduct of funding cuts to post-secondary institutions from the provincial government.

“The lack of support and deep budget cuts to this school from the UCP will cause major disruption for Lethbridge residents and students,” said Eggen and Phillips.

The operating expenses for the Ministry of Advanced Education in the provincial 2021-24 fiscal plan shows the government budgeted $5.046-billion in expenses for post-secondary institution operations in 2019-20. In 2021-22 that the government estimated expenses at $4.608 billion. The budget shows that the amount of post-secondary schools budgets will come from own-source funding — funding outside of the province — is expected to increase from 47 per cent in 2019-20 to 52 per cent by 2023-24.

The province did not respond to requests for comment Saturday but Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides has previously stated his government has worked hard to bring spending in line with other provinces.

The first faculty strike in Alberta’s history took place last month at Edmonton’s Concordia University, where faculty took to the picket line at the start of the winter semester. They ratified a tentative agreement with the university on Jan. 15.

Meanwhile, Mount Royal University faculty members are also currently locked in negotiations with the university over a new collective bargaining agreement.

dshort@postmedia.com

— With files from Jason Herring