College Employer Council (CEC): OPSEU rejects Ontario colleges' improved offer and arbitration

TORONTO, Sept. 11, 2025 /CNW/ - On the eve of a declared strike, the College Employer Council (CEC) and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) have failed to reach a renewal collective agreement. Full-time support staff at Ontario colleges are now in a position to strike.

The CEC enhanced its offer to the union bargaining team on September 9, while the union insisted on its "poison pill" demands that make a deal impossible. At a time when college enrollments and revenues are down by as much as 50 per cent, OPSEU continues to insist on demands that are fiscally impossible.

"A complete ban on campus closures, college mergers and staff reductions could force colleges into bankruptcy," said CEC's CEO Graham Lloyd. "CEC has repeatedly advised OPSEU that these types of demands simply can never be agreed to. They are more about broader political campaigns than the benefits we have proposed at the table for their members."

The CEC's final proposal built on a previous offer of more than $145 million of wage and benefit improvements to the collective agreement. The additions included:

• Enhanced vision and hearing benefits equal to those of academic staff
• Improvements to job security regarding new technology
• Introduced paid leave for domestic and sexual violence

These are in addition to the proposals CEC previously offered:

1. Wage increases of 2 per cent in each year of the contract
2. Increased on-call premiums by 75 per cent
3. Increased shift premiums by 67 and 75 per cent
4. Enhanced employment stability committee rights
5. Enhanced vacation carryover rights
6. Increased recall rights by 50 per cent (to 18 months)
7. Severance enhancements increased by 50 per cent for employees laid off due to the current financial crisis facing the system
8. Guaranteed employee rights to disconnect from work
9. Removal of CEC proposals that the union communicated as concessionary

"Our offer remains on the table for the union to consider," said Lloyd. "We remain far apart on a number of important issues and we strongly encourage the union to agree to mediation/arbitration to help us reach an agreement."

CEC once again urges OPSEU to accept interest arbitration to avoid any disruption in student learning. Arbitration worked for the Academic union earlier this year. It can work now for support staff and ensure no disruption to student learning.

CEC proposals are available at collegeemployercouncil.ca

About the CEC
The College Employer Council is the government mandated bargaining agent for the 24 Ontario publicly funded colleges in negotiating collective agreements with unionized staff. In addition, the CEC is the policyholder for group benefits in the sector. It also provides a variety of services for the college system such as advice and guidance on human resources issues, collective agreement administration, administrative compensation, and research.

SOURCE College Employer Council

For further information or media inquiries, contact: Bill Steinburg, Interim Director of Communications, [email protected], 437- 595-9307; Graham Lloyd, CEO, [email protected], 416-902-9543