College faculty begin their “forced vote” on a contract offer on Tuesday, as their strike — now in its fifth week — becomes the longest job action in their history. At 29 days so far, it is longer than the three previous strikes — in 1984, job action lasted 24 days, in 1989 it went on for 28, and in 2016, 18 days. The 1984 strike ended with back-to-work legislation, and for the subsequent two, both sides agreed to mediation or arbitration. Ontario college students lent support to striking faculty members Oct. 25 at a rally outside the province’s advanced education ministry in Toronto. No faculty strike has ever lasted this long and what’s happened in the past is not necessarily an accurate predictor of what will happen in the future.”

Source: thestar November 13, 2017 20:26 UTC