Vol. CXXXV, No. 19
2 March, 2015
The University of Toronto’s Student Newspaper Since 1880
INSIDE
STRIKE Last-minute deal rejected, 6,000 teaching assistants will take to picket lines Salvatore Basilone and Meerah Haq VARSITY STAFF
Teaching assistants at the University of Toronto are on strike. Hundreds of classes could be suspended indefinitely, and, as of Monday morning, picket lines will surround all three campuses. In a meeting last Friday at Convocation Hall, members of cupe 3902 Unit 1 voted overwhelmingly to reject a last-minute deal that had been presented to them. Unit 1 represents approximately 6,000 teach-
ing assistants and other student academic staff. “They spat in our faces for eight months, and gave us a deal that meant we would continue to lose money, and now are disappointed that we won’t take it,” says Craig Smith, a teaching assistant and outreach co-ordinator on the Strike Committee for Unit 1, referring to university administration. “We are disappointed that while a tentative agreement unanimously approved by the Unit 1 bargaining team was reached late Thursday night, Unit 1 members who attended a meeting Friday afternoon voted not to send the agreement to the full bargaining unit membership
for ratification,” said Angela Hildyard, U of T vice-president, human resources & equity, in a statement on February 27. A tentative agreement had been reached in the early hours of Friday, February 27 after negotiations were extended past the strike deadline. However, the bargaining team is only empowered to present deals for approval to the union membership. Erin Black, cupe 3902 chair, says there were approximately 1,000 members present at the Friday meeting at Convocation Hall. “At least 90
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Student Commons motions pass at Governing Council Building forecasted to open in 2017 Iris Robin
ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR
The Governing Council Chamber echoed with the sound of thunderous applause on Thursday, February 26 when two motions pertaining to the Student Commons project were finally passed. Students whistled loudly in celebration and many rose in standing ovation when the motions were approved. The Student Commons approval process had stalled as Governing Council sought a resolution to the University of Toronto Students’ Union (utsu) fee diversion dispute.
REVISED AGREEMENT The motions passed were the Revised Agreement for the Student Commons and the Report of the Project Planning Committee. The major changes made in the Revised Agreement were related to the Student Commons Management Committee, the body responsible for the management and operations of the building. Under the Revised Agreement, the Management Committee will comprise 14 members. The agreement stipulates that all but one of the voting members must be full-time undergraduate students at the St. George Campus. Seven of the voting members will be appointed by the utsu Board of the Directors, and the remaining six voting members will be
nominated by the utsu executive. The remaining non-voting member will be the facility manager, also appointed by the utsu. “We are pleased that the majority of the Management Committee will now be comprised of students not directly appointed by the utsu Executive,” said Tina Saban and Connor Anear, co-heads of college at Trinity College, in a joint statement. However, they said that they would have preferred that the membership, instead of the Board of Directors, had the chance to elect the students who will sit on the Management Committee. Dalia Hashim, vice-president, external of the Muslim Students’ Association (msa) at U of T, is
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Feature Scattered pieces System’s sexual assault survivors and administrators at a loss for adaquate resources
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Comment Investigating Canada’s Anti-terror bill MALONE MULLIN discusses the new bill’s implications for academia
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Arts & Culture Making waves Toronto’s Wavelength music festival brings new talent
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Science In conversation with James Hamblin The Atlantic’s health editor talks about journalism and digital media
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Sports Blues take on Canada’s best U of T hosts women’s volleyball CIS championship
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