Dalhousie University and the Dalhousie Faculty Association have come to a tentative agreement that could end their contract dispute.
A joint statement issued early Tuesday morning said the agreement still must be ratified by DFA membership and the university’s board of governors.
Students should learn more on Tuesday about the date classes will resume.
Information about fall term dates, fall break, deadlines and the exam period will be communicated as soon as possible, the statement said.
CBC News contacted both the DFA and Dalhousie, but the two sides have agreed on a media blackout until later Tuesday.
Lockout began Aug. 20
Dalhousie University locked out members of the faculty association on Aug. 20, and the union began a defensive strike two days later. The DFA represents nearly 1,000 professors, instructors, librarians and professional counsellors at Atlantic Canada’s largest university.
The lockout has meant all classes taught by DFA members could not go ahead. So, while many students arrived on campus in time for the start of classes on Sept. 2, only classes taught by non-DFA members have proceeded.
There are several key issues in the contract dispute, including wages, expanded parental leave benefits and flexible class scheduling policies.
The union has said wages in recent collective agreements have not kept up with inflation, and its wage proposal was to make up for lost ground. The faculty association’s last publicly shared proposal was for increases of 3.75 per cent, 4.75 per cent and 5.75 per cent over three years.
The university has offered two per cent increases for each year of a three-year contract.
Uncertainty for students, parents
The contract dispute has caused uncertainty for students and their families for weeks.
Caroline Hornyak has two children attending Dalhousie, including one in fourth year and one in first year. She said she is feeling relief that the tentative agreement has been reached.
“It’s been difficult watching the kids go through this. We’ve really felt that they were left in limbo and it’s taken an emotional toll on them and on us as parents,” she said in an interview with CBC Radio’s Information Morning Nova Scotia.
“Not knowing when the strike would end, they were left feeling very anxious and concerned, angry and disappointed too.”
She said she still has plenty of questions that she hopes to get answers to soon, including when classes will resume, whether there will be a fall break, whether the December holidays will be shortened, and whether the school will reimburse a part of tuition.
Students seeking tuition refunds
Dalhousie Student Union president Maren Mealey said the student union is asking that reading week be maintained for as many programs as possible, and that those that are unable to take a mid-term break move classes online for that week when possible.
Mealey said the student union’s priority now is to fight for tuition refunds or reductions.
“Just because the lockout may be ending, does not mean that the fight for tuition compensation is ending. Students are angry about it. Students are ready to fight for it. And we believe that our investment in our education really deserves to be honoured.”
Mealey said there are Canadian precedents for tuition being reduced or refunded based on lost class time during contract disputes.
“The nature of this is even different because it’s our educational institution itself who has taken the steps to deprive students of that class time.”
