WHY SUPPORT THE STRIKE

  1. Without graduate student labour, the university cannot function. Over 40 courses in FAS alone this semester are being taught by graduate students. These courses, and hundreds of labs and tutorials, are now on hold. Midterms are being cancelled, papers are being left ungraded, and students in practicums and accredited programs are failing to achieve their requisite hours.
  2. Many of our graduate students live below the poverty line. The minimum funding package for doctoral students is $23,000, out of which they must pay tuition. This means many students do not have enough money to pay rent or buy food. This is unacceptable.
  3. The underfunding of graduate students is threatening the viability of Queen’s’ graduate programs. The Provost recently tried to slash QGA funding, and the administration’s refusal to propose adequate wage increases at the bargaining table has to be read in this context. Without adequate funding, we will be unable to attract graduate students to our programs. The implications are serious. From an impoverished intellectual community to a lack of support for teaching, to reduced research time, to the specter of suspending or closing entire graduate programs due to falling applications, to the diminished reputation of Queen’s, the administration’s refusal to offer a fair contract is shortsighted and harmful to students and faculty alike.
  4. Queen’s is already struggling to compete with other universities in attracting graduate students because of our low funding packages. With the University of Toronto offering $40,000 annually, Waterloo $27,000, and Wilfred Laurier $24,000, graduate students are seeking their luck elsewhere. It is in faculty members’ best interests to pressure the administration to increase the TA and RA component of their overall graduate funding packages.
  5. The administration has not been negotiating in good faith with PSAC. Instead of addressing the loss of real wages due to unconstitutional wage restraints imposed by the provincial government, the administration offered a $200 one-time payment – a complete insult. They also showed contempt for the PSAC bargaining team by not reading their proposals ahead of time and repeatedly arriving late to meetings. On one occasion, the administration made the PSAC bargaining team wait for 9 hours! It seems the administration wanted this strike to happen, which would support the theory that the larger plan is to cut TA support across the university (see point 3 above). This must be avoided at all costs.
  6. If faculty are worried about the outcomes for undergraduate students, putting pressure on the administration sooner rather than later is imperative. The faster Queen’s and PSAC get back to the bargaining table, the better for everyone–-undergraduate students included. For faculty, this means acting now to support not only our graduate students’ right to a living wage but a robust intellectual community at Queen’s.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE STRIKE

  1. Refuse to do the work of striking PSAC members. Don’t mark, proctor, lecture, run labs or tutorials, hold office hours, or do any other activity usually performed by teaching assistants, teaching fellows, or research assistants. Don’t assign the labour to undergraduate students, administrative staff, or others not in the PSAC bargaining unit.
  2. If you are able (i.e., a tenured faculty member), consider cancelling your classes. Causing disruption is the most effective way to mobilize students and amplify the pressure on the administration to return to the bargaining table. Your right to withdraw your labour in solidarity is protected by the QUFA Collective Agreement, Article 12.3 (c).
  3. Educate yourself about the reasons for the strike and share that information with students, colleagues, parents, alumni, and other members of the Queen’s and Kingston communities. It’s March break and a perfect time to start conversations with prospective students and their parents.
  4. Encourage your students and their parents to write to the administration and tell them to return to the bargaining table. They have the ear of the administration, and you may be surprised about how receptive they are to the struggles of PSAC workers.
  5. Walk with workers on the picket line, make a sign, show up for rallies, bring friends, and honk if you’re driving by.
  6. If you are not in a position to refuse to cross the picket line by cancelling classes, consider teaching on the line. PSAC members are skilled instructors and eager to educate students about the issues. This is one way to take advantage of Collective Agreement Article 12.3 (b), which allows faculty members to make alternate arrangements for their scheduled duties.
  7. Submit or write a letter to the Queen’s administration and encourage your students to do the same: provost@queensu.ca, principal@queensu.ca, trustees@queensu.ca. Ask them to copy their heads of departments.
  8. Sign this petition.
  9. Donate food, money, or time to the cause.

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