TRU faculty association votes to take job action

KAMLOOPS – Thompson Rivers University faculty have indicated they are willing to strike if a new contract with their employer cannot be reached.

According to the faculty association’s website, 80 per cent of the membership voted today, Nov. 20, in favour of job action.

The university and its professors have been engaged in collective bargaining since Feb. 4, 2015 but have been unable to reach an agreement. The last contract expired on March 30, 2014.

A vote in support of job action does not necessarily mean the university’s faculty would strike, it only means they are willing. Job action could could take the form of small administrative disruptions or a full-blown strike that could shut down the university.

If the faculty decides upon a strike, it must give the university 72 hours of notice. As of today, the earliest strike date could be called next Tuesday, Nov. 24.

Faculty association president Tom Friedman has said there is a media blackout in effect and would not speak while negotiations between the faculty and university are pending.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Dana Reynolds at dreynolds@infonews.ca or call 250-819-6089. To contact an editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.