Message from President Lachemi: Labour disruption at TMU
As you may know, Toronto Metropolitan University’s CUPE 233 union is currently on strike. This union represents employees who work within Facilities Management and Development and provide maintenance and operations, as well as custodial and groundskeeping support for the university.
As president, I am deeply committed to creating an environment where all of our employees feel valued; this includes respecting the collective bargaining process and acknowledging the crucial role of unions and their leadership.
TMU has an incredibly strong history of collaborative collective bargaining and positive labour relations. I joined Toronto Metropolitan University in 1998, and in my 25 years here, I’m proud to say the university has successfully negotiated many collective agreements with all union groups without any labour disruptions. The fact that we have not had a labour disruption in over 25 years speaks to the university’s commitment to, and respect for, collaboration, collegiality and difficult conversations on both sides of the negotiating table.
While collective bargaining can be challenging at times, the ongoing commitment of the university and the unions has resulted in collective agreements that include progressive changes that not only support and empower our faculty and staff, but also reflect TMU’s unwavering commitment to our students’ well-being and success both inside and outside the classroom.
The TMU bargaining team is eager to find a shared path forward. We look forward to continued negotiations and we are optimistic that an agreement will be reached.
I want to assure our students that the university is committed to smooth final weeks of the semester, with no impact on exams or graduation, and I want to wish all of our students well on their exams.
I encourage all members of the TMU community to continue to visit the Bargaining Updates website for ongoing updates and important information.
Sincerely,
Mohamed Lachemi
President and Vice-Chancellor