After 10 months of negotiations, 600 members of the Concordia University Professional Employees’ Union (CUPEU–CSN) have adopted a two-week strike mandate, to be enacted at a time deemed appropriate.
The potential strike could disrupt the start of the academic year if no agreement is reached.
The union members, who occupy various roles including academic, financial, IT, communication advisors, analysts, coordinators, psychologists, and nurses, have been pushing for the inclusion of hybrid work as a standard working condition. However, Concordia University has so far refused to discuss this demand, it said.
“Concordia applies hybrid work inconsistently. The ability to work remotely should be included as a working condition in our professional work environment,” said Shoshana Kalfon, president of the Concordia University Professional Employees Union–CSN.
The union has expressed frustration over what it perceives as contradictory stances by the university. In its 2024 climate action plan, Concordia University encourages remote work to reduce the carbon footprint associated with commuting. Yet, the university has not accommodated hybrid work in its negotiations with the union.
“Concordia treats hybrid work as a privilege that can be taken away from its employees at any time. This attitude has no place in the post-pandemic world of labour,” said Danny Roy, president of the Fédération des professionnèles–CSN (FP–CSN).
Since the onset of the pandemic, the issue of remote work has become a significant bargaining point for professional positions. The strike mandate has received strong support from the union members, it said, and the CSN has pledged its backing throughout the negotiations.
“Since the pandemic, the ability to work remotely has become an almost inevitable bargaining issue for professional positions. The strike mandate is solid, and employees can count on the CSN to be behind them until the end of negotiations,” said Dominique Daignault, president of the Conseil central du Montréal métropolitain–CSN (CCMM–CSN).
The CSN represents nearly 330,000 workers across Quebec in various sectors, through over 1,600 unions. The Fédération des professionnèles (FP–CSN) has approximately 8,000 members, while the Conseil central du Montréal métropolitain–CSN encompasses all CSN members in Greater Montreal, Laval, Nunavik, and Eeyou Istchee Baie-James.