Statement on Part-time Academic union certification

The Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB), on April 16, 2025, officially confirmed and approved the establishment of a union for part-time and sessional professors, instructors, counsellors and librarians at all 24 Ontario public colleges, to be represented by the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU).

“We respect the important contributions of part-time academic staff to the education and training of the 500,000 students at Ontario colleges and polytechnics and we acknowledge their right to unionize,” said Graham Lloyd, CEO of the College Employer Council. “We look forward to meeting with representatives of the new union bargaining unit to negotiate a fair and reasonable first collective agreement in the coming months, one that will benefit students, the colleges and the communities they serve.”

The ORLB confirmed that more than 50 per cent of participating members voted in favour of joining OPSEU, with approximately 3,600 votes cast. There are approximately 12,750 employees in this group. The initial mandate vote took place in October 2017 and went through a number of stages of scrutiny before the OLRB determined the votes could be officially tallied. 

With the certification confirmed, CEC expects to receive notice to begin bargaining and is committed to following due process and to respecting the rights of employees. Further updates will be provided once dates for that process have been established.