The support workers at my college, as they are at all colleges in Ontario, are on strike . This means that all of the IT folks, and the administrative personal are walking the picket line. Generally I agree with their issues. We all need to be concerned about job security and about contracting out to part timers who will have no benefits or opportunity for permanent employment.
This morning it took 27 minutes to get past picketers. The traffic was backed up even further behind me as people tried to get on campus by 8:00. The strike impacts teachers more than the students. I need to have software installed, but I have to wait until the folks from IT are available. My office which I share with two others is poorly configured. We need to have things switched around. Again we have to wait for the support staff to be available.
Does any of this affect students? Not one bit. Does my frustration around software and how desks are arranged assist the strikers in anyway to make their point? I can't see how. They have the right to strike. I support their issues but someone needs to figure out how to make the strike meaningful.
For the students the lines are longer as untrained managers assist with time tables etc., web ct is not up and running, and there are little bits and pieces of the registration process missing.Of course the students are irritated. Even more so are the handful of parents who came with their kids to help them register. Perhaps they will complain to their MPPs, and perhaps that might make a bit of difference. The students are getting less service than they should, and while they do not yet recognize it, their educational experience is being diminished. But is it enough to attract any one's attention?
I don't think so. The colleges are not negotiating. Everyone is waiting for the government to do something. It may be a long fall semester.
This morning it took 27 minutes to get past picketers. The traffic was backed up even further behind me as people tried to get on campus by 8:00. The strike impacts teachers more than the students. I need to have software installed, but I have to wait until the folks from IT are available. My office which I share with two others is poorly configured. We need to have things switched around. Again we have to wait for the support staff to be available.
Does any of this affect students? Not one bit. Does my frustration around software and how desks are arranged assist the strikers in anyway to make their point? I can't see how. They have the right to strike. I support their issues but someone needs to figure out how to make the strike meaningful.
For the students the lines are longer as untrained managers assist with time tables etc., web ct is not up and running, and there are little bits and pieces of the registration process missing.Of course the students are irritated. Even more so are the handful of parents who came with their kids to help them register. Perhaps they will complain to their MPPs, and perhaps that might make a bit of difference. The students are getting less service than they should, and while they do not yet recognize it, their educational experience is being diminished. But is it enough to attract any one's attention?
I don't think so. The colleges are not negotiating. Everyone is waiting for the government to do something. It may be a long fall semester.
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