Labour and education in the news
Below are recent news stories on labour and education related issues. Click the headline to be taken to the article. Some may require a subscription. Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for article text.
July 7, 2025
NDP government spent $94K promoting school nutrition program expansion
Winnipeg Free Press
The Kinew government spent more money promoting its universal school meal program this year than it did feeding students in some small divisions.
Who’s afraid of academic freedom?
University Affairs
Academic freedom is at the heart of universities’ missions, but political polarization around the world has made it a prime target for some groups and governments. Canada is not immune.
‘The American system is being destroyed’: academics on leaving US for ‘scientific asylum’ in France
The Guardian
It was on a US-bound flight in March, as Brian Sandberg stressed about whether he would be stopped at security, that the American historian knew the time had come for him to leave his home country.
Advocates express alarm over ED’s civil rights complaint dismissals
Politico
The Education Department’s civil rights arm is dismissing complaints at a rapid clip, prompting concern from former officials and advocates about its function amid staffing cuts.
How Republicans’ Endowment Tax Will Hurt Higher Education
The Nation
When President Trump first signed a bill in 2017 eliminating the tax-exempt status many private university endowments enjoyed, Rep. Kevin Brady—the key congressional Republican overseeing the tax code rewrite as chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee—said the goal of the new tax was “pretty simple: It encourages colleges to use their major endowments to lower the cost of education.”
The Trump administration pushed out a university president – its latest bid to close the American mind
The Guardian
Under pressure from the Trump administration, the University of Virginia’s president of nearly seven years, James Ryan, stepped down on Friday, declaring that while he was committed to the university and inclined to fight, he could not in good conscience push back just to save his job.
Accessibility minister will keep her job after comments about sign-language interpreter: Manitoba premier
CBC
Premier Wab Kinew said Manitoba's accessibility minister will remain in her position after she apologized for swearing into a hot mic about sharing a stage with a sign-language interpreter.
WSIB, union say they've reached tentative deal
CBC
More than a month after talks broke down and workers hit the picket lines, the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) and the Ontario Compensation Employees Union (OCEU) say they have reached a tentative agreement.
Members Always Have a Voice: Why Canada Post is Misleading You Into Thinking You Don’t
CUPW
In its recent communications about the upcoming forced vote, Canada Post has said: “This vote gives employees the opportunity to have a voice, especially as we begin to implement needed changes for the postal system.”
Fall of Hudson’s Bay will spur change for workers, labour groups, lawyers hope
BNN Bloomberg
When Hudson’s Bay employees rallied in front of two of the iconic retailer’s properties in late May, days before the retailer closed its doors for good, they knew there was no hope of saving their jobs.
Quebec paramedics on strike with essential services maintained in the province
CityNews
Some 3,300 paramedics who are members of CSN unions have been on strike since midnight on Sunday. They have been without a collective agreement since April 2023 and hope to “put pressure on the Treasury Board (…) to reach a collective agreement settlement,” stated a press release issued Sunday morning.
Strike could happen in August if 10,000 flight attendants are without deal in Canada
inSauga
Some 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge who are seeking a new collective bargaining agreement could be in a legal position to strike on Aug. 16 “at the earliest,” their union says.
Common Dreams
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has put 144 employees on leave after they signed a letter criticizing the Trump administration's "harmful" policies.
NHS bosses fear fresh strikes in England as resident doctors seek 29% pay rise
The Guardian
Hospitals are bracing for a fresh round of strikes by resident doctors seeking a 29% pay rise, amid warnings that stoppages could lead to hundreds of thousands of appointments and operations being cancelled.
French workers strike over reduced remote work: 'If I don't have the option, my life is completely dedicated to the company'
Le Monde
A breath of fresh air. When remote working became the norm during the Covid-19 pandemic, Thibault (not his real name), age 46, found a better balance between his professional and personal life. "It allowed me to see my children when they woke up in the morning and to put them to bed at night, which makes a huge difference. And the burden of looking after the children was no longer solely on my wife. If I don't have remote work, my life is entirely devoted to my company from morning to night, including the commute," said the employee of the French banking giant Société Générale, which rebranded as SG in 2023. On June 27, he was one of many who went on strike to protest the bank's announcement of reduced remote work. On Thursday, July 3, as called by unions, he, like all employees, was asked to come "on site" wearing a green ribbon to show his resolve.
July 4, 2025
Manitoba Government Makes It Easier To Invest In Health Research
Province of Manitoba
The Manitoba government is launching a new clinical trials office to fast-track health research and announcing the new Research Improvements Through Harmonization in Manitoba (RITHIM) project to grow Manitoba’s bioscience sector, Innovation and New Technology Mike Moroz, Business, Mining, Trade and Job Creation Minister Jamie Moses and Advanced Education and Training Minister Renée Cable announced today.
Manitoba seeks to grow innovation, investment in bioscience sector
Winnipeg Free Press
The province is launching a new clinical trials office to fast-track health research and creating an initiative to grow Manitoba’s bioscience sector.
Wilfrid Laurier University's Centre for Indigegogy has permanently closed
CBC
Wilfrid Laurier University's Centre for Indigegogy closed for good on Tuesday.
Academics call on Ottawa to speed up Palestinian student visas
CTV News
A group of Canadian academics is calling on the federal government to speed up approvals of student visas for Palestinians after two students who were accepted at a Canadian university died before they could leave the region.
Tension at Montreal college worse after Quebec’s investigation
CP24
A recent Quebec government investigation into the climate at two Montreal junior colleges may have had a chilling effect on teachers, according to the director general of one of the schools.
‘Hacktivist’ steals data of 2.5M Columbia University students, employees and applicants in politically motivated cyberattack
New York Post
A seasoned “hacktivist” reportedly stole sensitive data from more than two million Columbia University students, applicants and employees in a targeted cyberattack officials believe was politically motivated.
Smartphone bans in Dutch schools have improved learning, study finds
The Guardian
Bans on smartphones in Dutch schools have improved the learning environment despite initial protests, according to a study commissioned by the government of the Netherlands.
Kicking the tires on a career driving school buses
Winnipeg Free Press
Summer break may be in full swing, but Manitoba’s largest employer of school bus drivers is ramping up recruitment to tackle a chronic workforce shortage.
Highest-paid City of Winnipeg workers revealed in report
CTV News
A City of Winnipeg report shows that the former chief of police and CAO were among the highest-paid city workers in 2024.
Calling prison labour ‘rehabilitaiton’ is misleading, advocates say
Rabble
A new short documentary film highlights the realities of incarcerated workers in Ontario and Canada more broadly. Working for Freedom, created by Ottawa filmmaker Conor DeVries, follows a woman who has been incarcerated at the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre multiple times where she worked in the sewing room. Ottawa Prisoner Legal Supports requested her name be omitted from the article due to employability concerns.
UPS to offers voluntary buyout packages to its US drivers
Reuters
Parcel giant UPS said on Thursday it will offer voluntary buyouts to its full-time U.S. drivers as part of the largest network reconfiguration in its history — a sweeping overhaul that includes cutting 20,000 jobs and closing 73 facilities.
July 3, 2025
U of W governance concerns cited
Winnipeg Free Press
Twelve days after a University of Winnipeg board member resigned in protest over governance concerns at the cash-strapped campus, his ex-colleagues approved a balanced budget that rests on continued austerity measures.
Alberta teacher strike talks continue into summer
Shootin the Breeze
Despite multiple discussions, Alberta teachers remain closer than ever to strike.
Skilled scientists at these government agencies are quietly being let go, union reps say
PBS
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has pledged that scientists are not part of his workforce reduction efforts. But many scientists recruited for their expertise at the nation’s top health agencies have either already lost their jobs or are expecting to, according to interviews with employees and internal documents reviewed by PBS News.
Trump administration freezes over $70 million in federal funds for Oklahoma education
The Oklahoman
The Trump administration is indefinitely withholding more than $70 million in federal education programs meant for Oklahoma students and educators, including money for teacher development, English learners, after-care programs and migrant children.
University of Alabama professors face backlash, fear of losing funding under anti-DEI law, lawyer says
AL.com
A federal judge heard arguments Wednesday in a lawsuit alleging that anti-diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) law signed by Gov. Kay Ivey last year violates the constitutional rights of professors and students.
UK universities have failed to protect gender-critical academics, report finds
The Guardian
UK universities have failed to protect gender-critical academics from bullying and career-threatening restrictions on their research, according to a report.
York Region paramedic shouldn't have been fired over Israel comments: union, law experts
CBC
The Centre for Free Expression is calling for the reinstatement of a York Region paramedic whose union says she was fired over a social media post criticizing Israel's military operations in the Middle East.
B.C. labour board certifies Victoria Uber drivers’ union, a first in Canada, says UFCW
CTV News
Uber drivers in B.C.’s capital have successfully unionized, achieving “the first union certification of its kind for Uber drivers in Canada,” according to UFCW Canada.
Canada's youth job market slumps most among world's major economies
Financial Post
Young Canadians are facing a labour market that has deteriorated faster than in any other major advanced economy.
Thousands of women who take maternity leave lose jobs despite legal protections: report
Globe and Mail
Arina Kharlamova was a freelancer when her first child was born. She found balancing work and a new baby so stressful that she sought out a permanent job before getting pregnant a second time, so she could access maternity leave.
Cuts to Canada’s public service leading to overwork, burnout, and worsening conditions for workers
PSAC
The recent results of the 2024 Public Service Employee Survey paint a picture of the growing strain put on federal public service workers who are being asked to do more with less as job cuts and uncertainty continue to impact workers. Public service workers say they feel stretched to the breaking point, and the survey results from more than 186,000 workers indicate that there have been no substantive improvements to many of the systemic issues reported by workers.
Microsoft to lay off 9,000 workers in latest round of job cuts
CBS News
Microsoft is laying off just under 4% of its workforce in a new round of job cuts, the company said Wednesday.
Amazon robots are on course to outnumber its human workers
FreightWaves.com
E-commerce conglomerate Amazon is celebrating the deployment of its one-millionth robot as the company continues to advance its automation efforts.
Amazon Workers Defy Dictates of Automation
Labor Notes
Amazon delivery stations are being outfitted with robots across the country, leading to fewer workers and speedup for the workers that remain. Workers have reacted with defiance at the delivery station where I work.
White House tries to calm industry worries over migrant workers amid aggressive deportation campaign
CNN
As the Trump administration has doubled down on its hardline immigration agenda, behind the scenes senior Trump officials and the president himself have grappled with the consequences of that crackdown against a key portion of the workforce: migrant workers.
In labour-starved Japan, workers land another bumper pay hike
Reuters
Japanese companies agreed to raise wages by an average 5.25% this year, their biggest pay hike in 34 years and the third straight year of robust growth as they grapple with severe labour shortages and seek to shield workers from inflation.
Greek unions speak out after government pushes for 13-hour workday
MSN
The General Confederation of Greek Workers (GSEE) responded with an angry statement to the Labour Ministry’s intention to extend working hours to up to 13 per day for the same employer.
July 2, 2025
First school year of cellphone ban well-received: minister
Winnipeg Free Press
Sweeping restrictions on cellphone use in schools are here to stay, despite frustrations related to inconsistent enforcement and student workarounds during the 2024-25 rollout.
Accessibility minister's comments about ASL interpreter a 'knife right in the back' for deaf graduate
CBC
A woman who was excited to celebrate with her family at a graduation event for Indigenous women on Thursday says it's hard to look at her college certificate after the experience was tainted by comments Manitoba's accessibility minister made about sharing the stage with a sign-language interpreter.
Dalhousie University facing $20M deficit, across-the-board cuts
CBC
Dalhousie University has released its final operating budget for the next year, announcing a deficit of $20.6 million, cuts to all faculties and tuition increases for some international students.
MUNFA Concerned Over Decision to Suspend VP Search at Grenfell Campus, Marine Institute
VOCM
Faculty at Memorial University are concerned about a decision to suspend searches for vice-president at two campuses.
Mount Royal faculty get 12% raise
Alberta Worker
Earlier this month, Mount Royal University published an update on their website regarding negotiations on a new collective agreement.
Univ. of Virginia president resigns amid Trump administration inquiry into diversity initiatives
NBC News
The president of the University of Virginia is resigning following pressure from the Trump administration to step aside amid a Justice Department investigation into the school’s diversity practices.
Nearly $87M in limbo for Kentucky schools as Trump administration withholds funding
Courier Journal
Kentucky school districts are operating without nearly $87 million they had expected to receive from the federal government, following a one-day notice that the funds wouldn't be distributed on time and could be in jeopardy.
Trump withholds nearly $7 billion from schools, leaving Colorado districts uncertain about future of programs
The Colorado Sun
The future of an estimated $70 million in federal dollars that support Colorado schools in educating students with significant learning needs, recruiting and retaining teachers and providing before- and after-school programming is up in the air after the Trump administration notified state education officials that it is freezing the funding.
Inside One of the Largest Student Worker Strikes Ever
The Nation
“We will leave after we share our testimony,” said Mae Bracelin through a megaphone, cutting off the dean of students at the podium. “I have seen the discrimination that my coworkers face. I have seen that my coworkers are unable to pay their rent at the end of the month, are unable to eat,” she continued, as the staff and faculty seated around the room squirmed. “I have seen the sexual assault that they face from coworkers, that they face from students. This cannot be allowed to continue.”
Former Hydro boss paid $880K for working 1½ months in 2024 until her ouster
CBC
The former boss of Manitoba Hydro was paid nearly $900,000 in compensation in 2024, despite only working 1½ months before her dismissal from the Crown corporation.
The Scab Ban Is A Huge Win, But It Must Be Enforced
The Maple
Labour organizations across Canada have been celebrating lately as the new federal anti-scab law finally came into force on June 20.
Union says 250 CN Tower workers have been locked out
CTV News
More than 250 workers at the CN Tower, one of the most iconic tourist sites in Toronto, have been locked out just before Canada Day, their union said on Monday.
London's deaf community left in the dark as Canadian Hearing Services workers enter 10th week of strike
CBC
Workers who support London's deaf and hard of hearing communities have been on the picket lines for more than two months now, which they say is impacting those communities as much as it is the employees.
Thousands of Philadelphia city workers on strike but judge orders some back to work
ABC News
A strike being staged by nearly 10,000 city workers in Philadelphia entered its second day Wednesday as a judge ordered some emergency service dispatchers and essential water department employees to return to work.
The National AFL-CIO ‘Slams’ Senate Republicans’ ‘Nearly $5 Trillion Billionaire Giveaway That Devastates’ Working Families
WNY Labor Today
The National AFL-CIO is condemning Senate Republicans for passing a budget Reconciliation Bill that raises costs on Working People, wipes out millions of jobs and rips health care away from 17 million Americans - all to hand billionaires one of the biggest paydays in history.
