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.

September 11, 2025

Student injured after encounter with homeless person during outdoor gym class
Winnipeg Free Press
A St. Vital high school has paused some outdoor gym classes and is investigating after a student was hurt following an encounter with a homeless person living in Dakota Forest.

Transit changes get failing grade from U of M students
Winnipeg Free Press
The father of a first-year University of Manitoba student is angry his daughter was late for class on her first day after waiting more than an hour in the pouring rain as several Winnipeg Transit buses whizzed past her because they were full.

Guidance, tutoring offered to U of M Indigenous students
Winnipeg Free Press
Aleks Settee is counting on services and programs for Indigenous students at the University of Manitoba to help them avoid the problems that prevented them from graduating with a psychology and fine arts degree six years ago.

Manitoba Government Announces $1-Million Investment for Ovarian Cancer Research
Province of Manitoba
The Manitoba government is investing $1 million over three years in ovarian cancer research through Ovarian Cancer Canada (OCC) and the Manitoba Ovarian Cancer Research group, Health, Seniors and Long-Term Care Minister Uzoma Asagwara announced today.

More than 10,000 college support workers go on strike across Ontario
CBC
More than 10,000 full-time support workers from Ontario's 24 public colleges are going on strike starting Thursday in an effort to ensure job security, says the union.

No new dates set for conciliation between Dalhousie board, faculty association
CBC
No future conciliation dates have been scheduled in the contract dispute between the Dalhousie University board of governors and the Dalhousie Faculty Association.

Dalhousie Student Union demanding tuition refunds amid three-week lockout
CTV News
The Dalhousie Student Union is demanding tuition refunds as a university lockout involving nearly 1,000 faculty members hits the three-week mark.

Mastercard Foundation Announces $235 Million to Post-secondary Educational Institutions in Canada to Recognize Strides Toward Reconciliation
Mastercard Foundation
The funding marks the 10th anniversary of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Final Report and Calls to Action

Education has always been a privilege
The Medium
In late 2024, I was on video call with a Palestinian woman named Leena Almadhoun, a local organizer, student, and co-founder of a food sovereignty initiative in Gaza called Thamra. As a writer, I planned to ask her about how she and her team in North Gaza managed to transform poisonous soil and the aftermath of bombs into urban gardening sanctuaries for local Gazans. But the conversation soon derailed into the emotional grief and psychological pain of losing lived spaces—schools, universities, and community centers—that held memories, experiences, and futures in them.

Staffing questions loom large as St. Boniface Hospital close to opening expanded, redeveloped ER
Winnipeg Free Press
A massive redevelopment of the St. Boniface Hospital emergency department is just weeks from opening but it’s not clear how Winnipeg’s health authority will staff the expanded facility.

Alberta unions put Smith government on notice: “If you take on one of us, you’re taking on all of us!”
AFL
“For months now, several of Alberta’s largest public sector unions have been in protracted negotiations on behalf of their members. This includes the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA), representing 40,000 teachers; the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE), representing 100,000 workers in government, health care, and post-secondary education sectors; and the Health Sciences Association of Alberta (HSAA), representing 30,000 health care workers in a wide range of professional occupations. On Wednesday of last week it was announced that members of several AUPE locals working for the Government of Alberta have voted to ratify a mediator’s recommendation. Many other public sector workers remain on high alert.

What unions have asked the government to cut instead of public servants' jobs
Ottawa Citizen
With less than a week before Parliament resumes, speculation is ramping up about what the federal government will cut in its upcoming fall budget.

Windsor city workers' union leadership removed
CBC
Union leadership representing 1,600 workers at the City of Windsor have been replaced by an administrator appointed by CUPE's national executive.

How unions are preparing for the age of AI
Globe and Mail
Artificial intelligence is reshaping the world of work. From shrinking work forces to stagnating wages, the fingerprints of automation and AI are increasingly visible in Canadian workplaces — and unions are taking notice.

Union says 4,000 workers on 22 pickets as B.C. public service strike expands
Vancouver Sun
Picket lines by B.C.’s public service employees are expanding to 22 sites involving more than 4,000 workers in an escalation of their labour dispute with the province.

Boeing reaches tentative labor deal with striking defense workers
CNBC
The union that represents striking Boeing defense workers said Wednesday it has reached a tentative agreement with the company, subject to final voting this Friday.

9/11 responders face a growing death toll and healthcare crisis
International Association of Firefighters
Twenty-four years after the Sept. 11 attacks, diseases tied to Ground Zero exposure are still claiming fire fighters’ lives.

South Korea sends plane to bring back workers detained in U.S. immigration raid
CBC
A South Korean charter plane left for the U.S. on Wednesday to bring back Korean workers detained in an immigration raid in Georgia last week, though officials said the return of the plane with the workers on board will not happen as quickly as they had hoped.

September 10, 2025

HSC unions welcome 24-7 police presence in violence-plagued emergency department
Winnipeg Free Press
Unions that represent staff at Health Sciences Centre are hopeful a 24-7 police presence in the adult emergency room will help curb violence at Manitoba’s largest hospital campus.

Former CEO countersues Winnipeg business and board chair for defamation, unpaid wages
CTV News
The former head of a Winnipeg-based business that helps nonprofits fundraise is denying all allegations of fraud and embezzlement raised in a civil lawsuit, alleging that all actions were taken in the company’s “best interest.”

Fight between Quebec government and province’s powerful unions gets gross
Global News
These are messy times in Quebec, where the provincial government is involved in a battle against powerful unions that have played a seminal role in the history of the province.

Carney unveils billions in funding, Buy Canadian policy to combat Trump's tariffs
CBC
Prime Minister Mark Carney rolled out a series of measures on Friday that he says will transform Canada's economy into a force that can withstand the trade shocks of the Trump administration.

School bus drivers who transport as many as 7,000 students get lock-out notice: union
CBC
Bus drivers that take as many as 7,000 students to school each day will be locked out on Monday, just three weeks into the school year, their union says.

The wages of fear
Globe and Mail
At 909Tacolandia, a weekend food market in a high-school parking lot east of Los Angeles, organizer Brandon Mejia has tightened security this summer. He has posted lookouts to give advance warning if officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement are approaching. Site security has instructions not to allow federal agents to enter.

Yes, Canada should (mostly) end our temporary foreign worker programs
Globe and Mail
The Conservatives are right: The Temporary Foreign Worker program mostly should not exist.

The new school year and the old curriculum
Winnipeg Free Press
I have spent most of my life either being taught or teaching. So back-to-school time in the fall is a familiar experience.

With a drop in international students, campuses are seeing class waitlists, course cuts and fewer researchers
CBC
This school year has been a rough start for University of Regina student Daniella Iyalomolere. The digital marketing student is kicking off her second semester of undergraduate studies, juggling a tuition hike for international students as well as the scrapping of a plan that allowed them to pay incrementally.

Joint statement: Dalhousie Board of Governors and Dalhousie Faculty Association
Dalhousie University
The Dalhousie Board of Governors and the Dalhousie Faculty Association (DFA) met this morning (Monday, Sept. 8) to resume discussions.

U of T receives $80-million in largest donation ever made to a law school in Canada
Globe and Mail
The University of Toronto received the largest donation ever made to a Canadian law school, a gift of $80-million, much of it destined to provide financial support to students.

The Coming Federal Cuts – Part 2: ESDC
HESA
Yesterday, I explained why the federal government now finds itself in a position where it has to cut program budgets by at least 15% just to keep the budget deficit to $50 billion by 2028. Today, I am going to explain how this will play out at Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), which plays a major role in funding for skills and education in Canada, mainly through the Canada Education Savings Program (CESP) and the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program (CSFAP).

The Coming Federal Cuts – Part 3: ISED
HESA
Monday, we looked at the country’s overall financial situation (dire), and yesterday we looked at how cuts of a magnitude of 15% might affect key programs like the Canada Education Savings Program and the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program. Today, we’re going to look at how a 15% cut might affect the Government of Canada’s research subsidies, which in the main are run through the Ministry of innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED).

University of Minnesota workers walk off the job, services disrupted
KARE11
As of 10 p.m. Monday, some service workers at the University of Minnesota are walking off the job — the first strike in recent memory.

UK's first 'super-university' to be created as two merge from 2026
BBC
The UK's first "super-university", stretching across an entire region, is to be created through the merger of the universities of Kent and Greenwich, the BBC has learned.

September 8, 2025

Number of private agency nurses rises
Winnipeg Free Press
As the province tries to move away from its reliance on private agency nurses, data show the practice continues to increase in Manitoba.

Union files dispute over Ontario government policy requiring workers back in office full-time
CBC
A union that represents Ontario public servants is taking action against the Doug Ford government after it ordered provincial employees to return to the office four days a week this fall and five days a week next year.

Flight attendants overwhelmingly vote against Air Canada wage offer
CBC
Air Canada flight attendants on Saturday overwhelmingly voted against the airline's latest wage offer, their union said — a vote that's expected to have no impact on flight operations.

Why some Canadians are using their savings, GoFundMe to pay for private surgeries
CBC
Linda Slater waited two years to walk with her grandchildren to the playground down the street from her Calgary home.

Are temporary foreign workers taking young Canadians' jobs? Here's what experts think
CBC
As some federal and provincial politicians argue that Canada's temporary foreign worker program is stopping young Canadians from finding good-paying jobs, some experts say migrant workers aren't to blame and that other immigration streams could be the problem.

Ontario nurses push for nurse-to-patient ratios as calls for minimum staffing requirements grow
Globe and Mail
In a recent round of collective bargaining, the top priority of the Ontario Nurses’ Association wasn’t a predictable ask such as higher wages or better benefits.

Think unions only help their members? Think again
The Kindersley Clarion
The late-August strike by Air Canada flight attendants did more to advertise the benefits of union membership than any billboard or newspaper ad ever could. But the same worker protections helping flight attendants secure better working conditions also improve life for all Canadians.

A year under CEO Niccol: Starbucks workers’ long fight for a union contract
The Guardian
It’s been a year since Brian Niccol took the top job at Starbucks and promised change after years of bitter fighting with the company’s burgeoning union.

US union membership declining in ‘right-to-work’ states, report reveals
The Guardian
Add another growing split to the increasingly divided United States: union membership.

London Commuters Face Travel Chaos as Tube Strike Hits Hard
Bloomberg
Londoners face severe travel disruption as a strike by workers on the city’s underground train network entered full force on Monday.

South Koreans feel betrayed over detainment of hundreds of workers at plant raid in Georgia
Winnipeg Free Press
South Korea’s foreign minister departed for the U.S. on Monday to finalize steps for the return of several hundred South Korean workers detained last week in a massive immigration raid in Georgia, as the incident caused confusion, shock and a sense of betrayal among many in the U.S.-allied nation.

Conciliation scheduled for today as Dalhousie University labour dispute drags on
Toronto Star
A conciliation meeting is scheduled for today in Halifax to help end a labour dispute between Dalhousie University and its faculty association.

After racially motivated sword attack at Brandon school, advisory committees focus on safety, inclusion
CBC
After a violent attack that left a high school student seriously injured earlier this year, the Brandon School Division is creating advisory committees in all of its schools this fall, focused on safety, inclusion and well-being.

McGill moves to renew ties with student union after dispute over protests
CBC
McGill University and its student union announced they have reached a renewed agreement after a pro-Palestinian protest prompted the school to seek out ways to cut ties with the group.

Laurentian University makes final arrangements to get out from under the shadow of insolvency
CBC
The cheque is in the mail, finally.

Parents, students, unions stage protest in Montreal against education cuts
CBC
Parents, students and school staff gathered in front of the offices of Quebec's Ministry of Education in Montreal, on Sunday, in the latest protest against the Coalition Avenir Québec government's cuts to the education system.

The Coming Federal Cuts – Part 1
HESA
The biggest thing everyone is going to be talking about this year – barring another university doing a surprise Laurentian – is the set of federal cuts coming down the pike. They are big. And they are nasty. So, it’s worth understanding exactly the scale of what is heading in our direction. This is going to be a three-parter. Today, I will talk about the overall size of the cuts to come, and on Tuesday and Wednesday I will talk about how this will affect the two ministries that have the most to do with post-secondary education: Employment and Skills Development Canada (ESDC, tomorrow) and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED, Wednesday).

How Harvard Can Out-Negotiate Trump
Time
President Donald Trump, the self-proclaimed great negotiator, has fumbled at the bargaining table once more.

Why Harvard’s faculty union aims to block any ‘backroom deal’
Politico
HARVARD WON. SO DID ITS UNIONS: Harvard University’s first-round win in its funding fight with the Trump administration could drive the sides to the negotiating table. But Harvard’s faculty union has a message for the university and the White House: not so fast.

University fees could be linked to teaching standards, regulator says
BBC
Universities in England might in future have to charge different levels of tuition fees depending on the quality of their teaching, the higher education regulator has suggested.

September 5, 2025

Hosts wanted as student home-sharing initiative launches
RRC Polytech
RRC Polytech has launched a new housing alternative for students attending its Winnipeg campuses — and is looking for community members to open their doors.

Winnipeg students finding alternative routes to school after end of charter services
CBC
For some Winnipeg students, this school year includes a crash course on riding the bus.

New Winnipeg French immersion school welcomes students in Sage Creek neighbourhood
CBC
Bells rang out for the first time on Thursday at a new French immersion school in Winnipeg's Sage Creek neighbourhood — a school so new it doesn't have its official name yet.

Dalhousie, faculty association agree to return to conciliation talks
CBC
The Dalhousie University board of governors and the Dalhousie Faculty Association have both agreed to return to conciliation talks on Sept. 8.

Should we worry about the gender gap at university? (audio)
Globe and Mail
When 1.5 million university students return to campus this month, men will be noticeably underrepresented in the student body. In 2025, the ratio is about 60 per cent women to 40 per cent men. The gender gap has existed for more than 20 years, and universities are well aware of the discrepancy. But it doesn’t appear they’re doing much to address it.

DFA Bargaining Update
Dalhousie Faculty Association
Dear DFA Member, Earlier this afternoon the Board released another inappropriate and misleading message to the campus community, almost identical in kind to the interest arbitration communication that led us to file a bargaining complaint with the Minister of Labour. The DFA Executive Committee will be asked tomorrow to approve adding this latest incident to the substance of our earlier complaint.

Cost of university projected to increase by more than 30 per cent over 20 years: study
CTV News
University is not cheap, and it’s only expected to get more expensive.

Trump administration unlawfully cut Harvard's funding, US judge rules
Reuters
A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that U.S. President Donald Trump's administration unlawfully terminated about $2.2 billion in grants awarded to Harvard University and can no longer cut off research funding to the prestigious Ivy League school.

Northwestern University president steps down following federal funding freeze
CNN
Northwestern University President Michael Schill announced his resignation Thursday as the university faces an ongoing funding freeze by the Trump administration.

I’m a High Schooler. AI Is Demolishing My Education.
The Atlantic
AI has transformed my experience of education. I am a senior at a public high school in New York, and these tools are everywhere. I do not want to use them in the way I see other kids my age using them—I generally choose not to—but they are inescapable.

Crown attorneys file more workplace grievances against province
Winnipeg Free Press
The union for Manitoba Crown attorneys has filed new grievances related to health and security issues and a delay in filling senior roles, as part of their longstanding battle over heavy workloads and a shortage of staff.

The federal government’s repeated use of back-to-work powers undermines Canadian workers’ right to strike
The Conversation
The federal government’s recent use of Section 107 of the Canadian Labour Code to end the Air Canada flight attendant strike is a troubling development for Canadian workers and unions.

Canadian economy bled 66,000 jobs in August as unemployment rate hit its lowest since 'pandemic days'
CBC
The unemployment rate rose to 7.1 per cent in August — nearly the highest rate since 2016 — while the Canadian economy lost 66,000 jobs, according to new data from Statistics Canada.

Gen Z is facing the worst youth unemployment rate in decades. Here is how it's different
CBC
Graduation cap in hand, Sarah Chung is posing for photos in school regalia ahead of her convocation ceremony. The campus atmosphere is joyful, but what comes next is sobering: this honours student is graduating into one of the worst youth labour markets seen in decades.

Strike averted as Alberta government workers approve mediated deal
CBC
A new contract has been reached between some 23,000 civil servants and the Alberta government, averting a strike that could've happened as soon as next week.

Is remote work gone for good? More Canadians are commuting — whether they want to or not
CBC
First, they forced office workers to stay home, and we became acquainted with Microsoft Teams, comfortably, in athleisure wear.

U.S. employers added just 22,000 jobs in August as labour market continues to cool
Globe and Mail
U.S. employers added just 22,000 jobs last month as the labour market continued to cool under uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s economic policies.

US flight attendants push to be paid when planes aren’t in the air: ‘Most of our passengers have no idea'
The Guardian
As you board the plane, the flight attendant welcomes you on board. They point you to your seat and help with your luggage, before giving the safety demonstration, and preparing the plane for takeoff. And there’s a good chance they have done it all for free.

September 4, 2025

University of Manitoba Bisons undergo rebrand, unveil new logo
3DownNation
The University of Manitoba Bisons have a new look as the school has unveiled fresh branding and a new logo for their sports teams.

Private Manitoba college says it had to sell land, cut courses due to cap on international students
CBC
A private college in Manitoba says it was forced to sell land and cut courses because of the way the province has applied a federal cap on international student spots.

University of Regina school year begins without students' union
CBC
Khadija Imran started her second year of psychology classes at the University of Regina on Tuesday wondering how she will get to school.

Chinese students take Ottawa to court over study permit delays
Radio-Canada
Long wait at IRCC has done 'very serious damage to my life,' says one post-grad.

Students with overprotective parents are more vulnerable to anxiety during their transition to university, researchers find
McGill University
First-year undergraduates who grew up with overly cautious or controlling parents tend to experience increased anxiety when faced with stresses associated with the transition to university, researchers from McGill University and the University of California (Los Angeles) have found.

Columbia punished our kids for protesting against the genocide in Gaza. We condemn the university’s cowardice
The Guardian
By now, 23 million American college and university students will mostly be back on campus. Undergraduates have stuffed suitcases and crammed one more thing into already bursting backpacks, and moved into dorm rooms and apartments. Graduate students have scrambled to prepare for seminars and their work in classrooms and laboratories and started the new academic year.

Kinew sticks up for Crown Royal’s Manitoba jobs
Winnipeg Free Press
Premier Wab Kinew says whisky drinkers must remember that Crown Royal is made in Canada.

PHAC cutting hundreds of jobs as part of 'post-pandemic recalibration'
CBC
The Public Health Agency of Canada is cutting roughly 10 per cent of its employees as it continues to shrink its workforce in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Unions preparing to 'fight' as Canada sees the most strike action in decades
CBC
Canada is seeing a spike in strikes — and as tariffs and the affordability crisis continue to hit workers hard, unions warn of more action on the horizon.

Young people can't find jobs. Is Canada's economy in trouble? (Audio)
CBC
The unemployment rate for Canadians between 15 and 24 is at 15 percent, the highest it's been since 2010, not including the pandemic.

Ontario Nurses’ Association condemns hospital arbitration decision as a betrayal of 60,000 nurses and meaningful collective bargaining
Ontario Nurses' Association
The Ontario Nurses’ Association (ONA) condemns the arbitration decision released today, setting the terms of a new two-year contract between the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) and more than 60,000 hospital-sector members as a betrayal of nurses, of working women, and the right to meaningful collective bargaining.

Teenage workers hit hard by tech disruption, population growth: Desjardins
CTV News
A new report argues the rise of gig work, artificial intelligence and rapid population growth are souring job prospects for Canada’s youngest workers.

Poilievre calls for federal government to end temporary foreign worker program
Globe and Mail
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is calling on the federal government to shut down the temporary foreign worker program and immediately end the issuance of new permits, linking it to rising youth unemployment and saying it is flooding the job market with cheap labour.

Rogers Using ‘Scabs’ to Replace Workers in Dispute, Says Union
iPhone in Canada
The United Steelworkers (USW) is stepping up pressure on Rogers over a labour dispute in Abbotsford, B.C., urging members to write letters to Members of Parliament and calling for changes to Canada’s new anti-scab legislation.

Federal Workers Denied Arbitration as Trump Takes Aim at Unions
Bloomberg Law
The Trump administration is denying federal workers a key tool used to resolve conflicts with management as it intensifies its drive to dismantle public sector unions.

Unemployed workers outnumber available jobs for first time since 2021
The Hill
The number of job openings decreased by more in July than economists were expecting as the labor market recalibrates in response to President Trump’s trade war and immigration crackdown.

Historic ruling: USMCA recognises labour rights violations at Atento Mexico
UNI Global Union
The Mexican Telephone Workers’ Union (Sindicato de Telefonistas de la República Mexicana, STRM), affiliated to UNI Global Union, celebrated the historic ruling issued on 21 August 2025 by the Rapid Response Labour Mechanism (RRLM) Panel under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which determined that there had been a denial of trade union and collective bargaining rights at the Atento Services call centre in Hidalgo, Mexico.

September 3, 2025

First day of classes marks return of Manitoba's universal school nutrition program
CBC
A school nutrition program touted by Manitoba's NDP government as universal is returning for a second year, but the Opposition Progressive Conservatives are questioning whether all students are getting the same access to food.

Wildfires are disrupting back-to-school again. Experts call for support to plan for them
CBC
Newfoundland parent Scott Chandler jokes that September is usually a whirlwind he "kind of dreads," between juggling the back-to-school season for his son Rhys and restarting a host of his extracurriculars, like hockey, karate and swimming lessons. This year, however, he's looking forward to the normalcy of that busy schedule.

Threat of strike by Alberta’s teachers looms large over 1st day of school
Global News
It’s back to school time for thousands of students across Alberta today.

Toronto officials decry education minister's idea to eliminate school board trustees
CBC
It might only be the first day of school for kids in Toronto, but Coun. Rachel Chernos Lin says she's already getting emails from frustrated parents, saying their concerns are going into the void.

Back to school boost: Government of Canada invests in education and job supports for youth
Government of Canada
As students across Canada head back to school, the Government of Canada is supporting their next steps toward a bright future by creating more pathways to rewarding careers and making education more affordable.

B.C. court dismisses challenge to university faculty association's Gaza resolutions
The Canadian Press
The B.C. Supreme Court says the Simon Fraser University faculty association did not go beyond its "stated purposes" by passing resolutions condemning Israel's actions in Gaza and calling for the university to divest from arms manufacturers.

Alberta pauses ban on school library books with sexually explicit content
Globe and Mail
The Alberta government is pausing its controversial order for the removal of books deemed sexually explicit from school libraries, a retreat that Premier Danielle Smith vowed would be short-lived as the province continues to push policies around sexuality and gender into the classroom.

The State of Postsecondary Education in Canada, 2025
HESA
You probably don’t need to actually read this year’s edition to know that the state of postsecondary education in Canada is a bit perilous. And the reason for this, quite simply, is that public funding for higher education has been stagnant for well over a decade now.

Approximately 1-in-3 Canadian university students fear formal consequences for expressing honest viewpoints in class
Fraser Institute
A new survey finds that right-leaning university students feel considerably more restricted than left-leaning students in expressing their views during class discussions. They are fearful of consequences such as their formal grades being lowered for having the “wrong” opinion.

Nearly half of all Canadian university students are actively hiding their real beliefs: survey
National Post
Nearly half of all Canadian university students are actively concealing their real opinions for fear of sanction or mistreatment, according to a comprehensive new survey published Wednesday by the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy.

So Long Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code, We hardly Knew You
The Law of Work
A non-lawyer friend at a party asked me recently what I thought about “that Section 107 nonsense.” Seems everyone is a labour lawyer now.

Taproot becomes Canada’s largest employee-owned trust with 750 workers
Globe and Mail
A British Columbia-based support services provider has become the largest company in Canada to transfer ownership to its employees through a new model designed to help owners sell their businesses without seeking outside buyers.

Edmonton radio station’s AI host part of global trend
Globe and Mail
A disc jockey playing alt-rock tunes on Edmonton’s airwaves on a late Sunday night introduces herself and jokes about being regularly asked about firmware updates.

The case for pro-union public policy
CCPA
Unions lean heavily into the idea of the “union advantage.” In organizing workplaces and promoting membership, unions often emphasize the benefits that come with being a union member. Better pay, benefits, and protections are commonly highlighted as aspects of employment where union members tend to do better than their non-union counterparts. That makes sense, from an organizing perspective. But zooming back to take in a broad, social perspective, we need to get a grasp not only on whether unions are good for their members, but distinct from or in addition to that, whether they are institutions that protect, advance, or detract from collective well-being for everyone. If unions have impacts beyond their membership, then there is a public interest in either facilitating (if the effects are positive) or restricting (if they are negative) unionization.

Canada Post says no more meetings currently scheduled with union
Global News
Canada Post says it is waiting for “workable solutions” from the union representing its postal workers, with no clear timeline for when talks will resume.

Trump Orders Have Stripped Nearly Half a Million Federal Workers of Union Rights
The New York Times
More than 445,000 federal employees saw their union protections disappear in August, as agencies moved to comply with an executive order President Trump signed earlier this year that called for ignoring collective bargaining contracts with nearly one million workers.

Hundreds of staff at California national parks to unionize amid Trump turmoil
The Guardian
Hundreds of staff at two of California’s most popular national parks have voted to unionize, a move that comes during a troubled summer for the National Park Service, which has seen the Trump administration enact unprecedented staff and budget cuts.

Workers call for more involvement in AI adoption
Bendigo Advertiser
Workers left "shell-shocked" after their jobs were replaced by artificial intelligence are urging better consultation between employers and their staff.

Death of 18 teenage farmworkers in Egypt highlights precarious labor supplying Europe
EFE
The death of 18 teenage female farmworkers in a traffic accident in northern Egypt has highlighted unsafe, exploitative conditions in a sector supplying much of Europe’s produce.

Turkey’s state postal service accused of forcing couriers into gig work
bianet
The Post and Telegraph Organization (PTT), Turkey’s state postal service, is preparing to introduce a new pay-per-parcel system that unions say will strip couriers of worker status, union rights, and social security, effectively turning them into gig workers.

September 2, 2025

Dalhousie University union rejects arbitration offer, files complaint with labour department
CTV News
The Dalhousie Faculty Association has rejected an offer of arbitration to end an ongoing lockout from Dalhousie University while also filing a complaint with the Nova Scotia Department of Labour.

Quebec professors union stands in solidarity with faculty locked out at Dalhousie
CityNews
Members of a Quebec professors union are showing their support for faculty of Dalhousie University who have been locked out after a contract was not reached between members of the union and the institution.

Over 23,000 Ontario college support staff take coordinated step towards strike action on Labour Day: “The future of our work is the future of student support.”
OPSEU
Support staff across Ontario’s 24 colleges, represented by OPSEU/SEFPO, united this Labour Day to take a coordinated step forward in the fight for the future of student support. 10,000 full-time college support staff will officially be on strike as of 12:01 a.m. on September 11, 2025 if a deal is not reached by the deadline. Today, the bargaining team representing 13,000 part-time college support staff also gave notice that part-time workers are seeking a province-wide strike vote this semester.

Unifor, University of Windsor dodge strike — for now — by extending existing deals
CBC
The union representing more than 40 security and engineering employees at the University of Windsor says they've agreed to extend their existing contacts to avoid a strike as thousands of students return to campus.

Universities have lost their way, but cost-cutting and consultants are not the answer
The Conversation
Last week in Sydney, we saw a melodrama acted out that could stand in for the state of Australian universities more generally. Inside Sydney’s swish Fullerton Hotel, a glittering cast of vice-chancellors, politicians, public servants, journalists, and consultants deliberated at a higher education summit, sponsored by the Australian Financial Review and consultancy Nous Group.

How to save the American university
The Guardian
It is no secret that American universities are in the fight of a lifetime. With billions of dollars in federal support on the line, their ability to fund their research activities is clearly at stake. But for the biggest targets, such as Harvard, their pockets are unfathomably deep. While cuts may be painful, no financial threat is likely to be existential. What is harder to know is whether universities can come out of their current predicament with their souls intact.

‘Censorship’: over 115 scholars condemn cancellation of Harvard journal issue on Palestine
The Guardian
More than 120 education scholars have condemned the cancellation of an entire issue of an academic journal dedicated to Palestine by a Harvard University publisher as “censorship”.

Katabasis by RF Kuang review – a descent into the hellscape of academia
The Guardian
The more academia has broken your heart, the more you’ll love RF Kuang’s new novel. Katabasis knows the slow grind of postgrad precarity: the endless grant grubbing and essay marking; the thesis chapters drafted, redrafted and quietly ignored by a supervisor who can’t be bothered to read – let alone reply to – an email. Living semester to semester, pay shrinking, workload metastasising, cannon fodder in a departmental forever war. Katabasis knows how it feels to spend your best thinking years doing grunt work to further someone else’s ideas, clinging to the bottom rung of a ladder you will never be allowed to climb: less an ivory tower than a pyramid scheme.

CUPE book teaches kids about public-sector workers in community
Winnipeg Free Press
Manitoba’s largest public-sector union has released a children’s activity book in the leadup to Labour Day weekend.

Eight docs recruited to work in western Manitoba
Winnipeg Free Press
Eight doctors from around the world have signed on to work in clinics across the Prairie Mountain Health region through a provincial program.

NDP can no longer count on support of union workers as labour vote splits
Globe and Mail
A year ago, then-NDP leader Jagmeet Singh’s Labour Day message to workers insisted that his party alone would stand shoulder-to-shoulder with working Canadians and the unions that work to protect their rights.

Average number of sick days taken by public servants growing post-COVID, new data shows
CBC
Federal public servants were less likely to call in sick to work during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, new government data shows.

Back-to-work orders, wages, U.S. tariffs at centre of Toronto's Labour Day rallies
CBC
Workers and union members across the GTA gathered in downtown Toronto on Monday for the annual Labour Day parade – and this year's celebrations saw union leaders calling for a united front against all attacks on workers rights.

How CUPE’s Defiance Reset Canadian Labour Relations
Canadian Politics and Public Policy
During last month’s strike by Air Canada’s 10,500 flight attendants, an Angus Reid poll found that most Canadians sided with the flight attendants. Nearly 60% said they should be paid for all their work, as opposed to only the work they do when the plane is in the air, and 84% describe the current conditions as “unfair”.

Labour vote splitting as Canada’s political parties battle for workers’ support
Winnipeg Free Press
A year ago, then-NDP leader Jagmeet Singh’s Labour Day message to workers insisted that his party alone would stand shoulder-to-shoulder with working Canadians and the unions that work to protect their rights.

President Donald Trump’s policies spark protests in multiple US cities on Labor Day
Winnipeg Free Press
Protesters took to the streets in multiple U.S. cities on Labor Day to criticize President Donald Trump and demand a living wage for workers.

How Canadian women used unions to shape their lives for the better
Globe and Mail
It has been 130 years since the 1885 Factories Act in Quebec limited working hours to 60 hours a week for women and children, and started Canada on its path to addressing workplace health and safety issues. Another 60 years later, the Female Employees Fair Remuneration Act of 1952 was passed in Ontario, which mandated equal pay for men and women doing the same job. Women workers have come a long way since that law was enacted 75 years ago – a fitting topic for reflection on Labour Day.

Airlines aren't the only sector where women work unpaid hours
CBC Radio
Last week, the union representing Air Canada flight attendants reached a tentative agreement with the airline, ending their strike. At the heart of their contract dispute was the flight attendants' demand for ground pay — compensation for work prior to boarding and after landing.

Tax workers in call centres launch campaign against job cuts ahead of collective bargaining
Rabble
As the federal government prepares to table a budget in the fall, the Union of Taxation Employees (UTE) has launched a campaign against the deep public service cuts announced by Mark Carney and his government.

Hundreds of ‘Workers Over Billionaires’ Labor Day rallies take place across US
The Guardian
As Labor Day rallies took place across the US, the Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson sharply denounced the Trump administration’s threat to deploy federal troops to the city as part of an immigration crackdown.

How Trump is decimating federal employee unions one step at a time
NPR
Sharda Fornnarino got the news in early August.