Dalhousie University says it won’t offer tuition refunds following month-long lockout

Dalhousie University says it won’t be offering tuition refunds to students who were impacted by the month-long lockout that suspended numerous courses at the start of the fall semester.

The lockout, which started on Aug. 20, suspended all courses taught by Dalhousie Faculty Association members for three weeks. Those classes are scheduled to begin on Tuesday after union members overwhelmingly voted in favour of ratifying a new three-year collective agreement.

During and after the lockout, the Dalhousie Student Union has called for financial compensation for students who lost class time due to the labour disruption.

“We are asking for compensation for classes directly proportional to the about of class time lost,” Maren Mealey, president of the student union, previously told CTV News Atlantic. “Around three weeks is what we’ve lost so far and that is 21 per cent if the semester, so we are asking for 21 per cent off of the semester.”

In a written statement, the university said it will not be offering students refunds or rate changes, citing adjustments it’s made to the academic calendar to ensure learning outcomes are met.

“We will be supporting instructors in adjusting course delivery to meet required learning outcomes, which when combined with the changes to the academic calendar will allow for completing the term and preserving students’ ability to progress in their degrees and towards graduation,” the statement reads. “Based on changes to academic dates and scheduling, we are confident this will be the case for all students.”

The university says the final date to pay tuition and add or drop classes has been moved to Oct. 7. It also notes that classes that were suspended due to the lockout will now have their final day on Dec. 10.

Classes that weren’t impacted by the lockout will wrap up on Dec. 3. Exams will begin on Dec. 11 and end on Dec. 21.

The fall break will be unchanged and will run from Nov. 10 to 14.

Ratified deal

The new collective agreement for the Association’s nearly 1,000 members includes a 10 per cent wage increase over three years. The union previously sought a 14.25 per cent increase over the same time period and last month the university had proposed a six per cent pay bump.

The new deal also includes a top-up increase for parental leave, workload policies for each faculty and five days of paid leave for Indigenous faculty members to observe cultural or traditional days of importance.

The Association had been without a collective agreement since the end of June.

-With files from CTV News Atlantic’s Emma Convey

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