Ontario college support staff ratify new collective agreement after ending strike

College support staff picket outside George Brown College's St. James Campus in Toronto on Thursday, Sept. 11, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sammy Kogan

TORONTO — The union representing more than 10,000 full-time college support staff at Ontario’s 24 public colleges says its members have ratified a new, three-year contract.

The Ontario Public Service Employees Union says more than 75 per cent of the membership voted, with 89 per cent in favour of the new agreement.

The union reached a tentative agreement with the College Employer Council last month after a nearly five-week strike.

On some days during the strike, in-person classes and activities were cancelled on campuses where striking staff held rallies, including at Mohawk College in Hamilton and St. Clair College in Windsor, Ont.

The union says the new collective agreement includes increases to on-call rates and shift premiums, wage increases, enhanced severance and improvements to job security, among other provisions.

The College Employer Council says it’s “grateful” that the agreement has been ratified and that support staff have returned to work.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2025.