Statement from OSSTF/FEESO President Martha Hradowy

For Immediate Release: Monday, February 9, 2026

TORONTO, ON — OSSTF/FEESO stands in full solidarity with members of OSSTF/FEESO District 35 – Brock University Support Staff who are facing the prospect of serious job losses and restructuring with little transparency and inadequate consultation.

Support staff are essential to the daily functioning of post-secondary institutions. They provide vital supports and services that students, faculty, and campus communities rely on every day. When these jobs are put at risk, workers are not the only ones affected. Students, faculty, and the broader campus community all feel the impact.

The OSSTF/FEESO Brock University bargaining unit has been clear that, despite repeated requests, Brock University administration has failed to provide complete and detailed information about the scope of potential layoffs or the nature of the restructuring being contemplated. The university has not been able to commit to a specific number of positions being eliminated, and that uncertainty continues.

The lack of transparency is unacceptable. Workers deserve honest answers, meaningful consultation, and respect for their collective agreement rights. Any staffing changes must fully comply with the terms of the OSSTF/FEESO District 35 – Brock University Support Staff collective agreement, including provisions related to notice, consultation, job security, and representation.

OSSTF/FEESO provincial office is deeply concerned by reports that OSSTF/FEESO-represented positions are being disproportionately targeted, and that decisions may be driven by third-party “efficiency” exercises conducted behind closed doors. We are also concerned that some workers are being directed toward so-called “restructured” or “new” positions that the university is attempting to reclassify outside the bargaining unit. OSSTF/FEESO is actively pushing back on these efforts.

Cost cutting cannot become a cover for undermining unions, eroding job security, or weakening the quality of education and student supports. Respect for collective bargaining and legally binding agreements must be the starting point for any discussion about change.

These developments are unfolding in the context of chronic provincial underfunding of post-secondary education. Ontario continues to rank last in Canada in per-student funding, placing enormous strain on institutions across the province. But the solution is not to cut the very workers who keep campuses running. The solution is sustainable, predictable public investment in colleges and universities.

OSSTF/FEESO calls on Brock University to halt any further layoffs, provide full transparency about proposed changes, and engage in genuine, good-faith consultation with unions. That consultation must be rooted in strict adherence to existing collective agreements.

We also call on the Ontario government to address the funding crisis in post-secondary education, so institutions are not pushed toward harmful decisions that destabilize campuses and communities.

We will continue to stand with our Brock University support staff members and support their fight for fairness, dignity, and job security.

OSSTF/FEESO, founded in 1919, has over 60,000 members across Ontario. They include public high school teachers, occasional teachers, educational assistants, continuing education teachers and instructors, early childhood educators, psychologists, secretaries, speech-language pathologists, social workers, plant support personnel, university support staff, and many others in education.