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People gather on a lawn with trees, listening to a speaker

McGill drops legal challenge against faculty unions, ending law profs’ strike

October 9, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

Law professors at McGill University have ended their strike after the university agreed to drop its legal challenge against their union.

The Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL) have been on strike August 26. They paused that strike last Tuesday, following a threat from the university to cancel class for the fall semester.

On Monday, the university signed a memorandum of understanding to make that pause permanent. It committed to ending its legal challenge against AMPL, as well as fledgling unions in the faculties of arts and education, and establishing a process for collective bargaining with its faculty unions.

McGill put out a statement announcing what it called a “new path forward.” The university thanked “students and colleagues for their patience as academic and administrative activities resume.”

CKUT spoke to AMPL’s Kirsten Anker about what this means for law professors and unions across campus.

McGill Law back in session – but for how long?

October 2, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

McGill’s law professors suspended their strike on Tuesday, after being on the picket line since August 26. But the union says that whether they and the students stay in the classroom hinges on McGill.

The Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL) has given the university an Oct. 8 deadline to agree to a process that would allow the university to recognize various faculty unions, and negotiate collective agreements, together.

In an email sent to law students on Tuesday, McGill Provost Christopher Manfredi and AMPL President Evan Fox-Decent said that the parties will use the week of negotiations to “try to find a federated approach.”

However, AMPL says McGill must also drop legal challenges to its certification, as well as that of unions in the faculties of education and arts, or it will restart its strike.

The initial agreement comes after the university threatened to cancel class for the semester if the profs continued their strike.

With files from Lawrence Plastina

Binding arbitration being used as anti-union tool: labour expert

September 6, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

Whether it’s nationally or locally, binding arbitration is coming up in labour disputes – and unions are crying foul.

Federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon sent railway workers and operators into binding arbitration last month, following a lockout that shut down Canada’s railways on August 22.

Here in Montreal, McGill’s law professors are on the picket line but say their right to strike will be at risk once binding arbitration progresses.

Sociologist Barry Eidlin joins CKUT to discuss whether arbitration is being used to tip the scales of bargaining in favour of employers, and what the government’s role is in applying labour law.

Law professors on strike as McGill goes ahead with arbitration, certification challenge

August 27, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

The Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL) is once again on strike.

Following its eight-week strike at the end of the winter term, AMPL launched an indefinite strike on Monday, coinciding with the start of the fall semester.

The strikes comes ten days after a Quebec Superior Court Judge affirmed McGill’s right to binding arbitration, a process where an independent arbitrator will hear from both parties and decide, point by point, what a collective agreement looks like.

AMPL representative Kirsten Anker told CKUT the union had offered to cancel the strike if McGill inked out a partial agreement going into arbitration, mostly on points both sides had agreed to. The union also demanded McGill drop a court challenge to the union’s certification. They say the university declined.

When reached by CKUT, McGill declined to comment on that offer, writing instead that “AMPL notified the University, late Sunday evening, that its members would be on strike…. The university will do everything in its power to minimize impacts on students and we reiterate our respect for our valued colleagues in the Faculty of Law.”

A sign reads "on strike." It is outside against some trees and there are blue and green union/academic flags above it.

Congress 2024: associations looking to meet elsewhere after calls to boycott McGill

May 29, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

Academic associations are facing tough decisions about where to meet in light of calls to boycott Congress 2024, a June 12-21 slate of conferences held by the Canadian Federation of the Humanities and Social Sciences and set at McGill.

The Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL), which has been on strike since April 24, has been calling for associations to avoid crossing their picket line, or to show solidarity with the union if moving off-campus was unavoidable. Now, the Popular University Encampment is joining with a larger call to boycott the Congress.

CKUT spoke to the AMPL’s Kirsten Anker as well as some of those who are going off campus, or withdrawing from the conference entirely, to show their solidarity with picketers and protestors at McGill.

A man sporting a kufiyeh holds a mic at a press conference on McGill's lower field. Tents and Palestinian flags can be seen in the background.

McGill seeks new injunction against pro-Palestine encampment

May 18, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

McGill University announced Friday they’re taking the next steps in their legal proceedings against the pro-Palestine encampment (the “Popular University Encampment”) on their downtown campus. The steps come in the form of a new interlocutory injunction request, according to a statement from McGill communications.

Their last request was for a provisional interlocutory injunction, which holds the added criterion of urgency. That was rejected by Quebec Superior Court Judge Marc St-Pierre on Wednesday.

CKUT will follow this story as it develops.

With additional files from Athina Khalid and Louise Banks.

People walk up a pedestrian street on McGill campus. The sky is blue with clouds, and in the background, the leaves on the trees are starting to turn.

Law profs poised to strike unless McGill reaches agreement by April 23

April 17, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

On April 11, the Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL) announced that they’re ready to go on indefinite strike if McGill doesn’t put forth an agreement-in-principle by April 23. This follows a one-day strike in February.

CKUT spoke to the President of the Association, law professor Evan Fox-Decent, about whether McGill is “fail[ing] to negotiate in good faith” by not making bargaining a priority.

McGill declined to comment when reached by CKUT.

McGill law profs stage one-day strike in defence of new union

February 16, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

On Tuesday, dozens of students and professors in McGill’s faculty of law took to the picket line.

The Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL) is McGill’s first professor union after being ratified by Quebec’s labour tribunal in November 2022.

The AMPL says they’ve met with resistance from McGill’s administration, including a legal appeal of their ratification and an unwillingness to engage in good-faith bargaining.

With files from Ghazal Azizi