OPSEU/SEFPO

Newsletter

Fighting tariffs a political performance as Ford pays off developers and Americanizes Ontario’s economy: OPSEU/SEFPO responds to FES

(Toronto, ON) – The Ford government presented its fall economic statement today, after rolling out the largest spending budget in Ontario’s history earlier this year. “The Ford government’s financial planning is for an imaginary Ontario – not the one we live in,” said JP Hornick, President of OPSEU/SEFPO. “A job-focused plan does not pour billions…

Andy Pedersen

November 6, 2025

Media

Media release

Message of solidarity for all those impacted by Hurricane Melissa

Dear members: As many of you will know, the worst hurricane ever to make landfall in Jamaica struck the island last week. The damage was extensive, with high winds approaching 300 km/h, accompanied by heavy rains and flooding. Hurricane relief efforts are on-going, not just in Jamaica but through Cuba and Haiti and the…

Andy Pedersen

November 5, 2025

Solidarity

Results are in – we have ratified our new collective agreement!

It’s official – full-time college support staff have voted 89% to ratify a new, three-year contract. Our ratification vote was historic, with over 75% of the division participating – that’s 7,799 members. This contract was only made possible through five long, difficult weeks on strike. Before we hit the picket lines, we faced an employer…

Andy Pedersen

November 4, 2025

Bargaining, Campaigns

OPSEU/SEFPO’s Rainbow Alliance is looking for new members! Deadline: Nov 26, 2025

OPSEU/SEFPO members in good standing are encouraged to apply to join the Rainbow Alliance arc-en-ciel! The committee provides representation and support to 2SLGBTQIA+ (Two Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex and Asexual) members. We promote equality and a harassment-free work environment. Tackling discrimination in the workplace means addressing and tackling discrimination in our communities,…

November 4, 2025

Equity and Human Rights

Worth Fighting For Strike Mandate Votes: YES votes growing every day!

Workers in the Worth Fighting For campaign are escalating their campaign and demonstrating they are organized and ready to fight for fair pay and long-term funding for the services they provide. To date, 46 units have voted YES in their strike mandate votes, joining more units who are in the process of scheduling strike mandate…

Worth Fighting For

Don’t let Doug Ford cheat your community: tell him to pay community and social service workers what they are owed

Workers in the Worth Fighting For campaign are ramping up their fight and calling on the Ford government to pay them what they are owed and invest in community and social services. Workers have had their wages squashed for years while community and social services have been chronically underfunded – leaving long waitlists for services…

Andy Pedersen

Worth Fighting For

Black Ontario Public Service Employees Network – Complete the Occupational Stagnation Survey Today!

The Black Ontario Public Service Employees Network (BOPSers) has launched an occupational stagnation survey as part of a broader initiative to better understand the factors contributing to occupational stagnation for Black employees within the OPS. Completing the survey will help BOPSers identify barriers to career growth and development, assess the effectiveness of current support systems…

Andy Pedersen

Equity and Human Rights

Anti-racism, Solidarity

OPSEU/SEFPO in the news: Return to office for Ontario civil servants ‘unnecessarily confusing,’ unions say

As members of the Ontario Public Service began the phased return to office earlier this month, OPSEU/SEFPO is making it clear that the Return to Office (RTO) mandate is a “direct show of disrespect” to workers. In a recent CBC Toronto article, Amanda Usher, Chair of the OPS Unified Central Employee Relations Committee and OPS…

Andy Pedersen

Bargaining, Media

OPSEU in the News

How to vote on your tentative collective agreement

Voting begins today at 12:00 p.m. on our tentative agreement, and will be open until Tuesday, November 4th at 3:00 p.m. Every full-time college support staff can vote on accepting the tentative agreement brought forward by the Bargaining Team. This moment marks a strategic milestone – not the end of our fight, but a powerful…

Andy Pedersen

Bargaining, Campaigns

Region 1 Weekend Educational

A Region 1 Weekend Educational will be held at the OPSEU/SEFPO London Membership Centre on on Saturday, Jan 17, 2026 (9:00 am – 4:30 pm), and Sunday, Jan 18 (9:00 am – 1:00 pm). Email completed application form to Mary MacDonald, London Regional Secretary at supportstafflondon@opseu.org Application Deadline: December 5, 2025 Agenda: Saturday, January 17…

Events

Member Education

College Full-time Support Staff Bargaining Update #33: Breaking down our tentative agreement – what we won with our strike

Earlier this month, we reached a tentative agreement after a 5-week long strike made possible by organizing that has reshaped our division and relationships across the province. Together, we exercised our collective power: engaging 10,000 support staff across the province to shut down campuses, building relationships and solidarity with students, labour and community allies, and putting…

Andy Pedersen

Take Action: Bill 124 Remedy

CERC Update: Bill 124 – Wage Reopener Remedy Immediate Action Required: Delayed Retroactive Pay for OPS Unified Members OPS Unified members are still waiting for the Bill 124 wage re-opener retroactive pay that was awarded in January 2024. Despite promises, many retired and inactive members have yet to receive what they are legally owed. This…

Andy Pedersen

LockTalk #18: Next Steps

Click here to download the PDF. Update from the bargaining table Your Correctional Bargaining Team met with the Employer on October 22 and 23. While we were able to sign off on a few items, the Employer failed to provide meaningful responses on the issues that matter most. The Employer has continuously failed to demonstrate…

October 29, 2025

Newsletter

Local Leadership Orientation, 155 Lesmill Rd

Local Leadership Orientation is taking place Nov. 17-20 at the Pan Pacific in Toronto. Dates: November 17 – 20, 2025 Monday, November 17, 9 am – 5 pm and 7 pm – 9 pm Tuesday, November 18, 9 am – 5 pm and 7 pm – 9 pm Wednesday, November 19, 9 am – 5…

October 27, 2025

Events

Member Education

CERC Stands Firm: We Do Not Support This Mandate

Over the past few weeks, many of you have shared frustration, anger, and concern about the employer’s Return-to-Office (RTO) directive and changes to Alternative Work Arrangements (AWAs). CERC wants to be clear: we do not support this mandate! It is disruptive, inequitable, and dismissive of the proven success of remote and hybrid work models that OPS…

Andy Pedersen

October 24, 2025

Worth Fighting For at Queen’s Park: Day of Action recap

On Thursday, October 23, OPSEU/SEFPO and CUPE Ontario community and social services workers and allies took our fight straight to the Ford government at Queen’s Park! Workers in the coordinated bargaining campaign are fighting to secure stable, long-term funding that invests in community and social services and finally provides workers meaningful wage increases. Years after…

Andy Pedersen

October 24, 2025

Worth Fighting For

HPD Central Bargaining: Employer Continues to Stall Interest Arbitration

Since May of this year, your HPD Central Bargaining Team has been through many stages of bargaining with the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA), pushing for solutions to the issues impacting hospital professionals across the province. Despite the team’s dedication and perseverance – and with repeated attempts to negotiate a fair contract – we have been…

Andy Pedersen

October 24, 2025