Labour and education in the news
Below are recent news stories on labour and education related issues. Click the headline to be taken to the article. Some may require a subscription. Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for article text.
July 2, 2025
First school year of cellphone ban well-received: minister
Winnipeg Free Press
Sweeping restrictions on cellphone use in schools are here to stay, despite frustrations related to inconsistent enforcement and student workarounds during the 2024-25 rollout.
Accessibility minister's comments about ASL interpreter a 'knife right in the back' for deaf graduate
CBC
A woman who was excited to celebrate with her family at a graduation event for Indigenous women on Thursday says it's hard to look at her college certificate after the experience was tainted by comments Manitoba's accessibility minister made about sharing the stage with a sign-language interpreter.
Dalhousie University facing $20M deficit, across-the-board cuts
CBC
Dalhousie University has released its final operating budget for the next year, announcing a deficit of $20.6 million, cuts to all faculties and tuition increases for some international students.
MUNFA Concerned Over Decision to Suspend VP Search at Grenfell Campus, Marine Institute
VOCM
Faculty at Memorial University are concerned about a decision to suspend searches for vice-president at two campuses.
Mount Royal faculty get 12% raise
Alberta Worker
Earlier this month, Mount Royal University published an update on their website regarding negotiations on a new collective agreement.
Univ. of Virginia president resigns amid Trump administration inquiry into diversity initiatives
NBC News
The president of the University of Virginia is resigning following pressure from the Trump administration to step aside amid a Justice Department investigation into the school’s diversity practices.
Nearly $87M in limbo for Kentucky schools as Trump administration withholds funding
Courier Journal
Kentucky school districts are operating without nearly $87 million they had expected to receive from the federal government, following a one-day notice that the funds wouldn't be distributed on time and could be in jeopardy.
Trump withholds nearly $7 billion from schools, leaving Colorado districts uncertain about future of programs
The Colorado Sun
The future of an estimated $70 million in federal dollars that support Colorado schools in educating students with significant learning needs, recruiting and retaining teachers and providing before- and after-school programming is up in the air after the Trump administration notified state education officials that it is freezing the funding.
Inside One of the Largest Student Worker Strikes Ever
The Nation
“We will leave after we share our testimony,” said Mae Bracelin through a megaphone, cutting off the dean of students at the podium. “I have seen the discrimination that my coworkers face. I have seen that my coworkers are unable to pay their rent at the end of the month, are unable to eat,” she continued, as the staff and faculty seated around the room squirmed. “I have seen the sexual assault that they face from coworkers, that they face from students. This cannot be allowed to continue.”
Former Hydro boss paid $880K for working 1½ months in 2024 until her ouster
CBC
The former boss of Manitoba Hydro was paid nearly $900,000 in compensation in 2024, despite only working 1½ months before her dismissal from the Crown corporation.
The Scab Ban Is A Huge Win, But It Must Be Enforced
The Maple
Labour organizations across Canada have been celebrating lately as the new federal anti-scab law finally came into force on June 20.
Union says 250 CN Tower workers have been locked out
CTV News
More than 250 workers at the CN Tower, one of the most iconic tourist sites in Toronto, have been locked out just before Canada Day, their union said on Monday.
London's deaf community left in the dark as Canadian Hearing Services workers enter 10th week of strike
CBC
Workers who support London's deaf and hard of hearing communities have been on the picket lines for more than two months now, which they say is impacting those communities as much as it is the employees.
Thousands of Philadelphia city workers on strike but judge orders some back to work
ABC News
A strike being staged by nearly 10,000 city workers in Philadelphia entered its second day Wednesday as a judge ordered some emergency service dispatchers and essential water department employees to return to work.
The National AFL-CIO ‘Slams’ Senate Republicans’ ‘Nearly $5 Trillion Billionaire Giveaway That Devastates’ Working Families
WNY Labor Today
The National AFL-CIO is condemning Senate Republicans for passing a budget Reconciliation Bill that raises costs on Working People, wipes out millions of jobs and rips health care away from 17 million Americans - all to hand billionaires one of the biggest paydays in history.
June 27, 2025
Classroom confidential
Winnipeg Free Press
Behind the education degrees and the lesson plans, dark secrets can lie hidden.
No 'silver bullet' to address shortfall at UPEI, people at budget open house are told
CBC
With international student enrolment down, a shortfall in revenue, and questions around its recent $202.9 million budget, the University of Prince Edward Island leadership held an open house on campus Wednesday to dive into the numbers for the 2025-2026 fiscal year.
Protests and petitions as calls grow for Quebec to backtrack on education cuts
CBC
Backlash continues to grow across the province after the Coalition Avenir Québec government announced budgetary cuts to education, resulting in $570 million less in funding for the upcoming school year.
The high costs of not grieving
OPSEU
In every unionized workplace, the collective agreement is more than just a contract— it’s the foundation of fairness, job security, and dignity on the job. But when union members fail to enforce their rights by not filing grievances when there are violations, that foundation begins to crack. Several pitfalls and consequences can arise.
How AI Could Reshape Global Education — And What Comes After
Forbes
Artificial intelligence could be moving from an optional add-on in educational institutions to being an integral part of how students learn. That’s, at least, what developments like Ohio State University’s decision to roll out across its undergraduate programs by autumn of 2025 suggest. And it’s not an isolated development. Back in October, 2024, California passed a bill mandating schools to incorporate AI literacy into their curricula.
Charles Sturt University to cut jobs to save $35m amid drop in international enrolments
ABC
One of the largest regional universities in Australia has told staff jobs will be cut as it looks to save $35 million from its budget.
Portage la Prairie hotel owners face rare labour trafficking charges
Winnipeg Free Press
Four Indian nationals worked 15-hour shifts, day after day, and earned less than half of minimum wage at a Portage la Prairie-area hotel, RCMP said Thursday as they announced the two owners had been charged with rare labour trafficking offences.
St. Clare's internal medicine doctors give mass resignation notice, warn of 'impending crisis'
CBC
Five doctors at a St. John's hospital have tendered a joint notice of resignation, saying their work environment has become "unsafe for both patient care and provider well-being," CBC Investigates has learned.
BMO to require employees work in the office four days a week come the fall
Globe and Mail
Bank of Montreal is the third major lender requiring staff to work from the office four days a week, signalling that major employers in Canada’s financial sector could soon follow suit.
Number of Canadians with workplace pensions rises amid retirement security concerns
Globe and Mail
The number of Canadians with workplace pensions has been on the rise, with more than two-thirds of those members covered by defined-benefit plans, according to a new report by Statistics Canada.
Canada’s labour market softens, with drop in job vacancies
Globe and Mail
The Canadian economy shed jobs in the early weeks of the U.S.-Canada trade war and vacancies continued to drop this spring, showing that employers are scaling back their hiring plans at a fraught time for the economy.
After another no-show, unions call for tougher EU sanctions on Amazon
UNI Global Union
UNI Europa has called on the European Parliament to take further action against Amazon after the tech giant failed to appear for a scheduled hearing on working conditions – marking the third time since 2021 the company has refused to engage with EU lawmakers.
June 26, 2025
Manitoba Labour Board rules against Thompson hotel in Temporary Foreign Worker program case
Winnipeg Free Press
A Thompson hotel has been found guilty of wrongfully firing temporary foreign workers who contacted Ottawa about alleged mistreatment.
DHL Express Canada reaches tentative agreement with union
CBC
Delivery company DHL Express Canada has reached a tentative agreement with its union, paving the way for the company to resume operations.
Canadian average wages outpacing inflation, Statistics Canada reports
CTV News
Average wages for working Canadians outpaced inflation on a year-over-year basis in April, according to data from Statistics Canada.
Ottawa sets target to keep Canada labour force 25 per cent immigrant
MSN
With Canada in the midst of a labour crunch, the Government of Canada has unveiled new targets to keep one-quarter of the the country’s labour force filled by immigrants.
80% of American hourly-wage workers are in ‘services’
Progressive Policy
The paradox at the core of the Trump administration’s tariff decrees: for American working life to improve, they argue, working-class living standards must fall. (Three TVs are too many for a working family, two dolls per girl should be enough, no price would be too high for locally-made toasters, etc.) Put more sympathetically, the administration’s claim is that while tariffs raise prices for families, they will offset this by shifting workers out of their current jobs into factories.
Billionaires’ wealth surged $6.5tn over past decade, Oxfam reports
The Guardian
The wealth of the world’s 3,000 billionaires has surged by $6.5tn (£4.8tn) in real terms over the past decade, according to Oxfam, equivalent to 14.6% of global output.
Major Win For KLM As Court Prohibits 24-hour Strike
Aviation Source News
In an unexpected turn, the court of Haarlem has prohibited the announced 24-hour strike by FNV (Federatie Nederlandse Vakbeweging) and CNV (Christian National Trade Union Federation). The judge presiding over the case said that it agreed with KLM. The court deemed the 24-hour planned strike by ground staff to be “disproportionate”.
Employers once more able to penalise workers for refusing extra duties
The Post
A bill that reintroduces the right of employers to penalise workers for “partial strikes” ‒ such as working to rule or refusing extra duties ‒ passed into law last night.
Manitoba auditor general looking into whether daycares are meeting accessibility goals after $1.2B in funding
CBC
Manitoba's auditor general has announced a value for money audit to review whether $1.2 billion in federal funding flowing to the Department of Education is actually making child care more accessible, in terms of creating more spaces and making it more inclusive by supporting children with a variety of needs.
Harvard, U of T reach contingency plan for international students to finish studies in Canada
Globe and Mail
Harvard and the University of Toronto have agreed on a contingency plan to allow some Harvard students to complete their program in Canada if they’re unable to re-enter the U.S. because of visa restrictions.
Johns Hopkins Gets the Most Federal Money, but Now Much of It Is at Risk
The New York Times
As President Trump unleashes dizzying firepower at the nation’s top universities, he and his supporters have made the argument that the institutions have brought such action onto themselves.
June 25, 2025
Gordon Bell students have winning recipe
Winnipeg Free Press
A group of local high schoolers are savouring the sweet taste of victory.
Brandon schools rife with racism, local Nigerians say
Winnipeg Free Press
The recent sword attack on a high school student was not an isolated incident, but rather “the boiling point of unchecked racism” that Nigerian students have had to endure, a spokesman for a local Nigerian group told school trustees this week.
Mennonite high school in Gretna won’t offer classes in fall, future uncertain
Winnipeg Free Press
Mennonite Collegiate Institute, a Grade 9-12 high school in Gretna, has announced it is pausing operations.
Ex-CBSA dog handler who contested maternity leave policy faced 'mobbing' of harassment: report
CBC
A former Canada Border Services Agency dog handler who filed a grievance over the program's maternity leave policy went on to face a "mobbing" of bullying and harassment that management knew about, a third-party investigator found.
Ontario Human Rights Commission offers hiring guidance to avoid Indigenous identity fraud
CBC
A new policy statement from the Ontario Human Rights Commission calls on employers hiring for Indigenous-specific positions to find ways to verify candidates' Indigenous identities, with help from Indigenous communities.
Ever heard of Driver Inc.? Canada's trucking industry is calling it a $1B scam
CBC
The national voice of the trucking industry in Canada is renewing calls for the federal government to pump the brakes on what it says is a $1-billion scam.
Support for parents in a post-pandemic world: Options for enhancing federal maternity and parental leave
CCPA
Growing economic precarity and the absence of community support are pressing concerns for young parents—and young people aspiring to be parents. Governments have an important role to play supporting families caring for young children—ensuring that all parents have the time, resources and supports needed for all to thrive.
Feedback wanted: B.C. launches public consultation on Labour Code overhaul
HRD
The B.C. government has opened public consultations on a comprehensive set of recommendations aimed at modernizing the province’s labour relations framework.
Unifor accuses DHL of breaking federal law by using replacement workers during strike
Globe and Mail
Unifor, the union representing thousands of striking DHL Express Canada workers, is alleging that the delivery giant is violating a new federal law that bans the use of replacement workers during strikes.
Trump cannot end union bargaining for federal workers, judge rules
Reuters
A federal judge on Tuesday blocked Republican President Donald Trump's administration from eliminating union bargaining for hundreds of thousands of federal workers at 21 agencies.
“It’s an uphill struggle to run a trade union in Hong Kong” – but still, they organise
Equal Times
After graduating from university a year ago, Shan Ho landed the exact job that she wanted. But she never tells her parents what she does, other than vaguely calling it a “white-collar job”. They are aware of her meagre salary but don’t know the bigger truth: that Shan is a trade unionist. If they find out, they might lose sleep.
Hong Kong passes law barring national security offenders from organizing unions
Jurist News
The Hong Kong legislative council passed a law on Wednesday that bans anyone convicted of a national security offence from creating or holding a leadership position within a union.
June 24, 2025
Manitoba flight school now barred from training pilots put students in 'significant danger': whistleblower
CBC
A Manitoba flight school was banned from training pilots "in the interest of public safety," Transport Canada says, more than a year after a former instructor came forward with allegations the school failed to follow aviation rules and put students in "significant danger."
Author wins lawsuit against U of Regina professor who called book 'racist garbage'
CBC
The author of a self-published book critical of the Neil Stonechild inquiry has won a defamation lawsuit against a University of Regina professor that called it "racist garbage."
U.S. science funding uncertainty reshapes grad school choices for Canadians
CBC
After graduating with a bachelor degree in mathematics from the University of Waterloo, Kareem Alfarra had hopes of continuing his studies in the United States.
Nobody likes to take exams — but they might be more valuable than you think
CBC
As high schools across Canada wind down for the academic year, students are entering the final stretch of their exams — a period marked by both anticipation and anxiety.
Inclusivity questioned after N.S. student on autism spectrum told to stay home
CBC
A Nova Scotia mother says her son was denied his right to an education when he was told to stay home from school for two weeks due to behavioural challenges related to his autism spectrum disorder.
Ontario heat wave prompts concerns about students, educators sweltering in schools
Globe and Mail
Five-year-old Emmett Mullins, pale and warm to the touch when he returned from school on Thursday, started vomiting at home.
Trump administration orders California to remove gender identity from sex education lessons
Los Angeles Times
The Trump administration has given California 60 days to remove gender identity materials from sex education curriculum or risk losing more than $12.3 million in federal grants that helped pay for the creation and distribution of the materials.
Behind Closed Doors, Harvard Officials Debate a Risky Truce With Trump
New York Times
Harvard University, battered by a devastating conflict with the Trump administration that has jeopardized its elite standing, is facing a problem as it weighs a possible truce with President Trump: how to strike a deal without compromising its values or appearing to have capitulated.
Manitoba injury claims up in 2024: WCB
Winnipeg Free Press
The Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba spent more than $266 million on injury claims in 2024 — nearly $56 million, or 26.6 per cent, over budget.
'No one ever calls them back': University students in N.S. struggling to find summer jobs
CBC
As summer begins, university students in Nova Scotia are scrambling to find work and many say they are frustrated.
LETTER: Canada Post 'trying to sabotage itself,' says union rep
Barrie Today
I fully believe the company I work for is trying to sabotage itself.
Unions Hope a Federal ‘Scab’ Worker Ban Will Bring Wins
The Tyee
As Michael Phillips joined striking technicians at an Abbotsford picket line on Thursday, he knew the union would now have more power.
The Liberals Are Bailing Out Canada Post Management Again
The Maple
The saga at Canada Post continues, and once again the government is heeding management’s call to bail them out.
'This staffing is a crisis': Minnesota Nurses Association votes on strike
KARE11
Thousands of nurses across the state are voting on whether or not to authorize a strike.
June 23, 2025
Pembina Trails Collegiate marks historic moment with 1st grad class
CBC
A Winnipeg high school is making history this month, as it celebrates its first group of grade 12 graduates.
Sask. students and teachers continue to grapple with pronoun consent law as school year wraps
CBC
As the school year winds down in Saskatchewan, some students say they've had starkly different experiences since the province's pronoun consent law came into effect.
Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil released from U.S. immigration detention
CBC
Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil was released on Friday from federal immigration detention, freed after three months by a judge's ruling after becoming a symbol of U.S. President Donald Trump 's clampdown on campus protests.
University and College workers raise the alarm on proposed changes in Bill 33
Globe Newswire
The Ontario Universities and Colleges Coalition (OUCC) is deeply concerned with the proposed changes in Bill 33, the Supporting Children and Students Act, 2025.
What’s causing Canada’s education quality decline? Experts chime in
CTV News
Canada’s education quality has been facing a slow decline over the past few years, research has shown.
Harvard hired a researcher to uncover its ties to slavery. He says the results cost him his job: ‘We found too many slaves’
The Guardian
Jordan Lloyd had been praying for something big to happen. The 35-year-old screenwriter was quarantining in her apartment in North Hollywood in June 2020. Without any work projects to fill her days, she picked up the novel Roots, by Alex Haley, to reread.
Trump says he's close to 'a Deal' with Harvard, as judge grants injunction
NPR
On social media Friday President Trump wrote the administration had been working closely with Harvard University to strike a deal, with an announcement likely next week.
VIA Rail and Unifor reach tentative agreement, avoiding a strike
CBC
Via Rail has reached a tentative deal with the union representing 2,400 of its workers across the country, the Crown corporation said on Friday.
CEO pay rose almost 20 per cent last year as executives benefited from strong stock market
Globe and Mail
Canada’s top executives got a nearly 20-per-cent raise last year as stock prices soared and corporate boards increasingly opted to pay their senior leaders with shares over options.
How much were Canada’s top CEOs paid in 2024? Here’s the full breakdown
Globe and Mail
This is a ranking of compensation in fiscal 2024 for the chief executive officers from the 100 largest public companies (by market capitalization) in Canada’s benchmark S&P/TSX composite index as of Dec. 31, 2024.
Anti-scab bill becomes law but vulnerabilities remain
Rabble
A federal bill restricting use of replacement workers came into effect on Friday morning. Major labour organizations like the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) and Unifor are celebrating this development as the end of a practice that undermined workers’ right to strike.
In Belarus, they fire people for reading “wrong” news
Saladarnast
A vivid illustration of this is a recent article in the pro-Government “Hrodnenskaya Pravda” newspaper which describes – and with apparent pride, too – how the militia has tracked down a resident of the town’s Mostovsky District who has been reading independent Internet resources “for a number of years”. The man was accused of the “deliberate use of extremist materials” and dismissed from his job with a sizeable fine on top of it.
