TorontoYounger voters who believe in public accessible university and college education for all Canadians, should use their vote to tell the Chretien Liberals theyve done a shoddy job funding our public post-secondary education system. Tuition has skyrocketed since this government began slashing more than $5.2 billion from higher education transfer payments to the provinces, says Sid Ryan the Ontario president of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).
Ryan will be a keynote speaker at a demonstration on:
Thursday, November 23, 2000
At 12:30 p.m.
Liberal Party Headquarters
10 St. Mary St. (between Wellesley and Bloor, off of Yonge St.)
The demonstration is organized by CUPE Local 3903, the union representing 2100 striking contract faculty, teaching assistants and graduate assistants at York University.
The union says there is a direct connection to the labour unrest at York University and the inadequate funding of post-secondary education by the Liberal government.
In Ontario, the lack of federal dollars has given the Ontario Tories the perfect opportunity to introduce private, for-profit universities here. All voters, but particularly young people, should consider the federal Liberals dismal record funding post-secondary, and vote accordingly, says Ryan.
Over the past year, underfunding in the university sector has resulted in strikes of part-time faculty at the University of Toronto, McMaster University, Carleton and now York University. CUPE 3903 has been on strike since the end of October. Key issues in dispute are job security and protection against future tuition increases.
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For more information please contact:
Sid Ryan, President CUPE Ontario
(416) 209-0066
Stella Yeadon, CUPE Communications
(416) 578-8774
Michelle Lowry, CUPE Local 3903
(416) 877-2109