Conciliation talks scheduled for Monday amid labour dispute at Dalhousie

CITYnews halifax / By Mark Hodgins

A conciliation meeting is set for Sept. 8 in a bid to end the contract dispute between Dalhousie University and the Dalhousie Faculty Union (DFA).

Both the union and the university say provincial conciliation officer, Rick Rose, has scheduled a meeting for Monday at 9 a.m.

“The DFA welcomes the opportunity to get back to the table,” reads a statement from the DFA ahead of a rally planned for Friday afternoon at the university.

The Dalhousie Board of Governors says it also looks forward to resuming talks, but says those talks don’t need to wait for next week.

“Time is of the essence for our students, our faculty, and our entire Dalhousie community,” reads a statement from the university. “If talks can be productive and result in an outcome that allows our academic mission to resume in full, we see no reason to wait until Monday.”

Related:

• Many classes cancelled as students return to Dalhousie University
• Dalhousie University locks out faculty amid contract dispute
• Dalhousie salaries have fallen 9% behind inflation: Faculty Association says

Dalhousie locked out the faculty association on Aug. 20, and the DFA announced a strike a short time later.

The contract dispute has now led to many classes being cancelled at Dalhousie, if taught by DFA members. Students are frustrated by the lack of clarity around when they can get into their classes or speak to professors.

This has raised concerns for students attending the university, with many from the Maritimes taking a “wait and see” approach, the Dalhousie Student Union president told The Todd Veinotte Show.

“Folks are concerned about what an extended labour dispute looks like, whether that means they lose their fall reading week, whether that means they might lose an entire credit,” Maren Mealey, said.