We, the undersigned, are undergraduates at the University of Toronto. Earlier this week, it was announced that a tentative agreement was signed between the university and member of the CUPE 3902 bargaining team. This agreement was not unanimously endorsed by members of the bargaining team. At a meeting held on Friday evening, members of CUPE 3902 voted 789-739 to send the agreement to ratification. Many members of CUPE 3902 have expressed disappointment with this deal, with some saying that it is not much better than the original.

As undergraduates, we have felt the pressure of the strike firsthand. Our classes are cancelled, tutorials and labs are shut. In classes where teaching assistants do the bulk of our marking, the syllabus has been dramatically changed — at times improperly against Faculty rules. Often, this means less evaluations and heavily weighted exams and tests. This is not a quality education. In courses where the instructor has been on strike, the department has stepped in and attempted to finish the work the instructor started.

We, the undergraduates, know that ending the strike now will not magically fix everything. We have lost three weeks of the term due to the university’s stalling, the university as of now has no plans to extend the term – the damage is done and the changes are here to stay. That said, we acknowledge that the conditions of our teaching assistants, course instructors, lab invigilators and other members of CUPE 3902 Unit 1 have been dire. We do not blame them for the strike. Indeed, the level of disruption which we face as undergraduates says something important about the value and import of unit one members to undergraduate education.

It has been three weeks since this strike has started and it seems that the proposed tentative agreement does little to address the grievances that initiated this labour action in the first place. If this agreement is agreed upon, it will likely mean picket lines in the near future for the next generation of undergraduates. It would mean that, we have rewarded the university for its inaction. We pay thousands of dollars each year to the University of Toronto, expecting that some of it go to those who teach us and we expect the university to be held to account for not living up to this expectation.

There have been some who have said that if CUPE 3902 votes no to this agreement, then they will lose undergraduate support. Members of CUPE 3902 are free to vote how they want this weekend and we encourage them to vote how they feel. But if we were in their position – we would vote no. Voting yes does not do anything to help undergraduates – the damage is done from this strike. It creates conditions for another strike and continues the status quo at the University of Toronto.

Even if this strike persists, we will continue to support you.

Yours in solidarity,

Abdullah Shihipar

Arts and Science Students’ Union (ASSU) President

Cell and Systems Biology, Psychology, American Studies

Jesse Berlin

Cognitive and Artificial Intelligence Students’ Association (CASA) President

Cognitive Science, Philosophy, Computer Science

Nikki Dionsio

Scarborough Campus Students’ Union (SCSU) President-Elect

Psychology Specialist

Elaine Gillis

Celtic Studies Course Union (CSCU) Co-President

Celtic Studies, Medieval Studies, and Anthropology

Toby Keymer

Classics Students’ Union (CLASSU) Secretary

Classics and Philosophy

Ariel Charney

ASSU Executive

Health Studies Specialist

Willem Crispin-Frei

CLASSU Vice President

Classics and Geography

Juensung Kim

CASA Vice President

Cognitive Science, Philosophy, and Buddhism, Psychology, and Mental Health

Monica Dairo

Environmental Students’ Union (ENSU) President

Environmental Studies, English, French

Paniz Bastan Hagh

Buddhism Psychology Student Union (BPSU) Vice President Internal

Neuroscience, Biology, Buddhism Psychology and Mental Health

Taylor Stark

CLASSU President

Classics Specialist

Rory Nicol

BPSU President

Religion and Buddhism, Psychology and Mental Health

Sarah Leily and Shannon McKechnie

Anthropology Students’ Association (ASA) Co-Presidents

Anthropology (Society, Culture, Language) Specialists

Mitch Cram

CLASSU Executive

English Specialist

Tobi René Wilczek

Vice President, German Studies Students’ Union (GSSU)

Philosophy and German Studies

Stephanie Tran

Peace, Conflict and Justice Society Co-President, Women and Gender Studies Students’ Union (WGSSU) Vice President, Psychology Students’ Association (PSA) Treasurer

Peace, Conflict and Justice Studies and Women and Gender Studies

Dylan Chauvin-Smith

ASSU Treasurer

English and Cinema Studies

Marie Laing

Co-President, Sexual Diversity Studies Students’ Union (SDSSU)

Sexual Diversity Studies, Philosophy, Music History & Culture

Mariela Libedinsky

Events Coordinator, Philosophy Course Union.

Philosophy and Political Science

Charles Dalrymple-Fraser

Co-President, Philosophy Course Union

Philosophy, Psychology and Bioethics

Lisa Chen

ASSU Executive, History and Philosophy of Science Undergraduate Society (HPSUS) Secretary

History and Philosophy of Science, English and, Asian Culture and Literature

Abigail Cudjoe

French Course Union (FCU) Vice President

French Literature and Philosophy

Haseeb Hassaan

Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations Students’ Union (NMCSU) Treasurer-Elect

Political Science & Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations

Anastasia Bizyayeva

Philosopher Course Union Treasurer

Philosophy Specialist

Agata Szmygin

Treasurer, CASA

Cognitive Science, Literature and Critical Theory, Philosophy

Sydney Lang

VP Public Relations, Equity Studies Students’ Union (ESSU)

Socio-Cultural Anthropology, Equity Studies and Women and Gender Studies

Edwin Cacho

FCU President

French Literature Specialist

Khashayar Zayyani

CASA Secretary

Philosophy and Cognitive Science

Uttra Gautam

ASSU Executive

Psychology and Criminology

Najiba Ali Sardar

UTSU VP Equity

Political Science and Diaspora and Transnational Studies

Dominique Claybo

VP Health Studies Student Union

Health Studies

Ellie Winston

CINSSU Special Events Coordinator

Cinema Studies

Akta Sehgal

WGSSU President

Diaspora and Transnational Studies, Equity Studies and Women and Gender Studies

Nour Chatti

Co-President of the Urban Studies Student Union (URSSU)

Human Geography and Urban Studies

Mackenzie Edwards

Events Manager, Women and Gender Studies Student Union

English / Women and Gender Studies

Zach Morgenstern

UTSU Victoria College Director

Peace, Conflict & Justice Studies and Ecology & Evolutionary Biology

Surman Furmah

Environmental Students’ Union (ENSU) – External Liaison

Criminology and Environmental Ethics

Priya Soundranayagam

VP Academic- History Students’ Association

Marko Velimir Kobak

Political Science, Diaspora and Transnational Studies, South Asian Studies

Victoria McKenzie

Comparative Literature, Religion and Philosophy

Ryan Gomes

UTSU Engineering Board of Director

Mechanical Engineering

Yasmeen Emadi

History, Diaspora and Transnational Studies

Vipasha Shaikh

Politics, History & Semiotics

Natalie Petra

ASSU Executive Elect

Asha Sardar

Journal of Undergraduate Life Sciences (JULS) – Co-Editor in Chief

Human Biology, Foreign Languages

The Executive of the Equity Studies Students’ Union

Frishta Bastan

Board of Director – UTMSU & UTSU & Co-President of UTM Afghan Students Association

Political Science

Sebastian Rueda

Political Science

Nida-Baig Mirza

Political Science, History and English

SuJung Lee

Philosophy, Economics

Heba Al Sabbagh

Undergraduate Student at UTM

Biology for Health Sciences and Psychology Double Major

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