Fourteenth week of the CUPE 1281 strike of staff against their employer, my union, the York University Faculty Association. This is now the second-longest strike in York University history.
But good news! The parties have settled a new collective agreement! They are now working on the back-to-work protocol. I hope to see them soon.
It's the eleventh week of the strike of my union's employees against my union at York University. Here's an interview with two members of CUPE 1281:
https://tempestmag.org/2026/01/being-on-strike-when-your-employer-is-a-union/
In the fifth week of my union's staff being on strike against my union, here's a long post about the situation:
https://www.miskatonic.org/2025/11/25/1281/
"I’ve had eighteen happy years in my union, the York University Faculty Association … over eighteen-and-a-half years of membership."
The CUPE 1281 strike at the York University Faculty Association is finishing its fourth week. Anonymous interview with a 1281 member here, with a good overview of the issues:
https://whatistobedone.ca/articles/cupe-1281-yufa-strike
It continues to boggle my mind that my union got itself this position---driving its staff to strike---and now that it's gone on so long.
CUPE 3903 (mostly adjunct, part-time faculty; also teaching and research assistants and a handful of librarians and archivists) is of course supporting CUPE 1281. Some YUFA people spent a lot of time building cross-campus solidarity. That's blown when one of the unions makes its own staff strike.
https://cupe3903.org/news/cupe-3903-exec-solidarity-with-cupe-1281-yufa-staff/
I'm in a union, the York University Faculty Association. YUFA has eight staff, also unionized, in a local of CUPE 1281. YUFA hired Ogletree Deakins to represent it and is insisting on hiring a non-unionized executive director. YUFA has been acting towards 1281 as York acts towards YUFA.
This morning the staff went on strike.
https://1281.cupe.ca/2025/10/26/yufa-staff-on-strike-for-health-safety-against-restructuring/
William Denton
