The last Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) council meeting of the school year on April 2 was dominated by intense debate over a new strike policy that would condemn unsafe behaviour on strike picket lines.
CUSA passed its new “Strikes and Picketing Policy” on a vote of nine against and 10 in favour.
The policy was moved by Roy Sengupta and was intended to give future CUSA council direction on how best to advocate for students in the event of another strike.
Major amendments were made by vice-president (student issues) Gina Parker, who said the focus of the policy should be student safety, not forcing CUSA to pick a side in labour disputes.
“Whatever happens at the bargaining table is between the union and the university,” said vice-president (finance) Folarin Odunayo, who voted down the motion.
“We cannot speak for all students because we cannot know what all students want,” he said.
The new policy suggests CUSA should support “a non-intimidating atmosphere at all picket lines” and work with Para Transpo to ensure accessibility on campus.
“The most important thing was the picketing policy because that dealt with the actual safety of students at the picket line. I’m glad to see that there’s some protection and some advocacy for students,” Sengupta said.
Parker’s amendments removed parts of the policy that were thought to be anti-labour by some councillors, including a line that said, “CUSA condemns all traffic disruptions and stoppages at picket lines, when these disruptions are deliberately caused by picketers.”
