McGill law professor union agrees to suspend strike, resume classes this week

McGill University campus is seen Tuesday, June 21, 2016 in Montreal. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson

The union representing law professors at McGill University has agreed to suspend its strike until the next meeting with an arbitrator.

The Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL) has been on strike since late August, and on Monday, the university's administration had threatened to cancel the semester for law students if the union hadn't agreed to end its labour action by the end of the day.

On Tuesday morning, McGill Provost Chris Manfredi and AMPL president Evan Fox-Decent issued a joint statement to law students stating that the union had agreed to end the strike until the meeting on Oct. 8.

"During this period the parties will try to find a federated approach between the different professor’s unions to negotiate collective agreements with the University," according to the statement, which was shared with CTV News.

"Classes will resume no later than October 3rd."

Robert Leckey, dean of the Faculty of Law, and Associate Dean Tina Piper are expected to release more details about the agreement in the coming days.

The Canadian Press reported on Monday that the university offered to drop its judicial review of the union's certification if it agreed to negotiate working conditions collectively with other unions at the school.

The university administration said it wants to avoid a "Kafkaesque situation" whereby different groups of professors would negotiate collective agreements independently.

The union, which includes more than 40 professors, had said faculty members wouldn't return to classrooms until McGill drops the legal challenge. It is also demanding better pay and more involvement in the faculty's governance.

"This solution is a win for everyone at McGill," said Fox-Decent, also a law professor, in a statement. "Through our first collective agreement, we will set a pattern that will serve all McGill professors, students and staff into the future."

Quebec's labour tribunal granted the certification of law professors' union in November 2022, but it has yet to adopt its first collective agreement. Tuesday's joint statement does not indicate whether it was dropping the legal challenge.

The union added: "McGill will need to agree to a federated structure that the unions present for the strike to end permanently. The parties must now work together to ensure that the strike will not resume on October 8."

After the law professors' union was formed, two other groups of professors in the education and arts fields have filed for union certification.

With files from The Canadian Press