Can students sue the union for disrupting their paid education?

[Gawd]

Since the college strike is in its thrid week, it made me wonder, is there a law or some sorta protection that unions have that prevents people from suing them?

If I'm a student, why can't I sue the union for hindering the education that I paid for?

And this relates to the previous emergency workers strike, if I called 911 with an injury or medical emergency and the response was hindered because of their strike, can I sue the organizations for preventing and delaying my healing and treatment?

Now I know they're striking for their own benefits and stuff, but I'm looking at this from the student/patient perspective, cuz in the end, they're the ones who are getting it up the ass, moreso than the striking unions.

 

[oldjones]

You can only sue someone who has done you a wrong; like failing to honour a contract they made with you. The student has no contract w/ the faculty association, so I don't know what grounds they would have for suing. They might sue the college they paid tuition to, but the colleges have promised they will give the students the opportunity to make up their year, so no wrong is done there.

I pay the door fee at a MP that's raided, before I get my massage; I can't sue the cops.

Frustrating, but life is full of frustrations.

 

[Brookstone]

what i think is funny about this whole thing is, the union goes out of the way to tell everyone that they are on strike cuz they CARE about the students, education etc. Then they go on strike a month before finals. Am i the only 1 who thinks that doesnt make sense? you care about them,then, like Gawd said, you screw them up the ass.

think they said something about students taking one final exam and if they pass, they pass the course. dont think that'll happen though.

 

[Keebler Elf]

You should take a labour relations course and learn what collective bargaining is all about. Here's a hint: the universe doesn't revolve around you.

 

[WhaWhaWha]

Who can I sue?

Emergency workers
Advance notice applies here. If you were aware that emergency workers were on strike before you got sick, you would be responsible for provisioning a backup plan - i.e. putting aside cab fare or arranging a reliable ride. While this may not be possible for everyone it is plausible enough that noone can sue emergency workers for loss due to inavailability during an announced strike. It may not be fair but it will hold up in court.

Education
As for hindering your education - how do you put a dollar value on that? My education survived a University strike in the 80s, which lasted several weeks. Picketing professors blocked entrances allowing cars to pass in and out slowly. Some classes were missed. We picked up where we left off when the strike ended. Since the strike was no secret, you probably had time to obtain a tuition refund, drop your courses and go to work. You can always re enrol in another season.

 

[red]

sure you can sue anyone, but can you win?

 

[Cinema Face]

It's all Mike Harris' fault. Oh, wait a minute, he's not premier anymore. Then it must be McGuinty's fault sinse he promised to make peace with labour unions.

I guess that's the 232nd promise broken.

 

[fuji]

Technically it's a lockout, meaning it's the school not allowing the union members to work. Still, it inconveniences a lot of people and it plainly should have been forced to binding arbitration some time ago.

Collective bargaining should not mean fucking over everyone related to the business.

 

[A-ROD]

You should take a labour relations course and learn what collective bargaining is all about. Here's a hint: the universe doesn't revolve around you.

Does that mean it should revolve around the union?

 

[scouser1]

A few years back there was a strike at York U while I was a student there and I went in to the legal aid clinic just inquiring about such an issue and was told there are certain circumstances in which the university has the right to cancel courses, like an outstanding circumstances clause, and that was the end of my adventure.

 

[booboobear]

You can only sue someone who has done you a wrong; like failing to honour a contract they made with you. The student has no contract w/ the faculty association, so I don't know what grounds they would have for suing. /QUOTE]

While they have no written contract there should be an implied contract. This strike is nonsense . Let me put it anothe rway , if you took your car to a dealership and paid in advance for repairs and they didn't do them I think you would at least be entitled to your money back. I assure you if all future students refused to sign up for these college courses unless a clause was added guaranteeing a refund then the colleges would have to address the issue but when they have your money they couldn't care.

 

[fuji]

I don't think the students have any contract with the faculty, express or implied. They DO have a contract with the school. They certainly could sue the school, and the school could in turm sue the union if there were grounds for doing so.

 

[Bud Plug]

The right to strike or lockout in the context of collective bargaining depends upon a couple of premises to be effective: 1) the existing workforce is better trained for the work at hand, and will therefore be more productive than a new employee hired off the street, and 2) the longer that strikes or lockouts last, the greater the amount of business lost to competitors. These features operate to reduce the length of labour disputes, because if either side remains unreasonable for too long, both owners and workers will suffer the consequences of lost business.

This is a private sector model where competition exists. Collective bargaining was never designed for the public sector where governments create artificial monopolies over service, and correspondingly, provide public sector unions with a monopoly over labour. The bottom line is that collective bargaining has no place where there is no competition. The system doesn't work without it.

Arbitration is not the solution. Arbitrators are not accountable to taxpayers. Arbitrators believe there is a limitless ability to tax.

Employment as a college professor should be a simple matter of individual contract. Take the job if you like the terms. Quit the job if you don't. Unlike other workers, college professors usually have other career options if they are dissatisfied with working for a college.

 

[Bud Plug]

P.S. Unions can't be sued because of s. 3 of the Rights of Labour Act, and because they are unincorporated associations.

 

[dreamer]

I think that all education related union contracts should by law, expire after the school term is over, not in the middle of the school year.

Just my opinion.

 

[booboobear]

I think that all education related union contracts should by law, expire after the school term is over, not in the middle of the school year.

Just my opinion.

I totally agree at least this way then if there is a strike students won't pay money for classes they may not receive.

 

[Brookstone]

I think that all education related union contracts should by law, expire after the school term is over, not in the middle of the school year.

Just my opinion.

exactly. dont worry dreamer, you're not on your own on this 1. many would agree thats the logic thing to do.

 

[fuji]

Except of course the union. The union wants to precipitate a strike/lockout at exactly the moment when doing so puts the greatest pressure on the employer. The union workers suffer the same wage loss whether they strike during the summer or the school year. The school, however, would not suffer nearly so much from a summer strike.

For the same reason, garbage workers prefer to strike in the summer, and factory workers prefer to strike at peak season, so that they are inflicting maximum harm.

In general I think there are far too many lockouts and strikes. Most of these things could be settled by arbitration and should be. I also tend to think that there should be more competition and more jobs should be done by contractors rather than govt. employees. Why not let schools compete with each other the way American schools do, for example? Why think of professors as public servants?

Of course CUPE/OPSEAU/etc. would strongly oppose any move to privitize any of these jobs because they'd know that in a competitive environment they couldn't win just by calling a strike--they'd have to negotiate. In the private world striking too long or at the wrong time can jeapordize employment by ruining the business.

 

[modflogger]

I think that all education related union contracts should by law, expire after the school term is over, not in the middle of the school year.

Just my opinion.

The contract for this particular strike expired last year sometime and the teachers had been working without a contract until the strike began. As such, your plan wouldn't really have any bearing. Sorry.

A better idea is that with the constant talk of "teachers are shaping the future generations" and "education is our most important public service" that they always spew in disputes like this, they should be made an essential service and not be allowed to strike at all. Problem solved.

 

[Keebler Elf]

Does that mean it should revolve around the union?

Nope. But I don't see the union whining on TERB about how students aren't supporting it.