UNB and striking faculty reach tentative agreement
The University of New Brunswick and its striking faculty have reached a tentative agreement, according to a statement issued by the union on Thursday.
Both sides are recommending the suspension of the strike and lockout, the Association of University of New Brunswick Teachers said.
"The parties agree to jointly announce further details within the next 24 hours," it states.
About 550 full-time professors, teaching staff and librarians walked off the job on Jan. 13 over wages and working conditions.
The Association of University of New Brunswick Teachers has been seeking an increase of more than 23 per cent over four years in order to bring salaries in line with those at Canadian universities of comparable size.
The university was offering a 9.5 per cent increase over the same period.
But after two days of talks with a provincially-appointed mediator, they have reached a tentative agreement on "the key issues related to wages," according to the AUNBT statement.
The talks have been subject to a media blackout.
The parties were ordered back to the bargaining table earlier this week by the Alward government.
Finishing the term with the least amount of disruption is a priority, Minister of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour Jody Carr has said.
The University of New Brunswick's Law Students' Society had called on the provincial government to intervene in the faculty strike.
Students have been holding protests at campuses across the province, saying they are the ones suffering the most.
