Media Advisory: OCUFA President Gyllian Phillips available to comment on Bill 148

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - July 20, 2017) - Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) President Gyllian Phillips will be available to comment on the important changes needed to Bill 148 at a press conference being held by the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) and Fight for $15 and Fairness.

The press conference is taking place at 9:45 a.m. on Friday July 21, 2017 in the Queen's Park Media Studio.

"University professors across the province are pleased the government is taking steps to bring more fairness to workplaces in Ontario," says OCUFA President Gyllian Phillips. "If strengthened, the equal pay and fair scheduling provisions being proposed in Bill 148 could make real differences for contract faculty who lack job security and face low pay compared to their full-time colleagues."

Professor Phillips will be available to discuss Bill 148 and how its provisions could be improved to support workers at Ontario's universities. This follows over ten presentations from faculty representatives at the ongoing committee hearings considering feedback on the bill.

In particular, OCUFA is advocating for changes that will bring more fairness for contract faculty who teach a growing number of courses at Ontario universities, but lack job security, receive low pay, and often do not have access to benefits. OCUFA has been working with the OFL and Fight for $15 and Fairness to propose changes to Ontario labour law that will create fair and decent jobs for all Ontario workers including equal pay, fair scheduling, and more secure and stable jobs.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 full-time tenure-stream professors, contact faculty and academic librarians in 28 faculty associations across Ontario. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at http://www.ocufa.on.ca.