AMUSE Casuals Bargaining Update #3

On March 27th, 2026 AMUSE met again with McGill University to negotiate the demands both parties presented at the previous meeting. The employer returned with a response to articles 1, 4 and 5.

Article 1: Purpose of the Collective Agreement
Starting right off the bat with a win, McGill agreed to our demand for article 1. This means our tentative agreement now better defines the purpose of our collective agreement, and excludes the language describing the C.A’s purpose was to “support the university’s mission”. 

It is important to AMUSE that the purpose of our collective agreement has the standard language every unionized workplace has. This win represents the swing of the pendulum away from centering the university, and toward the betterment of its employees. A win that sets a positive tone for negotiations and the collective agreement as a whole. 

Article 4: Management rights

We discussed the language proposed in article 4, which defines managerial rights. our expired c.a refers to the management rights only as outlined in the collective agreement itself, but makes no mention of the Act Respecting Labour Standards or the Canadian Charter of Human Rights. The employer agreed to expand this a bit but pushed back that this change was unnecessary. In response, AMUSE affirmed that there is an inconsistency in knowledge of legislation across management and by members who are new to Canada or Quebec, and that having this language is mutually beneficial for this reason. We want our collective agreement to be a strong tool for our members!  

McGill also said that they should not include the specific names of the acts, in case the titles of these laws change. Conversations on the specific language are ongoing.

Your bargaining team (missing: Josef and Domi)

Article 5: Relationships

In another win for AMUSE, McGill agreed to add language committing to open discussions about problems with the Union, and defining better the relationship between Employer and Union, and how we mutually address issues in a matter that is in good faith. 

The rest of the proposed article 5 regarding union rights and retaliation was rejected due to relevancy, and AMUSE agreed to move them to a more relevant article and address the same proposals under a different context. 

Open bargaining

The employer tabled a document titled “open bargaining protocol”. The 12-point document outlines a proposed set of rules by which open bargaining “will be permitted” by the employer. Parts of the document reiterate AMUSE’s position to foster transparent sessions that do not impede negotiations. However, the meeting time was cut short and AMUSE will respond to the demand at the next session on Tuesday, March 31st. 

Conversations are ongoing and we will keep you updated! If you are an AMUSE member, interested in attending these sessions as an observer, please reach out to outreach@amusepsac.org

HOW AMUSE MEMBERS CAN GET INVOLVED IN THE COMING WEEKS

Union members deserve to be kept updated on how bargaining is going. But remember, your elected bargaining team can't secure us wins without your help! Each update will have a section on what you can do to boost our negotiations with McGill, or different ways to get involved with your labour union, no matter your capacity!