UNBC and its Faculty Association will resume negotiations soon as both sides try and hammer out a new contract.
On Tuesday, BC Labour Minister Harry Baines appointed a mediator to kick-start talks as students have gone nearly three weeks without classes.
Northern Undergraduate Student Society President, Holly McVea is pleased to see the mediator jump in.
“I’m quite excited that a mediator has been named and they are on their way up here. The mediator has special powers, which include making the parties be under oath and producing records related to the issues at hand, so hopefully, this process does expedite this process a little bit.”
McVea adds all the students she’s spoken to are getting frustrated by the labour dispute.
“The majority of students have said that their patience is wearing thin and that they would like a deal to be done and they would like to go to class as soon as possible. The number one priority is not losing a semester.”
UNBC Spokesperson, Matt Wood told MyPGNow the employer feels the exact same way.
“This is something the employer is supportive of, we are interested in some mediated talks and we’re looking forward to negotiations as we try and reach a collective agreement.”
“A mediator coming in is someone that can speak to both parties and search for that common ground and that’s an approach we are looking forward too as the employer.”
A pair of student rallies in support of the faculty association have been held in the past week.