Frustrated Conestoga students in limbo as strike carries on

Students at Conestoga College are still going to campus, even though they have no classes to attend.

• Negotiations break down as college strike enters 4th week

The campus is quiet, but some students play games, chat with friends and some are even working on projects they know will be due once the faculty strike now entering its fourth week is over.

Recreation and Leisure Studies studentAlyssa Merkussatwith two classmates to work on a project for Health and Wellness week, which will see them putting up posters around campus in two weeks.

The topic of their project: How to deal with stress.

"I think when we get back we're going to have a lot of projects all of sudden come all together and all of our tests are going to be due all the same week so trying to just get a head start so that that stress doesn't build up," she said.

Merkus isn't alone.

Nikhil Sharma, an international student from India, said he's stressed about how much the strike isgoing to cost his education and finances.

"I have no idea when the strike is going to end," he said."We are just sick of this strike."

Parmvir Singh sat at a table outside the nearly empty Tim Hortons. He plans to go home to India on December 18, but is nervous because last week the college said it was cutting a week of vacation to make up for lost classroom time. He said he doesn't have the money to change his ticket.

• Job security the 'big thing' for striking Ontario college faculty struggling with contract work

"I can't do anything," he said of his coursework. "We pay a lot of money without getting knowledge."

Merkusand classmate Rachel Angers said they had hoped they could work to make some more money. Angers said her job doesn't have any hours to give her, so she's just doing what she can to pass the time.

• Strike costs Conestoga College students a week of vacation

Merkus had hoped to use her holiday break to make some cash.

"So during Christmas break, I was supposed to be making a lot of money just so I can pay for school again and yeah, that's not going to happen now. It's just hard," she said.

On Monday, The College Employer Council said OPSEU, the union representing faculty, has "stonewalled the bargaining process" and has "refused to accept an offer that addresses their priorities."

The colleges have now asked the Ontario Labour Relations Board to go over the union and schedule a vote on the college's offer with striking faculty members.

The colleges are also asking the union to suspend the strike and get students back into their classrooms.