• CUPE 3903 Unit 1 Bargaining Survey

  • This is a 15-minute survey of CUPE 3903 members in Unit 1 (Teaching Assistants, other teaching done by full-time graduate students). It will ask you about your experience of working at York University.


    The results of the survey will inform the bargaining proposals that will be presented to the union membership for discussion and approval in the Winter term of 2026. The final proposals will be presented to York University (“the Employer”) when bargaining begins in the summer of 2026. The current collective agreement expires on August 31, 2026.


    All information collected will be treated as strictly confidential by the Bargaining Team and the Executive Committee, who will all have signed confidentiality agreements before accessing it. To ensure you receive up-to-date communications during bargaining, your contact information will be retained, but it will not be linked to your responses. 


    We hope you answer as many questions as possible but you can skip individual questions if you like. Please complete the survey once you have started it. If you need to restart the survey or have other problems, please contact the Bargaining Team at bargaining@cupe3903.org. For bargaining to succeed, we need a full and accurate picture of CUPE 3903's needs and priorities, so please share the survey with other members!

  • Bargaining Priorities

  • Wages, Benefits, Standards of Living

  • 2. Do you struggle with the cost of nutrition, food, and/or groceries?
  • 3. How do you currently supplement your income from York University? Choose all that apply.

  • Notes:

    • As of November 2025, consumer prices in Ontario increased by 2.2% over the past year. This is measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which tracks the cost of shelter, food, transportation and other living expenses.
    • 2020-2025 average annual wage increase in Ontario for Teaching Assistants and Sessional Instructors: 2.65%. This does not include any increases to academic funding for graduate students.
    • 2020-2025 average annual wage increase in CUPE 3903 units 1, 2, 3: 2.97%
    • 2020-2025 cumulative increase to consumer prices in Ontario: 20.68%
    • 2020-2025 cumulative Ontario wage increases (TAs and Sessionals): 16.52%. This does not include any increases to academic funding for graduate students.
    • 2020-2025 cumulative wage increases in CUPE 3903 units 1, 2, 3: 19.16% (loss of 1.52% to inflation).
  • 5. Do you think our health benefits should be increased?
  • Which of the following health benefits do you think need to be increased or improved? Please select all that apply.
  • 6. Do you normally run out of the following Sun Life benefits? (Select all that apply)
  • 7. In the last calendar year, have you submitted a claim to CUPE 3903's Extended Health Benefits Fund because you didn’t have enough coverage under the Sun Life Benefits Plan?

  • Working Conditions

  • 8. Are you a PhD or a Master’s student?
  • 9. Are you an international student?
  • If yes, can you afford to visit home once a year?
  • 10. Are you living in campus housing?
  • 11. Does your department ensure that TAs are provided Workload Forms and one meeting per term to discuss workload?
  • 12. Do you often work more hours than are allocated on your workload form to complete your assigned duties?
  • Which of the following duties have caused you to work beyond your allotted hours? Please select all that apply.
  • 13. Is your work as a Unit 1 member (e.g., TA, tutor, marker/grader, writing instructor, etc.) relevant to your area of academic research?
  • 14. During your studies, have you held a ticket to be a course director as Unit 1 (per Article 10.01.1 of the Unit 1 Collective Agreement)?
  • 15. Has your department respected you as an employee based on a clear understanding of your rights and entitlements as set out in the CUPE 3903 Unit 1 Collective Agreement?
  • 17. The on-campus space and facilities I have been assigned to do my work are adequate.
  • 18. In your view, does York University adequately address workplace health and safety issues?

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity, Grievance Officer, and Joint Health and Safety Committee are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • 19. My classroom/teaching lab/workspace/office space is safe and equipped with all appropriate safety devices.

  • Equity, Discrimination, and Harassment

  • 20. How well does York University meet your accessibility needs, either through formal or informal accommodations?

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity and Grievance Officer are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • 21. In your view, is there evidence that York University cares about equity issues in the workplace, such as:

  • A) Equitable hiring policies and practices
  • B) Tackling gender, race, disability, and sexuality-based forms of discrimination and harassment

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity and Grievance Officer are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • 22. Have you experienced discrimination and/or harassment, including microaggressions (e.g., based on race, ethnicity, citizenship, gender, gender identity/expression, age, disability, pregnancy, sexual orientation) at York University?

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity and Grievance Officer are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • 23. Has anti-Black racism or violence impacted you in your workplace in any of the following ways? Please select all that apply.

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity and Grievance Officer are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • 24. Has anti-Indigenous racism or violence impacted you in your workplace in any of the following ways? Please select all that apply.

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity and Grievance Officer are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • 25. Has gender-based discrimination or violence, including anti-trans discrimination, impacted you in your workplace in any of the following ways? Please select all that apply.

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity and Grievance Officer are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • 26. Has ableist or saneist* discrimination or violence impacted you in your workplace in any of the following ways? Please select all that apply. *Sanism is discrimination based on real or perceived mental health status or cognitive “atypicality”.

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity and Grievance Officer are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • 27. Are you concerned about your safety at work due to physical violence, harassment, or bullying (whether in the classroom, across the broader campus, or online)?
  • 28. Do you fear reprisals by York University for speaking out against discrimination and/or harassment?

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity and Grievance Officer are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • 29. In your view, does York University provide adequate mental health services to its employees and students?

  • If you would prefer to talk about this matter, our 3903 Staff Representative Equity and Grievance Officer are here to support you. You can contact them by email (equity@cupe3903.org or grievance@cupe3903.org).

  • Additional Information

  • Demographic Information

    We are asking about self-identification to help us understand the barriers members currently face and bargain for or introduce initiatives, policies, and programs that can address the harms that result from them.
  • Do you identify as Indigenous (including but not limited to First Nations, Inuit, or Métis)? If there is another term you prefer, please add it below.
  • Do you identify as racialized? If there is another term you prefer, please add it below.
  • Please indicate the terms that best express your gender identity. Please select all that apply.

  • *A cisgender person is someone whose internal sense of gender aligns with the sex they were assigned at birth.

    ** A trans person is someone who identifies as transgender, transsexual, genderqueer, intersex, two-spirit, non-binary, and gender variant, among others. 

  • Indicate the terms that best express your sexual identity. Please select all that apply.
  • Do you identify as disabled? If there is another term you prefer, please add it below.

  • Contact Information

    We’d love to keep in touch. Please share your contact info. This information will be anonymized/disaggregated from the rest of your responses.
  • Format: (000) 000-0000.
  • Please indicate your preferred methods of communication. Please select all that apply.
  • Which of the following platforms do you use? Please select all that apply.
  • Should be Empty: