The membership drive is a campaign organized by the Organization of Part-time and Sessional Employees of Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology to encourage part-time college employees to join the organization.

Founded in November, the organization is actively campaigning through membership drive and petition cards, calling for a change of the law banning part-time college workers from organizing a union.

"We are not a union, but we hope to become one. We have to change some legislation first before we can become a union," said Candy Lindsay, vice-president of the organization, who visited Loyalist to speak with the part-time workers.

Having visited Durham College two weeks ago, she is hoping to go to other colleges.

Ontario is the only province in Canada where part-time college employees are denied the right to form a union.

The issue goes back to 1975, when the College Collective Bargaining Act was legislated. Covering all community colleges in Ontario, the law makes it impossible for part-time college workers to organize a union. Since then, part-time college workers, including part-time or sessional faculty and part-time support staff, have been excluded from collective bargaining and denied benefits such as statutory holiday pay and vacation pay.

The resolution of a United Nations agency pushed for their campaign. In November, the International Labour Organization called on the Ontario government to rapidly take legislative measures to ensure part-time college workers fully enjoy the rights to organize and bargain collectively.

According to OPSECAAT, there are currently some 17,000 employees who work part-time in Ontario's 24 community colleges, which outnumber full-time college workers by about 2,000.

Lindsay sees the issue not only as a labour issue but also as human rights issue. The organization is fighting for its fundamental rights.

"We want to have rights, we want to have a voice, and we want people to know our rights have taken away form us," said Lindsay. "We like working for colleges. We would like to have rights just like everybody else."

And she said their campaign goes hand in hand with quality of education. It's not just about part-time workers, but involves college students as well.

"I have a passion for this, because this is about our students' education. If this does not change, our students are affected," said Lindsay, who works at Fleming College as an educational assistant for students with learning disabilities.

She quoted Premier Dalton McGuinty as saying in her meeting with him that the college presidents would be against the campaign.

However, Loyalist President Maureen Piercy said that part-time employees have the right to form an association like any other employees.

"We certainly believe here at Loyalist we treat all our employees fairly, including part-time employees," said Piercy in an interview.

"They make important contribution to the college. We make every effort to treat them fairly."

The membership drive and petition cards are treated with complete confidentiality to ensure part-time workers do not hesitate to express their voice, said Jennifer Bryan, campaign organizer of OPSECAAT at Loyalist. She said some part-time workers feel intimidated to join in the organization for fear of reprisal.

"They are concerned about confidentiality and concerned they are going to lose their jobs if they join in the organization," said Bryan, who teaches in the college prep program on a part-time basis.

The open house was open to students as well. She said the campaign needs support from students to achieve the goal.

"I love my students. They are 100 per cent important for me," said Bryan. But, at the same time, she expressed her concern that she has to work unpaid extra hours for preparation.

The membership drive campaign was mounted in mid-January, involving all community colleges in Ontario. It will run during the winter school term. The organization is also lobbying MPPs for them to push for a change of legislation.