TORONTO, ON, Oct. 17, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — For immediate release With the imminent return of the Ontario Legislature, students and workers are sending a final message to the government: reject Bill 33. The Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario (CFS-O) represents 350,000 post-secondary students across Ontario alongside the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation (OSSTF), collectively representing over 60,000 education workers across the province. Students and workers continue to call on the government to reject Bill 33, provide immediate and dedicated public funding for public education, and safeguard the autonomy of our campuses. With over 10,000 Hands Off Our Education petition signatures from students across the province, it is abundantly clear that students are and will remain opposed to Bill 33 and any attacks and threats to education at all levels. With the introduction of unnecessary government oversight of ancillary fees, and the concerning and regressive language of “merit-based admissions” Bill 33 poses a large threat to students' right to organize, undermines campus and educational autonomy, and strips much-needed public funding from Ontario's already struggling, underfunded post-secondary system. Students and workers cannot afford the impacts of Bill 33 nor the further destabilization of Ontario's public education. “Bill 33 does nothing to support our students–it only further undermines students' education in a college system that is itself already being undermined by the Ford government. Now more than ever, faculty, staff and students are united in telling this government to stop putting profit over people and to truly support our students and communities by properly funding our public colleges.” – Jeff Brown, College Faculty, Ontario Public Service Employees Union “Bill 33 is a power grab that takes decision-making away from universities, colleges, and the communities they serve. This legislation ignores the real issue: years of chronic underfunding that threaten the future of public education. Ontario's students deserve real investments in post-secondary education, funding that secures their future and our province's prosperity.” – Malini Leahy, Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation “Our education is deeply in crisis. A crisis created and worsened by this government's inability to adequately fund public education. We are calling on MPPs to act now before it's too late. They can choose right now: between funding our education, or securing the decline of education for all. We demand that the government cease all attacks on education, stop Bill 33, and address the core issues within post-secondary education: chronic underfunding.” – Cyrielle Ngeleka, Chairperson of the CFS-Ontario The Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario is the oldest and largest student organization in Ontario, representing over 350,000 college and university students in every region of the province.
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Cyrielle Ngeleka
Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario
647-767-9435
c.ngeleka@cfsontario.ca
Adaeze Mbalaja
Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario
647-608-4074
a.mbalaja@cfsontario.ca