Conflicting views on Laurentian University's debt plan
Laurentian University's creditors have a big decision to make as the school looks to emerge from insolvency and repay some of its debt, and now, more affected groups are weighing in with recommendations.
While a group representing terminated faculty calls for votes against the proposed plan of arrangement, two major groups representing current faculty and staff are recommending that creditors vote in favour of it.
The Laurentian University Faculty Association (LUFA), staff union (LUSU) and school's board of governors made the recommendations to their members in a news release Aug. 16.
"Parties have been engaged in negotiating the plan of arrangement for several months. Following further negotiations on issues important to its members, including a commitment to union consultation on governance reform and a commitment to fast-track the evaluation process in connection with three new faculty positions with a view to adding up to three tenure track appointments in 2023, LUFA has joined LUSU in confirming that it supports the (Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act) Plan," the school said in a news release.
"Implementation of the plan will secure the future of the university, continuing employment for approximately 600 full-time employees and several hundred part-time employees, the continuation of the pension plan, and no disruption for students."
The Terminated Faculty Committee said in a letter provided to CTV News, the concern that voting against the proposal would lead to the school's closure is false.
"In past CCAA cases, a vote against the plan simply sends all the parties back to the negotiating table to come up with a better plan. In some cases, CCAA insolvency plans have gone through as many as four revisions," the committee said.
Louis Durand, the LUFA vice president is quoted as saying the plan represents the best path forward for his group's members.
"It provides additional faculty input in governance, protects our members’ hard-earned pension plans, and secures the future of Laurentian University in Sudbury," Durand said.
The Terminated Faculty Committee disagrees.
"The plan would fundamentally change what it means to be a faculty member, it would strip what little remains of collegial governance and set back working conditions by generations. The faculty will no (longer) lead in academic matters through the Senate, and the faculty’s professional expertise will no longer be respected," it said.
"Laurentian’s proposed plan allows the board of governors to implement the NOUS report as they see fit, which will result in a 'top-down,' non-transparent governance model dictated by the board of governors. It will not lead to a university in which decisions are made 'through a democratically elected, transparent, accountable, and representative governance bodies.'"
Creditors will vote on the proposed plan of arrangement on Sept. 14.
Background
Laurentian is the first publicly-funded Canadian university to file for CCAA protection in January 2021.
As part of the plan of arrangement, the province will buy $53.5 million in real estate from LU, money that will be used to pay creditors, a small portion of what is owed.
A smaller group dubbed 'priority lenders' will be repaid in full, while the majority of groups still owed money – dubbed 'affected creditors' -- will be repaid at a rate of between 14.1 cents and 24.2 cents on the dollar.
The province is also lending LU about $35 million to pay off private-sector lenders that advanced the school operating funds while it was in the insolvency process.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.