Robin Whitaker
banner
rgwhitaker.bsky.social
Robin Whitaker
@rgwhitaker.bsky.social
Cyclist
Anthropologist
Trade unionist
Malcontent
Pinned
Resharing this post for additional thoughts.

Fellow bicyclists: absent bikelanes, what would make sharing the road safer and more pleasant? What do you wish non-cyclist drivers understood about biking (including the good stuff, why we choose to do it, etc.)? Details below #cycling #transportation
Fellow cyclists: I'm planning a playful educational piece for @independentnl.bsky.social's Making Connections column on 'things cyclists wish drivers knew.' Share your wishes here or by DM & tell me how you want to be credited (eg: Robin in St. John's wishes..) thx! theindependent.ca/commentary/i...
Introducing ‘Making Connections’ – The Independent
Welcome to The Independent’s new series on transportation in Newfoundland and Labrador
theindependent.ca
"There’s a direct link between the poverty Gates claims to care so much about and the wealth he fails to mention."

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
I wish we could ignore Bill Gates on the climate crisis. But he’s a billionaire, so we can’t | George Monbiot
Money talks – and his essay denouncing ‘near-term emissions goals’ at Cop30 mostly argues the case for letting the ultra-rich off the hook
www.theguardian.com
November 9, 2025 at 11:27 AM
November 7, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
As universities and colleges cut academic programs, close programs, and slash 13,000+ jobs, Budget 2025 halves international student enrolment without boosting core funding.
November 4, 2025 at 10:21 PM
"..suppressing teachers’ rights is exactly what the UCP intended to do...And if the UCP can take the rights away from 50,000 of them, then nobody’s safe."

@acifa.bsky.social's @drmacd.bsky.social & CAFA's Lee Easton on why we must fight Bill 2. @caut.bsky.social

edmontonjournal.com/opinion/colu...
Opinion: If the UCP can take away teachers' rights, no one is safe
But Bill 2 does far more than end a strike. It turns fifty-thousand Albertan teachers into second-class citizens.
edmontonjournal.com
October 31, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
“No government that purports to uphold the rule of law and fundamental rights and freedoms of its citizens would ever take away the right to free collective bargaining and the right to strike."
The Canadian Association of University Teachers condemns the Alberta government for overriding constitutionally protected rights and imposing a rejected contract offer on members of the Alberta Teachers’ Association.

Read more: www.caut.ca/news/caut-co...
October 29, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
The St. Francis Xavier Association of University Teachers is pleased to stand with our colleagues at CUPE 3912 by making a donation of $1000 to support their ongoing efforts to achieve a fair and equitable agreement.
October 29, 2025 at 8:19 PM
Thank you Parliamentary Secretary @kbardeesy.bsky.social for taking time to speak to @caut.bsky.social about the importance of public Postsecondary Education and Research to Canada's future.
October 29, 2025 at 11:59 AM
"government money for training should flow to educational institutions not private businesses." @opseusefpo.bsky.social says the
Skills Development Fund "should be used for college and university programs...[that] offer better outcomes than private training."

www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/edit...
Globe editorial: The real issue with Ontario’s training fund
Programs like these, which allow the government to pick winners, are all too predictably taken advantage of
www.theglobeandmail.com
October 25, 2025 at 10:55 AM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
CAUT flying pickets out on the picket lines this morning in support of @cupe3912.bsky.social as they fight for a fair deal!
October 24, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
When teachers fight, students win! Education is too vital to be put on the backburner.
#solidarity
@albertateachers.bsky.social
#abed #ableg
October 24, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
Oh, hey! I’m still on strike as a CUPE Part-Time professor at SMU. Here’s a fun little graphic: according to Maclean’s Magazine, SMU is ranked #3 in Canada for small universities.

How does the PT pay for faculty compare across the top 10 schools?

Oh. Oh dear.
October 24, 2025 at 12:51 AM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
The union said its #SMU members are among the lowest-paid university instructors in the country and don’t have a health plan, pension, job security or a route to permanent employment.”

#canlab #cdnpse #SMUstrike #MSVUstrike #MakeItFair #FairDealNow @cautdefencefund.bsky.social
October 24, 2025 at 12:08 AM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
Canada’s unions agree: Employers who are negligent regarding the health, safety, and lives of workers must feel the whole weight of the law.
#EnforceWestray #CanLab

www.thesafetymag.com/ca/topics/oh...
Family of Calgary worker killed on the job calls for criminal accountability for employers
‘We need punishment that makes them say, “whoa”’
www.thesafetymag.com
October 24, 2025 at 12:04 PM
I stand with @cupe3912.bsky.social MSVU and SMU Part-Time Academic Staff. Calling on @smuhalifax.bsky.social and @msvuhalifax.bsky.social to give them a fair deal now!

@msvufa.bsky.social @smufu.bsky.social
Screenshot and share this post to to your own page and tag MSVU and tell them CUPE 3912 Part-Time Academics deserve a fair deal now!
October 23, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
Rejoignez-nous mercredi prochain, le 22 octobre, pour le webinaire de la Semaine de l'équité d'emploi. Inscrivez-vous dès maintenant pour écouter la Dr Kendra Strauss parler de la liberté académique et de la précarité.

Pour plus d'info: www.caut.ca/fr/evenement...
October 15, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
Join us next Wednesday, Oct. 22 for the #FairEmploymentWeek keynote! Register for the webinar now to hear Dr. Kendra Strauss discuss academic freedom and precarity.

More information: www.caut.ca/event/a-disc...
October 15, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
Panel discussion to support contract academic staff - Oct 20. CAS across Canada face precarity. Find out what's happening in NS, w/research & solidarity. Full panel now confirmed. Register-ansut.ca @caut.bsky.social @cupe3912.bsky.social @stfxaut.bsky.social @msvufa.bsky.social @cbufa.bsky.social
October 10, 2025 at 6:32 PM
Paris has it right. We need to pause for a real conversation about what we want, weighing actual gains & harms. On energy alone, we face losing every scrap of gain from 'clean' energy, as the tech will use it all & still want conventional energy. Industry wants to give us no time to think too hard.
where to even start. no evan, the problem with AI is about so much more than privacy and deepfakes. what about ai psychosis, environmental impacts, workers’ rights? why are you pushing firms to adopt tech that isn’t creating real productivity benefits? why does tech need to be solely about profit?
AI minister denies that Canada needs to 'catch up' with global industry | Power & Politics
YouTube video by CBC News
www.youtube.com
October 2, 2025 at 7:58 AM
Reposted by Robin Whitaker
The last three years (so far) account for more than a quarter of all hectares burned by wildfire in Canada over the last 43 fire seasons.
September 30, 2025 at 4:04 PM