NBPA, Toronto Raptors members donate $10K to striking SFU teaching support staff

Simon Fraser University’s (SFU) Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU) is receiving a sizeable boost to its strike fund thanks to Canada’s beloved professional basketball team.

The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) and its members on the Toronto Raptors are donating $10,000 to the striking union to support it in its fight for a new contract.

“We are hopeful they are soon able to return to the jobs they love, with a deal that respects their important contribution to student and university life,” Garrett Temple, NBPA vice president and Toronto Raptors member said in a statement.

Members of the TSSU — which represents nearly 1,600 workers at the school — withdrew their services and walked off the job about a week ago. The job action means approximately half of all teaching staff at SFU have stopped working.

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The union, which is largely made up of teaching assistants, is asking for a cost-of-living wage adjustment and a new contract, as its previous deal expired in April 2022.

The support for the union from members of the Toronto-based team comes while the club is currently spending five days practicing at the Christine Sinclair Community Centre in Burnaby.

An open practice will be held Friday at 6 p.m. inside the West Gym on the SFU Burnaby campus. Net proceeds from ticket sales will go towards the SFU Athletics General Fund.

-With files from Charlie Carey