By Thanksgiving Day, it is possible that all classes will come to a screeching halt.

As a contract dispute continues,  because the faculty and the administrators are not able to find common ground, it might lead to a strike by the faculty.

“They’re asking us for everything,” Elizabeth Shadish, president of the Federation of Teachers that represents the faculty, said. “That’s not honest negotiations. They’re not saying that they can’t afford to pay but they’re still not paying us.”

It is anticipated that either tomorrow or Monday, a fact-finding report from a mediator will be released.

Then there will be a 10-day period where both sides can go over the report and talk about the proposals.

The report will remain confidential during the 10 days, Spencer Covert, chief negotiator of the administration, said.

“(The two) parties will get back together and see whether the recommendations of the report will serve as bases for an agreement,” he said.

After the 10 days, if the two sides cannot come to an agreement, the strike is a possibility, which is the last resort, Shadish said.

There will be a vote among the general members of the Federation of Teachers whether to implement a strike or not.

“It’s just been an unfortunate reality,” Shadish said.

Some of the faculty members of the union can choose to not go on a strike, she added

According to a recent Daily Breeze article, it was reported that of all the EC employees making more than $100,00 a year, 70 percent are faculty members.

However, Shadish said the faculty members do not make that much for the most part because they would have had to at least been a part of the faculty for 28 years.

“We’ve never been this far before (in the negotiatioin process),” Shadish said. “I’ve seen some contentious disagreements, but I’ve never seen us go this far.”