from CP: http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gBo29Rmt60_81C2zhQZdpNdl5dSA

Students at St. Thomas University in Fredericton get back to classes Tuesday - more than a month after the semester was supposed to begin.

Classes were on hold since the end of December as a result of a labour dispute between the university and faculty. Over the weekend, the school and the faculty association agreed to settle the strike through binding arbitration.

Classes will be extended by a week and a half, and the March reading break will be cut in half to two days from four.

Student union president Colin Banks says the strike and extended school year are causing financial hardship for many students.

He says many students had to change flights, pay for extra meals, and with exams now going until May 3, many students will have to pay another month's rent or sign a new lease.

Banks says students will be surveyed to determine exact costs before the student union negotiates compensation with the university.