The Writers’ Union of Canada has launched a petition to the federal government calling for the immediate amendment of the Copyright Act.

The petition calls on the government of Canada to amend the act to “ensure educational copying is licensed, with royalties flowing back to writers and publishers.” The petition also calls on the federal government to work with provincial governments to “to ensure the education sector is properly funded, so it can pay its bills for materials.”

In a letter accompanying news of the petition, Writers’ Union executive director John Degen – who wrote about the issue for Quill & Quire earlier this year – notes that although the decade-long fight over copyright law has often been portrayed as one in which the organization is in an adversarial relationship with the education sector, that is an unfair characterization of the situation.

“With this petition, we insist that the problem is not with those who deliver or receive education – Canada’s teachers and students – rather, the failure is with weak law, and an underfunded and poorly administered education system,” Degen writes.

The petition can only be signed by Canadian citizens or residents.