SRA Blog Your Voice. Your Assembly.

Last week, the provincial government announced that it is calling on university campuses across the province to halt current contract negotiations and agree to a 2-year freeze. As the article states, more than half a dozen universities are currently under contract negotiations, with McMaster being one of them.

I arranged a meeting with CUPE 3906 president Mary Ellen Campbell and staff representative Dave Hauch to discuss the current state of negotiations and what impact the announcement of the provincial government will have on the current negotiation process.

Article on Provincial Announcement

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/ontario-calls-on-universities-to-agree-to-two-year-wage-freeze/article1647938/

CUPE 3906 UNIT 2 Contract Negotiation Update

CUPE 3906 Unit 2 represents roughly 250 sessional faculty members at McMaster University. In March 2010, a ‘Letter of Intent’ was issued by CUPE 3906 to the University to negotiate a collective agreement as the existing contract expired April 30^th, 2010.

The first meeting was scheduled on April 19^th, where both parties exchanged contract package proposals. Meetings later took place on April 29^th, May 12^th, 17^th, 19^th and June 2^nd. After the June 2^nd meeting, negotiations reached a stalemate and went through conciliation at the request of the University June 22^nd and 23^rd.

(Conciliation – an alternative dispute resolution; both parties agree to utilize the service of a conciliator, who meets with each party separately and attempts to resolve stalemates or disputes in negotiations)

On June 23^rd, the university offered a ‘last package to settle’. CUPE’s Unit 2 bargaining team consulted the settlement package with its membership until July 6^th. The membership decided to reject the offer and continue bargaining.

The University responded to the decision a week later on July 13^th requesting a ‘No Board Report’.

If a No Board report is issued, it will set the date for a strike/lock out deadline (Generally 2 weeks from the day No-Board report is issued)

(No Board Report – Issuing a “no board report” means that after the conciliator is not able to resolve a dispute, the Minister of Labour does not recommend a conciliation board to be appointed)

Both parties have agreed to August 9^th, 10^th mediations days.

The university is proposing a 4-year contract with a 2-year freeze for the first 2 years of the contract. CUPE is requesting a 3-year contract.

PRIORITY ISSUES IN NEGOTIATION

The primary issues in negotiations are job security, benefits, wages and contract language.

1. Job Security

a. Currently, a First Consideration Appointment for sessional faculty members enables a member to be automatically granted a teaching appointment for a specified course, once having already taught the same course twice. They are granted the next 2 appointments of the course.

CUPE is requesting that the granted appointment be increased from 2 appointments to 4.

b. CUPE requests mandatory prior notification of Department Changes before finalized binding decisions are  made.

Currently, department changes can (and have) occurred without any obligation to notify CUPE or faculty members. CUPE stated the mandatory notification is not designed to disrupt or undermine the autonomy of university administrative decisions, but rather minimize the impact on sessional faculty members in order to avoid unexpected alterations to employment.

c. PRO-RATING SYSTEM****

The university is attempting to introduce a Pro-Rating system in the appointment of teaching positions in this contract. Essentially, what the Pro-Rating systems entails is the ability for the employer to divide the existing 3/6 unit course load into individual units, and pay their employee (professors) according to individual unit rates. The current system pays professors in 3 or 6 unit increments.

i.e. 3 unit course pays a sessional professor $6000. By introducing the Pro-Rating System, the 3-unit course is broken down into three 1-unit variables, making each unit $2000.

The ramifications of this system are immense. Ultimately, the employer (the university) will have the ability to hire up to 3 different instructors to teach one 3-unit course, appointing each instructor 1-unit of work (in a 12 week semester, that is equivalent to a new professor every 4 weeks each course).

*** CUPE has stated this as the primary issue of the current collective agreement***

2. Benefits

Currently, all sessional faculty have a $125 allowance per year to cover dental, health, etc. expenses. The benefits pool allocated for the sessional faculty members stands at $25,000.

CUPE has requested a 100% increase to a $50,000 pool.

3. Wages

The university has offered 0% increase to wages along with a 2-year freeze.

CUPE’s most recent proposal was a 2% wage increase per year for the duration of the contract.

This amount was calculated with the estimated Cost of Living Inflation for Hamilton and Toronto in 2009 (Hamilton 1.8%, Toronto 2.4%)

Impact of Provincial Government Announcement

The provincial government’s call to Ontario universities to halt contract negotiations and accept a 2-year freeze does not have an immediate and direct impact on negotiations because Ontario Labour Legislations have not been changed or modified, therefore it is non-binding and cannot be implemented.

Any form of arbitrary legislative implementation based on the declaration of a single provincial Ministry would be in violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms – specifically Section 31 – ‘Nothing in this Charter extends the legislative powers of any body or authority’ – particularly designed for federal and provincial governments.