RAAS Report
RAAS REPORT
A biweekly newsletter from your
Association of Academic Staff
Friday, April 10, 2020
ONLINE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Please make plans to take part in our online AGM on April 14th from 11 AM to 1 PM. A Zoom meeting invitation and instructions will be sent via email the day before the meeting. The meeting materials have already been sent via email.
RAAS PRESIDENT’S UPDATE
As per my email update on March 30th, here are some specific updates prior to our online AGM on April 14th:
Compensation
Wendy called for a meeting with Rob and me just before the first Town Hall on March 16. She informed us as to the specifics of the financial deficit during that meeting. We agreed at that time for the administration to move forward with their draft budget proposal (as announced at the Town Hall) that includes no increases, in the coming year, in compensation for regular faculty. Because we are currently in negotiations,we asked that the administration not announce a unilateral wage freeze.
We made this request to assert our right to collective bargaining as a union. The Ontario Labour Relations Act specifies (under article 86) that the Employer cannot change working conditions without the consent of the union until there is a ratified Collective Agreement. In other words, a departurefrom policy or regular practice, such as an official proposal of a wage freeze, must be brought to the negotiating table.
Compensation is a matter on which we need your input at our online AGM on April 14th. We have a responsibility to do our due diligence in reviewing the finances in order to accept a proposal on compensation, and we need to do so in the context of a timeline for a collective agreement of as long as 3 years. As such, we need to be thoughtful about our approach to compensation over a longer period. Again, this means hearing from you and discussing the various possibilities together at our online AGM on April 14th.
We welcomed Wendy's acknowledgement at the Town Hall and at the Board of Governors meeting that faculty compensation must ultimately be decided in negotiations with RAAS. We are constantly mindful that any decision should not presume to know the financial stability/need of our diverse membership; our mandate must come from our Members.
Negotiations
As required by the Ontario Labour Relations Act, we provided the Employer with a new Letter of Intent to Bargain. We fully agreed with the administration to cancel immediate bargaining dates while more pressing concerns are given the attention they require. We are ready to return to the bargaining table, but will do so when appropriate.
Faculty Supports
While negotiations are taking a pause for good reason, we have been working on non-budgetary supports for RAAS members. Last week we sent an email to the administration inquiring as to whether Renison would follow UW's recent announcements regarding faculty supports. We are pleased that Renison will be following UW's lead in instituting a number of provisions in these unusual times.
Did I mention our online AGM on April 14th? Please plan to take part from 11 AM to 1 PM on Zoom.
Kristina Llewellyn
BOARD UPDATE
The Board of Governors met on Wednesday March 25. The Board approved a number of promotions and sabbaticals. Announcements about that will be forthcoming on that, but congratulations to all!
Discussion surrounding these decisions included a request for further information on candidates being recommended for tenure and promotion, in the future, and the establishment of guidelines to assist the Board in making these decisions. Other comments and questions focused on the cost of replacement teachers during sabbaticals, particularly in our current financial climate. Wendy explained that sabbaticals are not expendible, unless absolutely necessary, and that the associated costs are covered this year with funds restricted for this purpose.
The Board also affirmed the provisional budget with the deficit explained to us in the Town Hall meetings. Wendy explained that while the budget includes a 0% increase in faculty salaries (and $0 merit pay increase) for now, the faculty compensation package will still need to be negotiated with RAAS. This compensation proposal will be a central discussion item in our online AGM on April 14th.
I requested and was given time on the agenda to announce our certification, and answered some questions about how and why RAAS applied for certification. Please contact me directly (rob.case@uwaterloo.ca) if you would like further details on that discussion or any other part of the Board meeting.
Rob Case
SATIRE
Conservatives fear Ford may have contracted socialism
Kyah Green, The Beaverton (April 7, 2020)
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has been submitted for extensive testing today after Conservative Party Executives expressed that he was beginning to exhibit symptoms of socialism. […] He first began showing mild symptoms like ‘empathy for low-income people.’ His symptoms worsened as he began to show gratitude and respect for teachers, healthcare workers, minimum-wage employees and, worst of all, the Liberals.
NOT SATIRE
Coronavirus crisis poses risks and opportunities for unions
Larry Savage and Simon Black, The Conversation (April 5, 2020)
In times like these, elites often take advantage of the public’s fear and uncertainty to push through changes that would normally be met with fierce opposition.
CAUT NEWS
RAAS is a member of the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT), a nation-wide association of our peers.
FEDS URGED TO EXTEND THE CERB TO STUDENTS AND CONTRACT STAFF
CAUT News (April 7, 2020)
The Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) and the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) are calling on the federal government to extend the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) to post-secondary students and contract academic staff. “Students and contract academic staff are seeing their job offers vanish and will have limited or no income over the coming months because of the COVID-19 pandemic,” says CAUT Executive Director David Robinson. “We’re urging the government to ensure that students and our most vulnerable workers are not left behind.”
OCUFA NEWS
RAAS is a member of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA), a province-wide association of our peers.
Public services in a global pandemic? Priceless
Mark Hancock, Niagara Falls Review (April 6, 2020)
No credible economist in Canada thinks putting people out of work during an emergency … is helpful. And as we reach the third week of a crisis that could last months, our public service workers are proving their value. While most of us are safe at home, public service workers are still going to work, risking their well-being to keep their communities safe, healthy, and running as close to "normal" as possible.
Teaching and librarianship awards deadline extended
OCUFA News (April 6, 2020)
In light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the nomination deadline for the OCUFA Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards has been extended until June 26th. Download the nomination guidelines here.
Emergency support fund set up for students at University of Waterloo
Kate Bueckert, CBC News (April 7, 2020)
The University of Waterloo has launched an emergency support fund to help students with unexpected expenses due to COVID-19. University officials said the fund is for all students, "whether they are full-time, part-time, undergraduate, graduate, domestic or international — who are experiencing financial challenges as a result of the pandemic.
FAUW NEWS
RAAS has a service agreement with the Faculty Association of the University of Waterloo (FAUW), a campus-wide association of our peers.
Like much of the rest of campus, the FAUW offices are closed and staff and Board members are working from home. All FAUW events are postponed until further notice. The Spring General Meeting is still planned for noon on April 7, but will be delivered online. We have created a Coronavirus updates page with the latest information from us, frequently asked questions, and an archive of our emails related to the pandemic.