One long-standing feature of the Collective Agreement has been the Reduced Appointment Plan (RAP), which allows faculty members over 55 with at least 10 years of service to gradually downsize their careers by reducing to part-time without a corresponding reduction in benefits. The Collective Agreement states “[e]mployees who wish to participate in the Reduced Appointment… Continue reading Reduced Appointment Plan (Article 13.2.3)
Category: USFA e-Letter
e-Letters are brief but timely communications about workplace issues.
Season’s Greetings
The Executive and Staff of the USFA wish you a happy holiday and prosperous New Year. Our offices will be closed on December 23, 2011 reopening on Tuesday, January 3, 2012. In the event of an urgent matter, feel free to contact any of the following table officers by email: Doug Chivers (doug.chivers@usask.ca) Eric Neufeld… Continue reading Season’s Greetings
Tentative Agreement Ratified by BUFA
The Executive Committee of the Brandon University Faculty Association (BUFA) announced last week that, following a 45 day strike, the BUFA Membership ratified a new collective agreement. The margin of acceptance was 93 percent. The issues under dispute by Brandon faculty are important and relevant to Universities across Canada. University administrations are moving to weaken… Continue reading Tentative Agreement Ratified by BUFA
No tenure in Saskatchewan Law
If you have ever wondered why faculty might choose to unionize, read the University of Saskatchewan Act and the University of Regina Act. Neither piece of legislation contains the word “tenure”. It does appear in the Collective Agreement, where it is defined as “the appointment of an employee to a permanent position on the academic… Continue reading No tenure in Saskatchewan Law
President interferes in collegial process
The Faculty Association has been in a three year battle, investing considerable time and expense fighting an attack on the integrity of the collegial process at our University. A few years ago, the tenure case of a faculty member received mixed reviews as it went through the collegial process at the departmental, college, and university… Continue reading President interferes in collegial process
Merit is not punitive
Is a faculty member who publishes six peer-reviewed articles more or less meritorious than a faculty member who publishes one peer-reviewed article, but also has large teaching and administrative responsibilities? It depends. Six top quality publications in outstanding venues could represent a career achievement, even given teaching and administrative offloads. However, six papers published in… Continue reading Merit is not punitive
A Faculty Association on Strike is a Faculty Association Striking for all of us!
Brandon University Faculty Association (BUFA) has been on strike since October 12th, 2011. BUFA represents both tenured faculty and non-tenured sessional instructors and is dealing with four main issues. Quality of learning – BUFA’s position is that there should be guaranteed replacements when members go on sabbatical to ensure continuity of program delivery. They are… Continue reading A Faculty Association on Strike is a Faculty Association Striking for all of us!
Spend your merit!
The merit pool for this and next year is quite large – 785 CDIs for each year. After that, it will likely go back to 600 CDIs per annum, subject to the outcome of collective bargaining. At the last round of bargaining, the parties agreed that the merit system at the U of S was… Continue reading Spend your merit!
The new merit pool
The total merit pool for 2011-2012 is 785 CDIs. The current agreement states that at least two-thirds of these must be full merits, making it possible to award a maximum of about 1050 awards (525 full and 525 halves). The new merit system is intended to be transparent. Decisions must be made by a committee… Continue reading The new merit pool
Get Active: You can make a difference!
The Saskatchewan provincial election is an opportunity for you to support and elect candidates who you believe will best represent you. Here’s what you can do: Talk to family, friends and co-workers. Urge them to get out and vote. Go to candidate forums and ask questions. Where do candidates stand on issues that are important… Continue reading Get Active: You can make a difference!