News Archive
Important Notice to members intending to take the one-time Retirement Incentive
March 28, 2022 | All News
If you are currently on a RARP with an end date of 30 June 2022, we advise you to ensure that you give 90 days notice before your new effective date of retirement in order to avoid any potential disputes with the Employer regarding eligibility to take the incentive. For example: If you send notice …
Continue reading “Important Notice to members intending to take the one-time Retirement Incentive”
Collectively Speaking – March 2022 It’s About Choice
March 25, 2022 | All News
The March 2022 issue of Collective Speaking focuses on the statement: It’s about choice. In this issue, USFA Chair Geraldine Balzer remarks on some of the foundational articles of our Collective Agreement and notes the challenge facing us is that each party to the Collective Agreement can choose how to live up to those contractual …
Continue reading “Collectively Speaking – March 2022 It’s About Choice”
Faculty in College of Nursing pass vote of no-confidence in Executive team
March 11, 2022 | All News
On March 4, 2022, faculty of the U of S College of Nursing passed a motion of no-confidence in the College’s Executive Team. The core impetus for the vote of no confidence is that the College of Nursing has been critically underfunded and the quality of nursing education has been compromised. The USFA stands behind …
Continue reading “Faculty in College of Nursing pass vote of no-confidence in Executive team”
Flying pickets, benefit claim deadline (March 30), reminder to add to the Google doc
March 9, 2022 | All News
Flying pickets The USFA is a member of the CAUT Defence Fund, which provides unionized Canadian academic member unions with a unified strike fund. Whenever an academic staff union that is a member of the Fund goes on strike, the Fund covers the cost of “flying pickets” to join striking member unions on the picket line. …
March 8 International Women’s Day
March 8, 2022 | All News
Today is International Women’s Day (IWD). It is a day to recognize and celebrate advancements while continuing to recognize the need for vigilance and action on issues impacting women and girls at home and abroad. As we mark this day, we are thinking about the women and girls of Ukraine. Whether they are among the …
The Fractured University Administration
March 1, 2022 | All News
Read the March 1, 2022 issue of VOX here.
2022 USFA Executive Elections: Call for Nominations
February 15, 2022 | All News
This is a call for nominations in the election to fill seven vacancies on the USFA Executive Committee commencing July 1, 2022: Category A: one vacancy (2 year term) Category B: one vacancy (2 year term) Category C: one vacancy (2 year term) Category D: one vacancy (2 year term) Category E: three vacancies (two …
Continue reading “2022 USFA Executive Elections: Call for Nominations”
Feeling Pressure to Retire? It’s your decision
February 14, 2022 | All News
We are again hearing that some faculty members are being contacted by their deans or department heads to discuss their plans for retirement. And again, these meetings have been requested absent any indication or notice from the faculty member that they are even contemplating retirement at this time. Many USFA members are upset by what …
Continue reading “Feeling Pressure to Retire? It’s your decision”
Nursing Education, Managerialism and the Corporate University
February 11, 2022 | All News
Read the February 11, 2022 issue of VOX here.
Collectively Speaking – February 2022
February 11, 2022 | All News
This issue of Collectively Speaking contains a summary of bargaining trends across Canada and a snapshot of financial settlements negotiated by CAUT academic staff associations over the last year. In addition, we have a message from USFA Chair Geraldine Balzer, information about upcoming meetings with members, and a brief article reminding members to tell us …
Pandemic Response Team (PRT) Must Cite the Science Relied on to Justify Their Policies
February 1, 2022 | All News
Read the January 31, 2022 issue of VOX here.
Assistance requested: Improving Administrative Processes at the U of S
January 28, 2022 | All News
A message from the USFA Senior Grievance Officer: Dear colleagues, I am the senior grievance officer with the USFA and I am writing to you to ask for your assistance with our work to improve administrative processes at the U of S. We have had several discussions with senior leaders about the delays, obstacles, and …
Continue reading “Assistance requested: Improving Administrative Processes at the U of S”
Where are the Senior Academic Administrators?
January 27, 2022 | All News
For the past couple of years, the USFA has been bringing to the attention of senior academic administrators the ways in which administrative decisions are impeding the work of faculty. Chief among these is the decision, made during the early months of the pandemic, to mandate the use of Concur or Direct Travel for booking …
Continue reading “Where are the Senior Academic Administrators?”
Tenure and Academic Freedom
January 25, 2022 | All News
There is a continuous misunderstanding at university campuses, amongst some tenured faculty and staff of the university administration but also in the public at large, about the meaning, purpose, and scope of tenure and academic freedom. In our collective agreement they are defined in article 6 Academic Freedom, and article 15.2 Purpose of Tenure. As academics, we …
Important Information: Ratification Reminder and USFA Office Not Reopening
January 4, 2022 | All News
Happy new year! This is a reminder that a Special General Meeting of the Faculty Association will be held virtually on Monday, January 10th at 2:00 pm to consider ratification of the tentative agreement (attached). The meeting will take place via Zoom. Please register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdO2vrzwqHtSG8g7_A3zKGpkWF75NfTRJ The USFA office will not reopen today as planned and will be closed until January 24.
Pivot vertigo: on yesterday’s COVID-19 Update
December 22, 2021 | All News
Here we are again. Under the heading “Protect the Pack,” yesterday’s COVID update from the Usask Pandemic Response and Recovery Team (PRT) sent another contradictory “wait-and-see” message to faculty. Usask’s winter term, including face-to-face classes, is scheduled to start as planned on January 4. Shortly after this was delivered, the You|Sask Faculty & Staff Newsletter showed up in our inboxes announcing that …
Continue reading “Pivot vertigo: on yesterday’s COVID-19 Update”
The Problem with Work-Life Balance Bromides
December 14, 2021 | All News
Read the December 15 issue of VOX here.
University Council Motion on Intellectual Property Policy – a cautionary note to Council
December 13, 2021 | All News
At the November 2021 Council meeting, the “Inventions and Enterprise Creation Policy – For Council Approval – November 2021” was presented for approval by vote. The Collective Agreement between the University of Saskatchewan and the USFA governs intellectual property (IP) involving faculty under Articles 25 and 26, and an associated Memorandum of Agreement (MoA). Recognizing …
Important Notice: Ratification Meeting January 10, 2022
December 8, 2021 | All News
Since May 2021, USFA has been engaging in negotiations regarding a retirement incentive proposed by the Employer. We are pleased to let you know these discussions have concluded with a tentative agreement that provides some certainty and stability for an additional year through an extension to the Collective Agreement, enhancements to permanent retirement incentives in …
Continue reading “Important Notice: Ratification Meeting January 10, 2022”
UMFA ratifies tentative agreement
December 7, 2021 | All News
Yesterday, after 35 days on strike, University of Manitoba Faculty Association (UMFA) members voted to accept a tentative agreement reached with U of M administration. The agreement prioritizes recruitment and retention of professors, instructors, and librarians at the University of Manitoba, and will improve working conditions for UMFA members, and learning conditions for students. UMFA members stood …