Our hope was to start in January, but the actual start was February 14. Our intention is to negotiate to a collective agreement; we’ll take the time that is needed to do so. We have about eight meetings set up between mid-February and the end of April.
Included in the Speech from the Throne on October 3, 2011, was the following:
Though taxpayer-funded public sector wage increases will be challenging to achieve, and must fit within the fiscal plan, your government understands that public servants need to be treated fairly. This requires being creative in how resources are identified for any improvements in collective agreements. Therefore, the government will facilitate a process for collective agreement improvements by working with ministries and employer groups to find savings through cooperative gains. The government will be asking public sector employers, unions and employees to join in this process.
Prior to entering into this round of bargaining, the bargaining preparation team consulted with members by conducting a survey, visiting all of the faculties, meeting with constituent groups, and conducting focus groups with small sets of members. The bargaining prep team also consults members of FAN (Faculty Association Network), and the Bargaining Advisory Committee. The Bargaining Advisory Committee members are:
- Jolanta Alkesejuniene (Assistant Professor, Dentistry)
- Ljiljana Biukovic (Associate Professor, Law)
- Jo-Anne Dillabough (Associate Professor,Education Studies)
- Doris Doudet (Professor, Neurology)
- Rick Gooding (Lecturer, English)
- Christina Hendricks (Instructor, Philosophy)
- Adelheid O’Brien (Lecturer, CENES)
- Robert Stibravy (Librarian, Digital Projects)
The Faculty Association Executive Committee held a bargaining retreat in the fall to discuss bargaining objectives, based on all of the input received in our consultations. During that retreat, the basic objectives were identified, and then the bargaining preparation committee fleshed out the details, and reported monthly to the Executive Committee. The bargaining team will continue to keep the Executive Committee informed about bargaining, and will also provide blog posts to the membership.
