Weekly Update – January 14, 2022

January 14, 2022

Weekly Update – January 14, 2022

 

Save the Date: CUASA Winter 2022 GMM

CUASA’s Winter 2022 General Membership Meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 1, from 2:00-4:00pm.

The GMM will take place online over Zoom. The agenda and connection details will be released closer to the date.

 

SEQ Choice Selection

As we wrote about last fall, CUASA was awarded a mediation/arbitration order from Arbitrator Paula Knopf regarding the Association’s grievance on the administration of student teaching evaluations (STE), now referred to in the collective agreement as student experience questionnaires (SEQ). The full decision can be found here.

As the award outlines, there will be a new process to appropriately implement the terms of Article 25.3(h)-(i) of the collective agreement with proper consideration for Article 25.3(a).

Specifically, members can now make their selections through Carleton Central under “Faculty Services” by accessing “Student Experience Questionnaire Method Preference”. You have until January 31 to select your preference, one that will be effective this term. If no selection is made by this date, the SEQ will be administered online.

Be advised that under the new system, once members make a selection and save it, the choice will be saved for every subsequent term and academic year thereafter and will not change until it is changed by the member. Members who wish to make specific changes for a fall or winter term must meet the end of the month deadline for the change to apply for that term. If a change is made after the deadline, that preference will apply for the next term.

Courses determined to be “fully online” will have to be administered using electronic questionnaires. The administration of all other courses will be at the discretion of our members.

The Association continues to strongly recommend the paper format, when safe to do so, since the issues of discriminatory effects and bias for the electronic format remain outstanding.

 

Accommodation Requests

As mentioned last week, CUASA wishes to remind its members that there are options available, should you require accommodation. In particular, the Association has an agreement with the University that enshrines a unique application process that recognizes the individualized nuances for members needing to seek an adjustment, reduction, or rescheduling of their workload during these disruptive situations.

Remember, CUASA members have every right to seek an accommodation where needed. Members will require customized advice before making their applications to their Deans, should they believe it necessary.

Any members needing individualized advice on seeking an accommodation are encouraged to contact the following CUASA staff members: members with a last name beginning with the letters A-M, please email Hanan Mankal ([email protected]); members with a last name beginning with the letters N-Z, please email Alex Aucoin ([email protected]).

 

EFAP Support

CUASA members and/or their families may be struggling in light of the current situation. Remember that all CUASA members and their families have access to the Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP). You can find details about the EFAP here.

 

Nominations for Steering Positions

We are accepting nominations for the following Steering Committee positions for terms beginning on July 1, 2022 (click on the position title to view the description):

• President
• Treasurer
• External Relations Officer
• Chair, Grievance Policy and Administration
• Instructor Representative
• Librarian Representative

Nominations for President are due to the virtual CUASA Office by Thursday, March 31, 2022. Nominations for all other positions are due by Friday, April 29, 2022.

Information on the nominations process can be found on our How to Volunteer page. Remember that our Association is only as strong as its membership, so we count on the time and commitment of our members to achieve our goals. Some of these positions come with a course release subject to the availability of funds (please ask if interested).

If you have any questions about the positions or the process, please contact CUASA’s Chair, Nominations and Elections, Marylynn Steckley, at [email protected].

 

COVID Prevention at Work

The Ottawa & District Labour Council and the Workers Health & Safety Centre will present “COVID Prevention at Work” as part of the Virtual Health & Safety Information Series. This even will be held on Tuesday January 25, 2022, at 7:00pm.

The event will feature speakers and presentations from OHCOW, OFL and Prevention Link. Everyone is welcome to attend.

Advance registration is required, which you can do here.

 

Academic Community Updates

UOITFA requests “no board”: Ontario Tech faculty move closer to striking as university resists investing in quality education

After seven months of negotiations, the union representing full-time faculty at Ontario Tech University has requested a “no-board” notice from the Ministry of Labour, Training, and Skills Development; once issued, the countdown toward a potential strike will begin. The University of Ontario Institute of Technology Faculty Association (UOITFA) is disappointed bargaining has reached this point. However, the Ontario Tech administration has been unwilling to meaningfully address growing concerns around workload, education quality, equity, and job security at the university.

Make your voice heard. Send an email to Ontario Tech’s President and senior leadership team and ask them to negotiate a fair deal that prioritizes high-quality education and helps us avoid a strike at Ontario Tech: https://www.uoitfa.ca/take-action/

To read UOITFA’s full statement, click here.

 

OCUFA disappointed Laurentian still resisting accountability for CCAA devastation

OCUFA is disappointed that the Superior Court of Justice has denied the Ontario Auditor General’s request for documents that Laurentian University claims are privileged. Laurentian’s sudden insolvency and unprecedented implosion as a result of the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) process has devastated the Greater Sudbury community, raised concerns at other universities, and alarmed the people of Ontario. It is vital that Laurentian University show some accountability and release these documents to the Auditor General.

For more information, click here.

 

CAUT tracking winter semester adjustments due to COVID-19

In response to the highly contagious Omicron COVID-19 variant, universities and colleges across Canada are delaying the start of the winter semester or pivoting back to online classes.

For more information, click here.

 

Harry Crowe Foundation Conference 2022 – Academic Freedom and the Law

Academic freedom in Canada is the right of academic staff to teach and discuss, to research and publish, to participate in the academic governance of and to criticize their administration, and to exercise their civil liberties, including freedom of expression, without institutional censorship. The exercise of academic freedom is both facilitated by and constrained by the law. This conference will explore the legal foundations of academic freedom, as well as the legal limits placed on it with a view to strengthening the protections for academic freedom in Canada.

This important conference will be held online February 10-11, 2022. The registration link and the conference agenda are available at: http://www.crowefoundation.ca/events/.

The Harry Crowe Foundation was established as a charitable organization by the Canadian Association of University Teachers in 2002 to carry out education and research on the role of academic freedom in contemporary society. The Foundation is named in honour of Professor Harry Crowe whose celebrated academic freedom case in the 1950’s helped establish the mission of what was then a fledgling CAUT.