Statement of Solidarity with Contract Instructors
CUASA stands in solidarity with CUPE 4600 members as the Carleton community gained shocking insights into the budgeting priorities of Carleton’s administration this past week. On Friday December 13th, the Dean of Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS), Anne Bowker, in an “End of 2024 Update” email wrote that she was “pleased to report progress on a key priority: reducing our reliance on contract instructors by 50%”and urged “all units to review undergraduate and graduate program requirements with an eye towards streamlining”.
In a letter to their membership and in a post on social media, CUPE 4600 revealed that they had received no direct prior communication from Carleton’s administration on how their members would be affected by austerity measures, despite repeated requests for transparency in budgeting. That CUPE 4600 members heard of the job losses of 87+ Contract Instructors in FASS alone in a public email, and after these losses had been planned for months, is disrespectful. It demonstrates that the administration has been acting in bad faith in its dealings with CUPE 4600, in its failure be transparent about its financial planning to the larger Carleton community, and in its use of structural deficits to erode collegial governance.
To date, all significant budgetary sacrifices have been cuts to the number of educators on campus. The drastic reduction of the number of Contract Instructors at Carleton will have far-reaching and irreparable effects. Fewer instructors mean fewer classes, larger class sizes, less time for research and the mentoring of emerging scholars. Students and professors alike know all too well how the quality of learning is not maintained in these conditions. Further, the administration has not made clear how it considers the impact of the cuts on the sustainability of programs. How seriously does the administration consider the Carleton Advantage of “striv[ing] for innovation in research, teaching, learning, and enhanc[ing] our existing programs, as well as develop[ing] new ones” when making budgetary decisions?
Recently members of the Carleton community were asked to share thoughts and ideas on addressing the budgetary deficit by writing to the Provost here. CUASA urges all members of the Carleton community to ask the Provost how her responsibility “ … for fostering an environment of academic excellence and innovation for students, faculty and staff” and “ … ensuring that Carleton is competitive in Canada and an academic leader across the world” is met in cuts to the lifeblood of the Carleton community – its professors. Clear and collegial leadership is needed.
If you would rather express your concerns anonymously, please fill out this form and CUASA will pass on your messages to the Provost.
