Letter from CUASA’s President

January 29, 2026

Dear members of CUASA,

I am glad to report that the different parts of CUASA are working at full capacity. All 12 positions in the Steering Committee are filled and Council is very close to having representatives for all units. CUASA’s Staff of six faces the daily work efficiently and they approach unexpected challenges with imagination, fairness and skill. The budget is sound and sustainable, our work is accountable to members, the channels to listen to members are wide open, safe and trustworthy, and relations with the Employer are as constructive as can be.

CUASA members continue to show their commitment to doing the work that moves Carleton towards what a university should be, in any economic circumstances: a public institution governed collegially, committed to academic freedom, rigorous scholarship, and the transmission and pursuit of a knowledge of quality for the benefit of society. We have witnessed CUASA members:

support last Spring’s negotiations in record numbers, directly impacting the important gains of the bargaining team on technological innovation, workload, and Equity (among other changes);
attend last fall’s General Faculty Board on impartiality to protect academic freedom;
engage meaningfully in questions of equity, reconciliation, and accessibility to create a more just University and society; and
work in powerful and strategic ways at Senate and on Faculty Boards towards transparency in the process of cutting programs.

Too often, in times of budgetary constraints, what is sacrificed first in the name of economies are the rights of workers, the protections of the most marginalized community members, and even the core mission of public organizations. At Carleton there is much work ahead to ensure the protection CUASA members and the prospering of teaching, research and learning. With your continued commitment the Union is well equipped to make full use of the safeguards and entitlements which our predecessors secured for Academic Staff throughout CUASA’s long and active 50 years. CUASA will continue to protect our work, our student’s learning and the important place of the University in our community and our province and country not only by guaranteeing the provisions of the Collective Agreement are respected, but also by ensuring that the promises of University Act of 1957 to provide a sound and public higher education in the region remain a priority.

CUASA’s elected executive is grateful and proud to represent members such as yourselves, who continue to show how engagement and solidarity should function. Within Carleton, it is crucial that we ensure that past practices and protections are not eroded, especially with how much more time new and old tasks are taking. To those ends, we must act both individually and collectively to:

know our rights and responsibilities;
document and signal potential infringements to CUASA representatives at Council and/or employees of the CUASA office (with the renewed awareness that one undocumented exception might create a precedent for all);
actively occupy all the spaces of collegial governance available, which requires constant vigilance, information, and effort.

This work is always done in conjunction with sibling unions of workers and students on campus, in the name of converging interest in a meaningful, open minded and public institution of learning and knowledge. The Union is also well prepared to occupy its full place in institutions beyond Carleton. Members of the Steering Committee regularly collaborate with regional, provincial and federal affiliates to address questions that require solidarity, advocacy and research well beyond Carleton.

The social and economic benefits of a strong postsecondary system are well understood. In Ontario and Canada, strong faculty Unions have come to occupy a vital role in maintaining and improving a just access to what university has offer to all. In recent times, this work has required serious efforts to ensure that the principles of accountability to the public, equal rights, justice and equity amongst citizens and groups, fairness, truth, knowledge, excellence, reconciliation, affordability, and efficiency, are not emptied out of their democratic meaning. As teachers and researchers our personal education, vigilance and effort are required in this fight and CUASA’s executive thanks members for your continued hard work in these matters. we also invite you to reach out to [email protected] if you need information and/or support or if you are looking for ways to expand your involvement in CUASA’s work.

In solidarity,

Dominique Marshall

CUASA President