The Communiqué – Volume 48, No. 3 – November 28, 2025
In This Issue:
- Impartiality Policy – Update
- Indigenous-focused Programming Fund – Applications Open
- Teaching Assignments Workload – New Letter of Understanding in CA
- Council Reception
- Congratulations to CUASA’s Executive Director!
- OCUFA Advocacy Day
- Respect at Work Survey
- Winter Break Office Hours
Impartiality Policy – Update
On October 17, 2025, Carleton University issued a draft “Institutional Impartiality Policy” and asked for input from the “campus community”. CUASA replied to President Tetteyon October 14 outlining our concerns with the proposed policy. In the weeks that followed hundreds of campus community members wrote to the President with their concerns. Carleton subsequently release and Updated Institutional Impartiality Draft.
Members of Faculty concerned that the President had failed to hear the community’s concerns called a General Faculty Board Meeting, an unprecedented event in the history or Carleton University, for Thursday November 27. At that meeting a motion was passed that “The General Faculty Board recommends to Senate that Senate recommends to the Board of Governors that they reject the proposed (November 2025 draft) Impartiality Policy, and not pursue any such policy”. CUASA’s President, Dominique Marshall spoke at the meeting and reiterated CUASA’s call for Carleton to withdraw the policy.
The Policy is slated to be presented to the Board of Governors for approval on Tuesday December 2. CUASA will continue to update Association members on this topic as events unfold.
*CUASA members have been invited to take part in protests against the Impartiality Policy during the Board of Governors Meeting Tuesday December 2nd – please watch social media for more details.
Indigenous-focused Programming Fund – Applications Open.
We are pleased to announce that CUASA’s 2025 Collective Bargaining Team won new funding for Indigenous-focused programming at Carleton! The new fund sees $10,000 yearly over the course of the new Collective Agreement. Applicants are eligible for up to $1,000 for the purchase of items, to pay guest speakers or to support culturally specific needs related to the CUASA member’s research and/or teaching needs. All faculty (including teaching stream) and librarians are eligible to apply.
Applications are open until December 8, 2025 for Winter 2026 funding. Successful applicants will be contacted once their proposal has been approved.
This fund will be managed by the Office of the Associate Vice-President, Indigenous Teaching, Learning and Research. Applicants are required to show how funding would be used in the application and to provide receipts/invoices.
For more information, please contact [email protected].
Teaching Assignments Workload – New Letter of Understanding in CA
Course assignments are happening earlier that ever with some units already assigning courses for next year!
In the last round of bargaining the Negotiating team signed a Letter of Understanding –Addressing Teaching Assignments Workload (see full text at link below) that created an expedited mechanism to address the assignment of teaching workload that members believe to be contrary in some way to Article 12 (e.g. that it is not equitable). Members are able to ask for redress from the Dean, and, if needed, use an expedited grievance process to resolve the issue.
Timeline – It is important to note that you must inform your Dean in writing with 10 working days of the receipt of the assignment that your workload is in contravention of Article 12.
If you have concerns about increases to your workload related to your teaching assignments, please be in touch with CUASA at [email protected]
Note: the links below are to articles in the draft 2024-2027 collective agreement that is still being finalized:
Letter of Understanding – Addressing Teaching Assignments Workload
End of Term CUASA Reception
CUASA invites members to join us for an end-of-term reception following the semester’s last Council meeting. Join the Executive and Council Representatives on Thursday, December 18. from 3:30-5:00pm in room 2017 at Dunton Tower for light refreshments and a chance to socialize as we head into the holiday break.
Members are asked to register to attend.
Congratulations to CUASA’s Executive Director!
On November 6, CUASA’s Executive Director, Jaye Horton, graduated from Queen’s University with a Master of Industrial Relations! Jaye began the part-time Professional MIR program in May 2023. As part of the program, Jaye took courses on a variety of labour relations and human resources topics, including collective bargaining, labour law, finance and accounting, workplace investigations, arbitration and mediation skills, and advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace.
Congratulations Jaye and thanks for your continued good work at the Association!
OCUFA Advocacy Day
On November 5th CUASA Executive Members attended the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) Advocacy Day – an annual event where faculty and academic librarians meet with Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) at Queen’s Park. This year items discussed included: Bill-33, chronic underfunding, intrusions into institutional autonomy, impact of student services cuts on student mental health, the impact of staff cuts on student experience and faculty workload, the connection between student learning conditions and faculty working conditions, and the urgent need for stable, core funding.
Pic: Anil Varughese (CUASA Vice-President), Mayurika Chakravorty (CUASA External Relations Officer), Tyler Chamberlain (APUO), Tyler Watt MPP, John Fraser MPP, Rob Kristofferson (OCUFA President), Jenny Ahn (OCUFA Executive Director)
Respect at Work Survey
The Respect at Work survey, led by the Canadian Labour Congress and researchers at Western University and the University of Toronto, is gathering workers’ experiences with harassment and violence at work.
To make your voice heard about harassment and violence at work – fill out Respect at Work survey here. The survey will take approximately 10–15 minutes to complete, is confidential, and anonymous.
Winter Break Office Hours
Please note the CUASA Office is closed from end-of-day Tuesday, December 23, until Monday, January 5, at 9:00am. No services will be provided during this period.
If you have an urgent matter, please contact CUASA Executive Director Jaye Horton at [email protected] and include * URGENT * in the subject line.
