Weekly Update – August 6, 2021
August 6, 2021
Weekly Update – August 6, 2021
Reminder: Ratification Vote Next Week
This is the final reminder of the ratification vote on the tentative 2021-2024 collective agreement. If you have any questions about this vote, please don’t hesitate to contact us at [email protected].
The electronic vote will open this coming Monday, August 9, at 12:00pm and will run until Wednesday, August 11, at 12:00pm. Voting information will be distributed via email to members of the bargaining unit prior to the opening of the polls.
Update on Questions on Tentative Agreement
Yesterday, we wrote about some questions members had about the tentative agreement. Specifically, these questions related to Instructors with doctorates or equivalent being hired as Instructor II, and to the new sabbatical grant.
We sought clarification from the University administration. The response we received was that the Provost’s Office will conduct a review of affected members will contact those members advising them of the change in rank process will occur. This will apply to Instructors hired before and after May 1, 2021.
Regarding the new sabbatical grant, we were informed the University is currently working with the Finance Office on an implementation plan to ensure changes are retroactively made to May 1, 2021, as quickly as reasonably practicable.
Update on Vaccinations at Carleton
In our last two weekly updates, we’ve shared information on vaccinations at Carleton. CUASA has been pressing the university all spring and summer for policy decisions regarding vaccinations for on campus workers. Since the onset of the pandemic CUASA was clear that the safety of our members and the campus community was at stake and that we would not tolerate an unsafe work environment. Yesterday, the University announced a change in its vaccination policy based on two recommendations from Ottawa Public Health. The first is that Carleton require students who participate in activities that carry a higher risk of COVID-19 transmission, notably living in residences, to be fully vaccinated. The second is that everyone in the Carleton community self-declare their COVID-19 vaccination status.
CUASA is somewhat pleased with this decision as it is a step in the right direction, but we have urged for more caution in the past and shall endeavour to do so in the future. We look forward to receiving more information at our August 12 meeting with the University’s General Counsel, Steve Levitt in the hope that it will lead to even more stringent safety measures for our campus community.
To read the full update from Carleton, click here.
Grievance Update: Instructor Workload – School of Computer Science
CUASA is pleased to inform its members that Arbitrator Mitchnick has ruled in favour of the Association and dismissed the University’s preliminary objection that the FASS 2015 workload decision governed exclusively the workload calculation for Instructors in the Faculty of Science. The Association had a pre-pandemic grievance on the table alleging the SCS Instructors were in teaching overload.
At the preliminary hearing, the University relied on the principle of res judicata and alleged the Association was attempting to relitigate the 2015 FASS Instructor workload case.
CUASA argued that it was impossible that the matter had been fully canvassed and disposed of for School of Computer Science Instructors since no evidence about the Faculty of Science was put before Arbitrator Knopf in 2015, as well as the fact that the faculty norms were indeed different. CUASA further argued there was no “campus wide” practice for faculty teaching loads and that the Association was not barred from filing a grievance on new issues or contraventions of the collective agreement.
The Association asserts that the norm for faculty teaching loads is 1.5 by way of past practice. Any releases afforded to faculty in the Faculty of Science are deducted from 1.5, not arbitrarily added to create a new 2.0 value to apply for Instructors. In the 2017 round, when implementing the new language and Arbitrator Kaplan’s retroactivity award, it was learned that Computer Science Instructors were teaching based on a false 2.0 teaching norm value for faculty.
As noted in the decision, the University only made their 2.0 teaching norm for the Faculty of Science known to the Association in the grievance reply.
The case will now proceed on the merits by order of the Arbitrator. You can read the Arbitrator’s decision here.
CUASA Business
Vacant Steering Positions
We are still seeking volunteers for the following Steering positions (click on the title below to see the position description):
* The Steering committee has allocated a 0.5 course release for the Vice President position.
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. If you are interested in one of these positions and would like some information, or wish to nominate yourself or a colleague, please CUASA’s Chair, Nominations and Elections, Marylynn Steckley, at [email protected].
Call for Volunteers: JHSC
We are seeking one more CUASA volunteer to be one of the Association’s representatives on the University’s Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC). If you are interested, please contact Marylynn Steckley at [email protected].
Academic Community Updates
CAUT Newswire: July 2021 – National security guidelines, safe return and review of the Employment Equity Act
Every month CAUT sends out a newsletter with the latest CAUT and post-secondary education sector news. To read the July 2021 issue, click here.
Supreme Court ruling a victory for students and post-secondary education
CUASA is very pleased to see last week’s Supreme Court decision to uphold a ruling that copyright tariffs are not mandatory is a huge win for students, researchers and the publicly-funded post-secondary education system. We thank all of the parties who played a role in taking on this important legal challenge.
To read CAUT’s full update, click here.
