Unit 2 Bargaining Update (September 10, 2024)

Brad WalchukUncategorized

Dear Unit 2 members,

Your bargaining team met with the employer’s bargaining team on August 28th. We would like to give you a brief update on where negotiations stand so far.

Our bargaining priorities:

  • Compensation & Workload- Wages, Class size and TA support
  • Stronger Job Security- Seniority and first consideration
  • Enhanced Benefit- Support for mental and physical health
  • Equity and Respect- Material support for members in equity-seeking groups and more transparency and communication about departmental changes and restructuring
  • Contract Expiration Date- Align the Unit 2 contract expiry date with Units 1 and 3 (2027)

McMaster’s current offer:

  • Sub-inflationary wage increase- Only 2.5% in the first year, and 2.25% for the following 4 years
  • No Job Security- No attempt to reduce precarity in the university sector
  • Diminished Benefits- Status quo on dollar amounts, contingent on rushed negotiations
  • Inequity and Disrespect- Proposed fewer meetings between union and management, while removing any obligation for specific management decision-makers to attend. This makes it more difficult for your union to resolve members’ workplace problems before they become significant or legal issues
  • Lock into a Longer Contract- Proposed a 5-year contract, ending in 2029

Next Steps:

  • We are now working to schedule the next dates to meet with the employer for negotiations.
  • We will continue to negotiate for a real wage increase for McMaster sessional instructors.
  • The Contract Action Team (CAT) will be door knocking to talk with members about what you can do to help the bargaining process.

For more information on Unit 2 bargaining, visit bettermac.ca

If you’re interested in getting more involved in the union or bargaining process, do not hesitate to contact us!
To become a unit 2 steward, contact Hamed leadsteward_sessionals@cupe3906.org
To join the Contract Action Team, contact Mason vicepresident@cupe3906.org

In solidarity,
Your Unit 2 Bargaining Team

Unit 2 Bargaining Update (August 30, 2024)

Brad WalchukUncategorized

Did you know? Your Collective Agreement expires on August 31, 2024!
This summer, sessional faculty elected a Unit 2 Bargaining Team and were surveyed on their bargaining priorities. These priorities will guide our negotiations for a new Collective Agreement with the McMaster University Administration. The Collective Agreement is the contract that determines your workplace rights (such as wages, benefits, job security, workload, health and safety, and more) as a Sessional Faculty at McMaster University.

These priorities are:

  • Compensation & Workload- Wages, Class size, and TA support
  • Stronger Job Security- Seniority and first consideration
  • Enhanced Benefit- Support for mental and physical health
  • Equity and Respect- Material support for members in equity-seeking groups and more transparency and communication about departmental changes and restructuring
  • Contract Expiration Date- Align the Unit 2 contract expiry date with Units 1 and 3 (2027)

The first Negotiation Session occurred on August 28.

At the first meeting, your Bargaining Team exchanged proposals for updating the Collective Agreement with the employer’s team. Your Bargaining Team will keep you up-to-date on how negotiations progress. Stay informed and get involved for the benefit of all Sessional Faculty at McMaster.

The outcome of these contract negotiations will impact your job.

The only way to stop McMaster rolling back previous gains and secure some wins of our own is to make sure they feel the pressure from the whole membership to deliver a fair contract.

Contract Action Team

The Contract Action Team (CAT) exists to support the work of the Bargaining Team. The goal of the CAT is to inform, engage, and mobilize the entire membership of CUPE 3906 in support of the Unit 2 bargaining effort. We need to have an actively engaged membership to secure the best possible deal for our Unit 2 members. If you think you might be interested in getting involved in the CAT, email Walter at mobilizer@cupe3906.org or Varsha at bargainingcochairs@cupe3906.org

CUPE 3906 TA Strike Vote Information

Brad WalchukUncategorized

TODAY!!! Monday, October 17 at 4:00pm – HSC 1A5/Zoom

Teaching Assistants and Research Assistants (in lieu) will take a strike vote in our ongoing negotiations with the university. 

Register in advance for this meeting:
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
 
The new Collective Agreement being negotiated will set our pay, benefits and rights for the entirety of its duration, which is usually for 3 years. While TAs and RAs are facing once-in-a-generation cost of living increases and an affordable housing crisis, our wages have been capped to a 1% annual increase for the last 3 years under Bill 124. This is the first time we can negotiate outside of that cap: unfortunately, it means that our wages have taken a hefty pay cut due to inflation alone. In raises alone, McMaster has offered is is offering far less than the rate of inflation as food prices and rent in Hamilton and the GTA skyrocket. In many departments, TAs depend on their TA pay to be able to afford basic necessities, like food and rent.
Just last year, McMaster had $232 million in excess revenues over expenses, $188m in more than what was projected for 2021. McMaster’s management can afford more, but it refuses to do so. The parties remain far apart on other issues as well, such as fifth year funding for PhDs, enhanced benefits, tuition assistance/reimbursements, and the large pay gap between graduate and undergraduate TAs.  A strong strike mandate will show the university that TAs are serious about our priorities at the table. On the other hand, if few of us vote “yes” during the strike vote, the employer will have no reason to change their current position. You can read more in our bargaining bulletins here: https://bettermac.ca/unit-1-tas-and-ras-in-lieu/bargaining-updates/.
 
All current TAs and RAs (in lieu) are entitled to vote, as are those who worked in Winter 2022 or Spring/Summer 2022 and those who have a “contract in-hand” to work later in the 2022-23 academic year.
 
As per our by-laws, voting will start after the Strike Vote SGMM and will continue until October 19 at 11:55pm. Voting will be conducted electronically online. You will receive a ballot from Election Runner (not CUPE) in your McMaster inbox shortly after the end of the meeting, though the exact time will vary. Check your spam/junk folder for an email from noreply@electionrunner.com, and contact brad@cupe3906.org if you have any issues. The SGMM will include a presentation about bargaining so far and an opportunity to discuss what’s at stake in the strike vote. We will also elect scrutineers, who are responsible for verifying the results of the vote.

Have Questions about the Strike Vote?

We know there are a lot of questions about the strike vote and the possibility of a strike. Answers to many questions are available in our Strike Vote FAQ document: https://bettermac.ca/unit-1-strike-vote-faq/

REMINDER: Unit 1 Strike Vote SGMM

Brad WalchukUncategorized

TODAY!!! Monday, October 17 at 4:00pm – HSC 1A5/Zoom

Teaching Assistants and Research Assistants (in lieu) will take a strike vote in our ongoing negotiations with the university. 

Register in advance for this meeting:
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
 
The new Collective Agreement being negotiated will set our pay, benefits and rights for the entirety of its duration, which is usually for 3 years. While TAs and RAs are facing once-in-a-generation cost of living increases and an affordable housing crisis, our wages have been capped to a 1% annual increase for the last 3 years under Bill 124. This is the first time we can negotiate outside of that cap: unfortunately, it means that our wages have taken a hefty pay cut due to inflation alone. In raises alone, McMaster has offered is is offering far less than the rate of inflation as food prices and rent in Hamilton and the GTA skyrocket. In many departments, TAs depend on their TA pay to be able to afford basic necessities, like food and rent.
Just last year, McMaster had $232 million in excess revenues over expenses, $188m in more than what was projected for 2021. McMaster’s management can afford more, but it refuses to do so. The parties remain far apart on other issues as well, such as fifth year funding for PhDs, enhanced benefits, tuition assistance/reimbursements, and the large pay gap between graduate and undergraduate TAs.  A strong strike mandate will show the university that TAs are serious about our priorities at the table. On the other hand, if few of us vote “yes” during the strike vote, the employer will have no reason to change their current position. You can read more in our bargaining bulletins here: https://bettermac.ca/unit-1-tas-and-ras-in-lieu/bargaining-updates/.
 
All current TAs and RAs (in lieu) are entitled to vote, as are those who worked in Winter 2022 or Spring/Summer 2022 and those who have a “contract in-hand” to work later in the 2022-23 academic year.
 
As per our by-laws, voting will start after the Strike Vote SGMM and will continue until October 19 at 11:55pm. Voting will be conducted electronically online. You will receive a ballot from Election Runner (not CUPE) in your McMaster inbox shortly after the end of the meeting, though the exact time will vary. Check your spam/junk folder for an email from noreply@electionrunner.com, and contact brad@cupe3906.org if you have any issues. The SGMM will include a presentation about bargaining so far and an opportunity to discuss what’s at stake in the strike vote. We will also elect scrutineers, who are responsible for verifying the results of the vote.

Have Questions about the Strike Vote?

We know there are a lot of questions about the strike vote and the possibility of a strike. Answers to many questions are available in our Strike Vote FAQ document: https://bettermac.ca/unit-1-strike-vote-faq/

Bargaining Bulletin #1

presidentUncategorized

On May 6th, CUPE 3906 served McMaster University with notice to bargain for Teaching Assistants (Unit 1) and Postdoctoral Fellows (Unit 3), whose Collective Agreements are set to expire on August 31. After three and a half months of waiting, the university finally joined us at the bargaining table for four days of bargaining shared between both units.

On August 24th, the university’s bargaining team informed us that they were not prepared to bargain anything pertaining to money because the Board of Governors failed to give them a mandate. Usually, this mandate would be given well in advance and would offer the university’s bargaining team a sense of what kinds of changes the university is willing to make–and crucially, how much the university is willing to spend–to renew our Collective Agreements.

The union and the university have made good progress on some non-monetary items, such as updating gender pronouns and common language in the agreements, clarifying members’ rights to take pregnancy leave in the event of a still birth or miscarriage and parental leaves for adoptions, clarifying members’ rights to participate in safety planning in situations of domestic and sexual violence, and adding a TA Training article to the Unit 1 Agreement. But with the university unable (or unwilling) to negotiate things like wages, benefits enhancements, extended graduate funding guarantees and protections against future tuition increases for Teaching Assistants, or workload issues and retirement security for Postdocs, we find ourselves in the shocking position of arriving at an impasse on key issues after just four days.

We are calling on the relevant bodies at the university to meet and confirm a bargaining mandate immediately. We are also calling for that mandate to include:

  • Large enough pay increases to compensate for the alarming rise in the cost of living that workers are experiencing across Ontario;

  • Funding guarantees for graduate students that reflect how long our programs actually take;

  • A progressive and inclusive benefits package that allows every TA and Postdoc to take care of themselves and do their best work, including leaves and funds for reproductive health;

  • Protections from future tuition increases that could otherwise cut into our wages and put us even further behind, especially for international student workers; and

  • Allow Postdoctoral Fellows to address overwork in a meaningful way and to begin to save for retirement.

Our Collective Agreements expire today, so it is crucial that the university acts immediately. For this reason, the union’s bargaining teams have filed for conciliation, requesting that the government appoint an external mediator who can hopefully facilitate productive discussions when we return to the table.

Sessional Faculty Strike Deadline Set for July 22

presidentUncategorized

Sessional Faculty Strike Deadline Set for July 22

On June 27, the University’s negotiators requested that the Ministry of Labour start the countdown to a legal strike or lockout position after the Unit 2 Bargaining Team refused to accept the University’s latest proposal of a two-year, 1% per year agreement with no improvements to job security. It is not clear whether McMaster plans to lock Sessionals out, but because they’ve set this process in motion the Collective Agreement will have no legal effect as of Friday, July 22 unless a tentative agreement can be reached. This would mean continuing to work without the protection of the union, without access to the grievance procedure, and with no guarantee of ongoing access to benefits or anything else established by our Collective Agreement. In response, the Unit 2 Bargaining Team has had no choice but to a set a strike deadline of Friday, July 22. The Team has indicated to the employer its desire to continue to bargain, but based on the results of the strike vote and the many months of consultation with members about their priorities, the deal on the table now is simply unacceptable.

Unless a tentative agreement can be reached, Sessionals will be on strike as of July 22. Anyone continuing to work will be scabbing. “Scabbing” means performing work usually done by a striking worker. Scabbing does serious damage to the labour movement. It undermines the union’s ability to secure a strong Collective Agreement. Scabs will not have the protection of the union during a strike, and they could face sanctions by the union once a strike is resolved.

The Strike Committee has begun canvassing members for their availability for picket duties and is in the process of scheduling a town hall meeting where we can all come together to learn what’s at stake, ask questions, and voice our concerns. Please continue to monitor your inboxes for that information. In the meantime, please take a look at our Strike FAQ for more information. If you would like to get involved in planning the strike, please reach out to strikecochairs@cupe3906.org.

Members may want to begin discussing with their students the potential impacts a strike may have on them. To that end, members should review the University’s policy on the Rights and Responsibilities of Undergraduate Students During Work Stoppages That Substantially Disrupt Academic Activities. Members may also want to talk to full-time faculty in their departments about their right to refuse to perform struck work. Teaching Assistants and Postdocs may also be asked to scab in the event of a strike. As fellow members of CUPE 3906, their Collective Agreements protect them from being forced to perform struck work and the union expects them to respect Sessionals’ right to strike by refusing to scab.

Please consider sending a letter to the University to show your support for Sessionals.

Unit 2- Bargaining Bulletin #7 (June 28, 2022)

presidentUncategorized

The Unit 2 Bargaining Team met with the Employer on June 13th and June 17th, aided by a provincially appointed conciliator. The Union has made considerable movement in an effort to secure a fair and reasonable agreement for our members. The employer, however, tabled a set of proposals that failed to address any of the key priorities identified by the membership and are unwilling to discuss improvements to job security or the creation of a retirement security plan.

The Employer’s “settlement offer” was a 2-year agreement and contained increases of only 1% to the base rate in each year and no meaningful improvements to job or retirement security. The union’s extremely modest proposal to create joint committees where we could at least discuss the issues of job and retirement security have also been ignored. The offer expired on June 27th at 4 p.m. Because the Employer’s so-called settlement offer failed to address any of the major issues identified by the membership, the Union’s elected bargaining team notified the Employer that we would not be accepting that offer.

On June 28th, the Employer informed us that it has requested a ‘No Board Report’ from the conciliator. This is a legal process required under the Labour Relations Act in order to start a countdown toward a work stoppage. As such, the Union has every reason to believe that the employer will lock out union members by mid-to-late July (the exact date of a lockout remains TBA – a lockout can begin 17 days after the issuance of the conciliator’s ‘No Board Report,’ and the conciliator has five days to issue the report after being requested to do so). Furthermore, on the day a strike or lockout can begin, the Collective Agreement is no longer in force and the employer can unilaterally change the terms under which we work, whether or not job action occurs, leaving Sessionals in a vulnerable position.

The Union has been clear and reasonable in our demands throughout the ten months that we have bargained. The membership deserves a fair increase to wages (especially in light of rapidly rising inflation), improvements to job security language, and access to retirement security. In support of these proposals, a record-setting number of Sessionals voted 85% in favour of strike action if needed. We believe that a fair and reasonable settlement can still be negotiated and have worked tirelessly in good-faith to secure a fair agreement, but the Employer has responded only with ‘no’ and now looks poised to lock out Sessional Faculty in the middle of summer.

The Union is hoping to continue to bargain with the Employer, with the assistance of the provincially appointed mediator, in July, but in the interim we need to prepare for job action should negotiations fail to lead to any meaningful gains for the membership.

As part of our ongoing strike preparations, the Union is running an important “Picket Captain Training” workshop on June 30th from 1-4 p.m. at the CUPE National Office at 21 King St. West in Hamilton. Members voted overwhelmingly to engage in job action if needed, and it looks like it may become necessary. If you are interested in attending the Picket Captain training session, or in joining the Strike Committee, please e-mail our Mobilizer, Walter, at mobilizer@cupe3906.org.

Picket Captain Training

Brad WalchukUncategorized

Picket Captain Training will happen on June 30 from 1-4pm at the CUPE Hamilton Area Office downtown (21 King St W). A safe and effective picket at McMaster will require a strong roster of well-trained Picket Captains.

If you are interested in attending, please contact Chris at president@cupe3906.org

 

Unit 2 Strike Prep Bulletin

Brad WalchukUncategorized

Dear Sessional Faculty,

Your Bargaining Team will resume bargaining on Monday, June 13, with the help of a government-appointed mediator, in hopes of reaching a negotiated settlement to avoid a strike or lockout. As you know, the union and the university are still very far apart when it comes to a number of priorities, including fair wages, job security, retirement security, and training. Following the 85% strike mandate given to the Unit 2 Bargaining Team, strike preparations are well under way. This email contains two important updates related to strike preparations.

Strike Committee – June 17 at 1pm (Zoom)

The union has formed its Strike Committee and elected Unit 2 member, Simon Orpana, as its Chair. The next meeting will be held virtually over the Zoom platform on Friday, June 17, beginning at 1pm. At this meeting, we will pull together all of the existing strike materials as we work through CUPE’s Strike Preparation program. We will need to find volunteers to serve in various capacities on the Strike Committee, and make important decisions about picket line locations and times, approved picket duties, the location of an off-campus strike office, and so on. All Unit 2 members are encouraged to attend and participate; so long as you taught at some point in the 2021-2022 academic year or you have a contract in hand to teach next year, you have an interest in the outcome of this round of bargaining. Please email Simon at strikecochairs@cupe3906.org if you plan to attend the meeting, or if you can’t attend but want to be kept in the loop for future Strike Committee activities.

Picket Captain Training – June 30 at 1pm (In-person)

The union has organized Picket Captain Training, which will take place on June 30 from 1-4pm. This training will happen in person at the CUPE Hamilton Area Office downtown (21 King St W, Hamilton). Picket Captains are responsible for maintaining safe and effective picket lines. A well-trained roster of Picket Captains will be vital to the success of a strike, should one become necessary. If you are willing to serve as a Picket Captain and you would like to attend this training in person, please RSVP to me in writing and I’ll get back to you with more information. If you are interested in serving as a Picket Captain, but you are unable to attend the training in person on June 30, please let me know and we’ll see what alternative arrangements can be made. More training sessions may be made available if necessary.

I know this round of bargaining has been tremendously stressful, and I want to thank you for your continued patience and support. A union is only ever as strong as its members are willing to work together and fight for a better workplace. Please email me if you have questions or concerns.

In solidarity,

Chris (he/him)
President, CUPE 3906

Unit 2 Sessional Faculty vote in favour of strike action

Brad WalchukUncategorized

Hamilton, ON – 13 May 2022 – The front-line instructors responsible for a significant proportion of undergraduate teaching at McMaster University have concluded a strike vote after three days of online voting.  Sessional Faculty and Hourly-Rated Sessional Music Faculty at McMaster University, comprising CUPE Local 3906 (Unit 2), voted 85% in favour of providing their Bargaining Committee with a strong strike mandate should negotiations the table with the McMaster Administration fail. 

The Local witnessed a record number of members participating in the vote between May 10th and 12th, held online due to pandemic safety measures. “The bargaining team is grateful that a record number of members demonstrated such strong support for the Union’s proposals on the table,” says Chris Fairweather, the Local’s President. This strong mandate speaks to the sky-high inflation rates faced by members, the increasingly precarious nature of employment at postsecondary institutions, and the compensation restrictions imposed on public sector workers by the Ford government’s ‘Bill 124’ legislation. At the same time, the Employer refuses even to discuss options for retirement security and improved job security for members, many of whom have spent decades working at McMaster.

This 85% strike mandate highlights the Employer’s need to take members’ concerns to heart immediately or face job action.  The Employer must work with the Union to find ways to improve job security to support Sessionals in continuing to provide the high quality teaching excellence on which McMaster prides itself as one of Canada’s top-ranked employers.  “We have also seen the Employer issue significant pay increases to upper management and administration over the past few years,” says Fairweather. “Now that we are coming out of our mandatory wage-restriction period, our members – who often juggle multiple jobs – deserve wages gains that address the realities of inflation and keep pace with a rising cost of living in the spirt of respect, equity, and inclusion,” he adds.

The results of this vote do not mean that a strike is forthcoming, but empower the bargaining team to call a strike should further negotiations not provide meaningful gains to members. The employer walked away from our last meeting on April 27th after one hour of bargaining, declared an impasse, and filed for conciliation. The next step in the bargaining process is conciliation, in which a Provincially-appointed conciliator will meet with the parties.

Local 3906 is eager to put the support of its members into action at the bargaining table and is committed to membership engagement throughout the process. Please watch for further updates and additional bargaining support initiatives.

CUPE Local 3906 (Unit 2) represents over 600 Sessional Faculty and Hourly Rated Sessional Music Faculty at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario each academic year.

Contacts: 

Chris Fairweather, President – president@cupe3906.org

Brad Walchuk, Staff Representative- brad@cupe3906.org

A PDF version can be found here: https://bettermac.ca/wp-content/blogs.dir/843/2022/05/CUPE-3906-strike-vote-release-final-2022.pdf