FAM wants to strengthen faculty job security. Management wants to weaken it.
Yesterday at FAM-T bargaining, we made some great progress and had one serious disagreement with management.
On FAM’s side, we’re fighting hard to strengthen our members’ benefits, with today focused on academic and sick/parental/bereavement leaves. Our counters on Leaves and Academic Leave clarify the process by which leaves (including Assigned Research Appointments and Faculty Improvement Leaves) are requested and approved, and provide transparency and protection when your life is upended by sickness, becoming a parent, or losing a loved one.
We’re also fighting to clarify and make transparent and fair the annual evaluation process and its implications in our counter on Faculty Evaluations. Our counter:
- would codify and standardize the process by which all faculty are evaluated;
- includes language protecting members against unfair use of student evaluations of teaching;
- Includes language preventing misunderstandings and conflict between chairs and P&T committees about TCPL Professional Development Plans; and
- rejects management’s post-tenure review notion entirely.
Management countered on Agreement Construction (which we plan to TA next time), Discipline & Discharge, and Grievance & Arbitration. Of great concern is their counter on Financial Exigency and Academic Reorganization, which they described as a response to three of our articles: Financial Exigency, Mandatory Furloughs, and Program Elimination. Their counter:
- gives management the overly broad and unilateral right to fire TCPL and tenured/tenure-track faculty during a financial crisis or anytime they deign to close a program, department, or otherwise “restructure” the university and with very little notice, severance, or continuation of benefits
- contradicts language management has already proposed) in TCPL Appointment, Renewal and Promotion, where TCPL faculty are given a year’s notice before being non-renewed during academic restructuring.
This is yet another example of management wanting to erode faculty job security under an overly-broad definition of “management rights.” We will not accept this overreach, and we will continue to fight for job security for all faculty, even during financial crisis or restructuring.
We invite you to read all proposals in full at our website! (Note that we are still waiting on correct management counters; please check back soon!)
Want to help us stand up to management’s unacceptable positions on faculty firing? Come out to FAM-L bargaining this coming Monday, Aug 19 and FAM-T bargaining September 12 and 17! Your presence at the negotiating table helps us to show management that our members are paying attention and care deeply about getting a fair contract now.
Other ways to help the FAM:
- Help facilitate or setup a department meeting (we will train you to facilitate a meeting or help conduct a department meeting)
- If you’re a member, join us in the caucus room to provide your input on our counters! (Become a member here!)
- Let us know about any changes or issues you may encounter because of the change to the workday system.
FAM Fact of the Day
Did you know that the average first-year raise on union contracts in Ohio is currently 6.05%? And that the average annual raise is 4.35%?
Miami management has proposed 1.4% average annual raises over the course of your contract. That’s two percentage points below the average that other employers proposed in Ohio and almost 4 percentage points below the average annual raises actually awarded. FAM’s initial proposal—an average annual 7% raise—is a modest opening proposal, and you deserve it.
If you support FAM’s compensation proposal, show up for FAM this fall! United strength is what will win us a strong contract. 💪🏽
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