Librarians & Archivists: Bargaining Bulletin Vol. 6, No. 14

This afternoon (June 28) we received the Employer’s monetary proposals, which include the Compensation and Benefits article as well as a number of other important articles. I joined the team at the table. Here is what we have to report:

The Employer presented three options for our consideration. The full proposals, including summary tables of the three options, can be found in the shared Member space. We will circulate an additional summary table tomorrow that compares the three options to the existing collective agreement and to UWOFA’s initial proposals.

Here are the highlights: 

• The Employer has agreed to UWOFA’s proposal to receive the same mental health benefits and vision care benefits as negotiated in the faculty round of bargaining. 
• They have also proposed some improvements to the stipends for directors and heads, the Academic Activity Support Fund, and the Career Trajectory Fund. 
• They have proposed a one-time promotion incentive of $2,500, which is half the amount negotiated for faculty. 
• However, they rejected our proposals to increase flex credits, pension contributions, and to improve the vacation accrual rate. 
• They have proposed a four-year deal with scale increases below projected inflation and have offered a lump sum to base amount that is much less than UWOFA’s proposal. 

The Employer’s representatives said that their offer represents their total mandate from Senior Leadership and they recognized that Members may be disappointed. They urged us toward consideration of their financial positioning, creative solutions, and compromise.

Our team has begun a fulsome review of the proposals and we look forward to discussion at the Member Information Session next week. Following the session we will be at the table for another three days, after which we will break for the summer. 

Librarians and Archivists have endured the full three-year moderation period under the unconstitutional Bill 124. They have also endured a very high inflationary environment over the past two years which is projected to continue. At the same time, Western has failed to systematically invest in a sufficient number of Librarians and Archivists to provide the high-level services expected and required at a research intensive university. 

You may have noticed that Western recently promoted its improved position in the international QS rankings; it is not our buildings that achieved this, but your hard work together with that of faculty, staff, and students. 

Bargaining Proposals in Members-Only Space

Remember that you can access the full proposals the parties are bringing to the table to read at your convenience.

If you haven’t yet had a chance to to read any proposals in greater detail, please contact a member of the Collective Bargaining Committee (CBC – see below) who can facilitate your access to this Members-only Sync folder:

• Samuel Cassady
• Kristin Hoffmann
• Denise Horoky
• Erin Johnson
• Liz Mantz
• Brian McMillan
• Katya Pereyaslavska
• Stephen Spong
• Leslie Thomas
• Courtney Waugh
• Johanna Weststar