Faculty Bargaining Bulletin Vol. 8, No. 12

Thank you Members who have filled out the Strike Information Questionnaire. This
information helps our planning to adequately support Members in the event of a strike or lockout. For those who haven’t yet responded, please fill out the survey as soon as possible.

Updates on Negotiations

There have been three bargaining meetings over the last two weeks. Progress has
been limited with the Employer only now addressing Letters of Understanding on equity issues (i.e., Working Groups for Members with disabilities and Service workload for equity-deserving groups) which we filed some time ago. Disappointingly, the Employer’s response to both was “no”.

See Appendix A for an updated list of proposals and their status as of October 21st.

Last Thursday afternoon, we requested that Paul Pooler, the provincially appointed conciliator, file a “No Board” report with the Ministry of Labour. Once that report is filed, and an additional 17 days have passed, we will be in a legal strike position, supported by a strong strike mandate from the Membership last month (91% of votes cast were YES).

While the filing of a No Board Report is the final mechanism in making a strike or a lockout possible, this does not mean that negotiations are at an impasse. The Negotiating team will continue to work at the table for a fair and equitable agreement for all Members.

There are two bargaining meetings scheduled for this week and nine more planned for the coming weeks. Tomorrow (Tuesday), we plan to reply to the Employer’s proposal on compensation and benefits. Paul Pooler will be present at that time, along with Ruban Chelladurai, Associate VP, Institutional Planning & Budgeting.

What can you do?

• Talk to your students about bargaining (see attached slide which can be included in lectures). Encourage students to follow UWOFA on social media and direct them to the student page of our website which is regularly updated. Direct their concerns about a possible strike to Western’s senior administration (see more below).
• Help avert a strike! Send Western’s senior administrators a letter urging them to reach a fair and equitable deal with UWOFA in a timely manner that avoids a strike. The letter is ready to go on the Take Action page of the UWOFA website. All you need to do is fill in the email form with your details. Share this link with current and former students, colleagues and supportive community members.

Please see attached pdf below for the full Bargaining Bulletin and Appendix A: Core UWOFA Proposals Organized by Mandate.