Bill Morneau, the Government of Ontario’s advisor on pooled asset pensions, has released his recommendations on how to combine the assets of Ontario’s smaller public pension plans, including those for university faculty. OCUFA is currently conducting a thorough analysis of his report, which we will make available on the OCUFA website soon. In the meantime, […]
On Saturday, October 27, 2012, OCUFA presented the 2011-12 Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards at a ceremony in Toronto. Since 1973, OCUFA has recognized the outstanding contributions made by professors and academic librarians to the quality of higher education in Ontario. This year’s winners exemplify the spirit of innovation, dedication, and collaboration that characterizes university faculty […]
These are challenging times for Ontario’s higher education sector. We are being challenged on three fronts: university pension plans, the government’s anti-labour push for wage restraint, and a reform plan that threatens institutional autonomy and academic freedom. OCUFA is working hard to monitor the latest developments and push back against government intrusion in higher education. […]
The Ontario government has signaled its interest in reforming Ontario’s public sector pension plans, and appears to be closing in on a new framework for university pensions in the province. In order to develop an informed response to government proposals, faculty members need a full understanding of the potential impact these government actions could have […]
An established salary grid that provides for an annual salary increase is budget neutral. This may seem counter-intuitive to claim, but it is a fact. The reason for the difference between intuition and reality is because the amount of money tied up in an established salary grid is constant, and it is only individual positions […]
When it comes to an employee’s progress through a salary grid, the answer is “always.” This is a hard truth that the Government of Ontario has now forced on elementary and secondary teachers. The estimated 40% of Ontario teachers who have not yet reached the maximum level of their salary grid, and who forego their grid-steps for […]
A recent report from the US Coalition on the Academic Workforce indicates that close to 70 per cent of faculty in the US are members of the contingent academic workforce. Based on a survey of part-time faculty and instructors, it finds that “those increasingly responsible for educating the undergraduates who reap this earnings premium [of an undergraduate […]
On June 29, 2012 OCUFA met with Bill Morneau, the Government of Ontario’s advisor on joint asset management, to present its brief on pooling the assets of Ontario public pension plans . The brief highlighted seven principles OCUFA believes are essential to any asset consolidation process: The interests of plan members must be of primary consideration. The ultimate scope of a pooled asset management system […]
In last week’s OCUFA Report , we reported that the Government of Ontario plans to hold consultations over the summer on reform to the province’s higher education sector. There will be four half-day consultations in the GTA on specific topics, and three regional roundtables. Dates for the consultations have now been set: July 19 – Humber College (GTA) – Quality […]
According to Statistics Canada , Ontario university students pay the highest average domestic tuition in Canada. Undergraduates pay 13 per cent more than their peers in Nova Scotia, the next most expensive province. Even after accounting for student support paid from university operating budgets, Ontario domestic and international students together pay on average 41 per cent more […]
This past week, OCUFA awarded the first Henry Mandelbaum Graduate Fellowship to Johnny El-Alam, a PhD Candidate at Carleton University. The fellowship, created in honour of retired OCUFA Executive Director Henry Mandelbaum, provides support to a student who has demonstrated academic excellence, shows exceptional academic promise, and has provided significant community service in his/her university […]
Three individuals who have provided exceptional service to OCUFA and its members were honoured in a ceremony at Toronto’s Royal York Hotel on June 2, 2012. The winners are: Prof. Brian E. Brown from the University of Windsor Faculty Association (WUFA) Prof. John Fekete, from the Trent University Faculty Association (TUFA) Prof. Atef Fahim, from […]
The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) would like to thank everyone who took the time to fill out our 2012 Faculty Survey. We received over 2,300 responses from across Ontario, from all disciplines. The Faculty Survey helps OCUFA understand the opinions and concerns of our members, and allows us to be a […]
Academic Matters – OCUFA’s flagship publication – has received a facelift with a brand new website. The new site improves functionality, puts more emphasis on our blogs, and integrates better with the magazine’s social media channels. The official launch of the new website coincides with the publication of our May 2012 issue. Using the […]
On May 4, 2012, OCUFA’s Status of Women Committee hosted a workshop titled “Navigating the Academy: Lessons and Strategies for More Equitable Universities.” The workshop was attended by 40 participants from universities across Ontario. Presentations explored some of the challenges that women and members of other equity seeking groups face when building an academic career. […]
