TORONTO, February 6, 2020 – The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) is pleased to announce that Ryerson University Professor Sophie Quigley is a recipient of the inaugural OCUFA Award for Outstanding Contribution to Grievance/Arbitration. The award, sponsored by OCUFA’s Grievance Committee, recognizes individuals who have made exceptional contributions to the defence of collective agreements through the grievance/arbitration process.
“In the inaugural year for this award, we honour Sophie Quigley for distinguished service as a long-serving Grievance Officer and three term Chair of the Ryerson Faculty Association (RFA) Grievance Committee,” said Rahul Sapra, OCUFA President. “Sophie has repeatedly demonstrated the thought leadership, courage, and fortitude that are critical to defending the rights of faculty members.”
As a Grievance Officer for the Ryerson Faculty Association, Quigley has handled over seventy individual and policy grievances. Among the cases she shepherded through arbitration are two notable successes: One resulted in an arbitration award that clarified the role of comparator files in tenure evaluation. The second concluded with a precedent-setting award that determined that surveys used to evaluate faculty member teaching performance do not measure teaching effectiveness. It also found the surveys are characterized by inherent and systemic bias, and are discriminatory in their effects. Thanks to Quigley’s work, the results of these groundbreaking arbitration awards have reverberated well beyond Ryerson and received international recognition.
“OCUFA is deeply honoured to recognize those exceptional individuals who have demonstrated such a firm commitment to defending the rights of faculty members and other academic professionals,” said Sapra. “Sophie’s many accomplishments for RFA members and the broader impact of her achievements in arbitration, along with her steadfast commitment to equity and fairness, make her a worthy and distinguished recipient of the inaugural OCUFA Award for Outstanding Contribution to Grievance/Arbitration.”
Quigley will receive her award at a ceremony hosted by OCUFA in Toronto on February 8, 2020.
Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty and academic librarians in 30 faculty associations across Ontario.
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To arrange interviews or for more information, please contact:
Ben Lewis, OCUFA Communications Lead
416-306-6033 | communications@ocufa.on.ca