University masking mandates must continue

| By |

TORONTO, April 25, 2022 – The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) is calling on university administrators across the province to maintain campus masking mandates until at least the end of August. With new COVID-19 cases reaching peaks surpassing previous waves of the pandemic and other health and safety measures having been lifted, masking mandates on Ontario’s bustling university campuses are a vital and simple way to slow the spread of the virus.

“Throughout this pandemic, OCUFA has consistently urged university administrations to engage with faculty and campus health and safety committees and take a cautious, measured approach,” said Sue Wurtele, OCUFA President. “Throughout this pandemic, university administrations have excluded faculty from these decision-making processes and created serious disruption by frequently changing course. This has led to unnecessary stress and anxiety amongst faculty, staff, and students.”

Following the Ford government’s ill-advised decision to drop provincial masking mandates on March 21, Ontario universities announced they would be pausing their mandates on May 1. However, as case counts remain troublingly high, several universities have decided to extend masking and vaccination mandates for at least another month. These extensions have come as university faculty and academic librarians point to the increased threat of COVID-19 transmission without proper health and safety protections, as well as the disruptive effects of repeated pivoting.

At the beginning of April, Brock University extended their vaccine and mask mandates after reaching a mediated agreement with the Brock University Faculty Association (BUFA) prompted by a grievance filed by the faculty association. In addition to extending the vaccine and mask mandates at Brock, any future changes to these policies must now be negotiated with BUFA. More recently, Carleton University, the University of Guelph, McMaster University, the University of Ottawa, Queen’s University, Trent University, the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University, and York University have also decided to extend their masking mandates following pressure from faculty, though some for only an additional month.

“The health and safety of all members of the campus community remains the top priority of Ontario’s university faculty and academic librarians,” said Wurtele. “We know cases are sky-high. We know COVID-19 is more contagious than ever. We know the science and we listen to regional medical officers of health when they recommend masking policies stay in place. With tens of thousands of daily interactions on our campuses, we must be cautious as we move forward and minimize uncertainty and disruption. University administrations across Ontario should do the right thing and extend masking mandates until the end of the summer.”

As COVID-19 continues to rage across Ontario, university administrators must work through existing shared governance structures to determine appropriate health and safety measures on campus. Cases are at record highs and, although the summer might bring some reprieve, we must not repeat the mistakes of previous years. We must proceed cautiously and minimize the potential for on-campus transmission as well as the disruption caused by constant changes in policy.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals in 31 member associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

-30-

For more information, contact:
Ben Lewis, Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca

OCUFA Board develops provincial election action plan

| By | Be the first to leave a comment

On Saturday, February 26, OCUFA held its second Board of Directors meeting of the 2021-22 academic year. At the meeting, board members discussed the organization’s advocacy plans for the Ontario provincial election in June. OCUFA’s goal is to ensure the next provincial government is committed to supporting Ontario’s public universities. During the meeting, OCUFA member associations participated in small breakout groups to discuss priority ridings and develop regional action strategies.

2022 election priorities

Over the years, OCUFA has been a strong advocate for accessible, high-quality postsecondary education delivered through secure academic jobs, by publicly funded, autonomous universities that are governed collegially through shared governance. This vision has been formalized in several OCUFA policies over the years and informed the organization’s advocacy and political lobbying. OCUFA’s Board of Directors is focusing on three main areas in its advocacy platform for the 2022 Ontario election.

Government funding

Strong public funding for universities is necessary to support excellence in teaching and research and an accessible postsecondary education for Ontarians from diverse backgrounds. On a per-student basis, public funding for Ontario’s universities has been declining since 2008-09. As a result, Ontario university operating funding is now 40 per cent lower than the rest-of-Canada average on a per-student basis and provincially sponsored research funding is 55 per cent lower.

OCUFA has long advocated for enrolment-based public funding for universities and special grants for universities with specific missions or purposes. In recent years, OCUFA has also vocally opposed performance-based funding schemes and competitive models of university funding.

OCUFA is advocating for the next Ontario government to:

  • Meaningfully increase university operating grants.
  • Increase funding for research under the province’s research funding envelope.
  • Boost funding for northern and bilingual institutions, as well as Indigenous programming, in recognition of their unique importance for Ontario’s postsecondary education system.
  • Discontinue the performance-based funding model for Ontario’s universities.

Fairness for contract faculty

Full-time faculty hiring has stagnated at Ontario’s universities, while the reliance on contract faculty has increased at an alarming rate. It is widely acknowledged that contract faculty are paid less than their full-time colleagues for performing work of equal value. Research also suggests that the majority of contract faculty are women and racialized faculty are overrepresented in contract positions, making fairness for contract faculty an issue of equity.

OCUFA is advocating for the next Ontario government to:

  • Remove the wage constraints legislated under Bill 124.
  • Reform Employment Standards Act (ESA) language to include equal pay for work of equivalent value for contract workers, including contract faculty.
  • Increase university funding to ensure faculty renewal so that retiring faculty are replaced.

Tuition fees

For years, Ontario has consistently had some of the highest student tuition fees in Canada, as universities seek ways to make up for low levels of public funding. Tuition fees now account for more than half of university operating revenues. OCUFA has been critical of the province’s high tuition fees and the barrier to access they present.

OCUFA is advocating for the next Ontario government to:

  • Increase funding for the Ontario Student Assistance Plan (OSAP).
  • Provide grants, not loans to OSAP recipients to reduce historically high levels of student debt.

Meeting highlights

Focus on equity

The OCUFA Board has made a strong commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion, and this approach has been incorporated into all of OCUFA’s work, both internally and externally. At the meeting, board members were updated on OCUFA’s planned survey of member associations and committees to determine the equity resources and training that would be of greatest importance to them. The survey was released in early April and will inform OCUFA’s equity work moving forward. In addition, OCUFA has been compiling an analysis of collective agreement language that relates to equity, diversity, and inclusion. This analysis, when completed, will be provided as a resource for all member associations.

Presentation from Frank Graves, EKOS Research Associates Inc.

Frank Graves from EKOS Research Associates Inc. provided an overview of the results of the poll OCUFA commissioned in anticipation of the upcoming provincial election. The poll was designed to gauge the Ontario public’s perceptions of the importance of postsecondary education and support for OCUFA’s election advocacy priorities. The poll results show Ontarians believe the next provincial government should make postsecondary education a priority, introduce legislation to ensure contract faculty are treated fairly, provide more financial assistance to students, and increase funding for universities.

Presentations from Ontario political party representatives

The Board meeting featured presentations from representatives of Ontario’s New Democratic and Green parties. MPP Laura Mae Lindo, who is also the Official Opposition Critic for Colleges and Universities and Anti-Racism, provided an overview of the NDP’s positions on key postsecondary issues and noted the importance of having frank conversations about racism in Ontario’s education system.

MPP Mike Schreiner, Leader of the Green Party of Ontario, provided an overview of the Green Party’s plans for postsecondary education and the party’s positions on funding, contract faculty, and student aid.

Representatives of the Liberal Party of Ontario and the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario were also invited to present at the meeting but declined.

Strategies for enhancing collegial governance

OCUFA’s University Governance Committee presented its latest resource, “Strategies for enhancing collegial governance and effectiveness in governance spaces,” which provides concrete and practical ideas for addressing some of the most common barriers to good collegial governance. It is designed to give member associations and individual faculty and academic librarian members sitting on governing bodies tools for improving governing practices at their institution and for being more effective in governance spaces.

New Contract Faculty Committee formed

For many years, OCUFA has had an ad-hoc Contract Faculty and Faculty Complement Committee dedicated to discussing the challenges resulting from the increased employment of faculty on short-term contracts and the impacts this trend has had on education, research, and governance at Ontario’s universities. In recognition of the fact that this will continue to be an important issue for years to come and the benefits of investing more resources in efforts to create more equitable and secure working conditions for contract faculty and academic librarians, the OCUFA board voted to create a new standing Contract Faculty Committee that will build upon the work of the formerly ad-hoc committee.

The next OCUFA Board of Directors meeting will be held on May 14 and 15, 2022.

Auditor General of Ontario finds Laurentian manufactured financial crisis, government ignored warning signs

| By |

TORONTO/SUDBURY, April 13, 2022 – The Auditor General of Ontario’s preliminary report on Laurentian University confirms assertions faculty have been making for more than a year—that the university’s financial crisis resulted from secretive and deficient governance practices and the Ford government’s failure to step in and support the institution when its financial needs became clear. The Auditor General found that the use of the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) was inappropriate and unneeded and that, instead, the university should have worked collegially with the Laurentian University Faculty Association to address the institution’s financial challenges.

“The Auditor General’s report makes clear that day-after-day, month-after-month, Laurentian University’s senior administration embraced a flawed and secretive approach to institutional governance and financial planning that lacked the transparency and accountability vital to a healthy university,” said Sue Wurtele, President of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA). “Once they realized the consequences of their mistakes, instead of coming clean and working with the faculty association to find a path forward, the senior administration doubled down on secrecy and spent months planning how they would dismantle the university through the CCAA process.”

Among the Auditor General’s findings were numerous problems with the university’s governance practices, including weak oversight and excessive use of in-camera sessions by the Laurentian Board, ill-advised building projects, questionable hiring practices, and an increasingly expensive payroll for senior administrators. When these poor governance practices led to a financial crisis, the senior administration’s abhorrent solution was to spend tens of millions of dollars on lawyers in efforts to cut university programs, faculty, and staff. When the Auditor General was asked to investigate what had occurred, the toxic commitment to secrecy continued, with senior administrators creating a “culture of fear” amongst university workers and implementing “unprecedented restrictions” on access to university documents and staff.

“This is a clear validation of what we have been saying for years,” said Fabrice Colin, President of the Laurentian University Faculty Association (LUFA).  “Time and again, the faculty association urged the university administration to be more accountable, come clean about the university’s finances, and work with us to strengthen this important public institution of higher education and its tricultural mandate. Time and again, we were ignored.”

The Auditor General found the destructive CCAA process was unnecessary and could have been avoided, and that the Ford government and Ministry of Colleges and Universities were aware of the university’s financial challenges before the CCAA process was triggered but failed to proactively intervene when the crisis became clear. The report also notes that the federal CCAA legislation is an inappropriate remedy for addressing financial challenges at public institutions as it undermines the fundamental principles of transparency, accountability, and the precedence of public interest. This report’s findings on the CCAA should be swiftly acted on by the federal Liberal government, which has committed to reforming insolvency legislation so that it can never be used again on another public institution.

“The Ford government had both the opportunity and duty to step forward and provide Laurentian University with the funding needed to prevent cuts and chart a new path forward,” said Wurtele. “Instead, Ford and numerous Ministers of Colleges and Universities sat on their hands, ignored their responsibilities, and watched the university collapse.”

“It’s time to begin a new chapter at Laurentian,” said Colin. “New leadership should be hired ready to embrace collegial, transparent, and accountable governance and the provincial government should step up to provide Laurentian University with the funding it needs to restore the programs, faculty, and staff that were cut as a result of the crisis and the Ford government’s inaction.”

The Auditor General’s report can be found here:
https://auditor.on.ca/en/content/specialreports/specialreports/Laurentian-U_Preliminary_Perspective_en.pdf

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals in 31 member associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

-30-

For more information or to arrange an interview, contact:
Ben Lewis, Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca

OCUFA fellowship recipient receives Hillman Prize for Journalism

| By | Be the first to leave a comment

OCUFA is proud to announce that Nicholas Hune-Brown has been awarded the Canadian Hillman Prize for Journalism for The Shadowy Business of International Education, an article he wrote with the support of the Mark Rosenfeld Fellowship in Higher Education Journalism. The Hillman Prize has honoured journalists who pursue investigative reporting and deep storytelling in service of the common good since 1950.

You’re invited to the OFL’s province-wide postsecondary caucus on Monday, April 4

| By | Be the first to leave a comment

This coming Monday, the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) is hosting a caucus open to anyone who studies or works at a college, university, or other postsecondary institution in Ontario. The caucus will provide an opportunity to get organized for the OFL’s province-wide day of action on May 1. Thousands of people across Ontario, including academic workers and students, will be joining the day of action in efforts to create a better Ontario taking action for a better Ontario.

  • RSVP for the April 4 postsecondary caucus here.
  • Then forward this caucus invitation to students, staff, and faculty on your own campus: student unions and campus clubs, trade unions, faculty associations, cross-campus alliances, and so on.
  • Then sign the pledge to take action on May 1 and to vote on June 2.

French language programs at Laurentian should be restored following report exposing failures by university and Ford government

| By |

TORONTO, April 1, 2022 – With the French Language Services Commissioner’s revelations that the Laurentian University administration and Ford government failed in their responsibilities to safeguard the interests of the province’s French speakers, the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) is calling for the 28 French language programs cut by the university to be restored.

“This report demonstrates serious failures on the part of the Laurentian University administration and Ford government to protect French language rights in Ontario,” said Sue Wurtele, OCUFA President. “Instead of following proper process and considering how these cuts would damage the educational options available to the Franco-Ontarian population, the university and government ignored their responsibilities and facilitated the collapse of French language programming at Laurentian.”

The French Language Services Commissioner’s report follows more than a year of chaos at Laurentian University. The university administration’s decision to apply for protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) led to 28 French-language programs being cut along with more than 100 faculty and staff. These cuts were devastating to the university and the Greater Sudbury Community, in which 27.5 per cent of the population identify French as their mother tongue compared to 4.3 per cent across the entire province.

In the report, the Commissioner finds that the Laurentian University administration failed to comply with and in fact “violated” the French Language Services Act and that the Ministry of Colleges and Universities and Ministry of Francophone Affairs failed in their duties to ensure Laurentian University was complying with the Act. The Commissioner found that throughout the CCAA process the university and government treated French language services as an “afterthought.”

“The interests of Ontario’s Francophone population, particularly their right to a French language education, cannot be treated as an afterthought,” said Wurtele. “Franco-Ontarians deserve respect and they deserve funding for French language university programming in their own communities.”

The Ford government should immediately provide Laurentian University with the ongoing funding required to restore the programs that were cut as part of its restructuring to ensure that the rights of Franco-Ontarians are respected. Further, in recognition of its responsibilities to protect minority French speaking communities across the country, the Federal government should immediately pass legislation to ensure the CCAA and its counterpart, the Bankruptcy Insolvency Act, cannot be invoked by other public institutions who might use it to cut similar programs and services for French speaking populations.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals in 31 member associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

-30-

For more information, contact:
Ben Lewis, Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca

Our chance to ensure what happened at Laurentian never happens again

| By | 1 comment

When Laurentian University filed for protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA), it became the first public university in Canada to do so. The upcoming federal budget is our chance to make sure it is also the last.

Both the CCAA and Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (BIA) are federal pieces of legislation specifically designed for private-sector corporations, not public institutions. However, as they are currently worded, these acts can still be used to dismantle and restructure public institutions.

If other public institutions, like universities and hospitals, are allowed to invoke the CCAA or BIA, the results will be devastating. At Laurentian, where the CCAA was used, students lost access to more than 60 programs, over 100 faculty and staff jobs were cut, years of important research was forsaken, and the university has abandoned its commitments to local Francophone and Indigenous communities. Terminated employees were denied severance and instead have to get in line behind big banks, whose profits have soared during the pandemic. Students have had to change programs or transfer to other universities.

The federal budget is an opportunity to remind the Liberal government of their promise to reform the CCAA and BIA to make public institutions exempt and ensure that Canada’s vital public services are protected through proper funding.

Send a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau, Deputy Prime Minister Freeland, and Minister Champagne today and ask them to take action on this important issue.

New poll: Increased university funding, good jobs, more student aid should be priorities of next Ontario government

| By |

According to a new poll conducted for OCUFA by Ekos Research Associates, two out of three Ontarians (69 per cent) believe that the province’s next government should prioritize postsecondary education as it works to rebuild from the COVID-19 pandemic. Those polled recognize the value of a university education and believe it is time to introduce legislation that improves working conditions for contract faculty, provides additional financial assistance to students, and increases funding for universities.

“These poll results make it clear that, regardless of which party leads the next Ontario government, they have a mandate to prioritize and revitalize our province’s public postsecondary education system,” said Sue Wurtele, OCUFA President. “This poll shows that Ontarians understand the many benefits provided by our public universities and believe more should be done to support these important institutions of education and research.”

Amongst those polled, 68 per cent believe that a university education is valuable for today’s young people. They recognize the vital contributions universities make to society, including producing important research, delivering high-quality education, exposing students to diverse viewpoints, and providing good jobs that support Ontario communities. When it comes to the COVID-19 pandemic, a majority of Ontarians believe that universities will be important for ensuring society’s recovery.

Asked about funding levels, 57 per cent of respondents stated that the Ontario government should increase financial support for Ontario’s universities and 81 per cent, including 75 per cent of Progressive Conservative Party supporters, expressed opposition to cuts. According to the poll results, two-thirds of Ontarians (68 per cent) recognize the important role played by northern universities.

Ensuring that contract faculty receive equal pay when doing work equivalent to that done by their tenured colleagues is supported by an overwhelming 71 per cent of Ontarians. 69 per cent also support special funding to encourage universities to replace retiring faculty with tenured positions, rather than hiring more precariously employed contract faculty. This is a matter of equity, as a majority of contract faculty are women and racialized, and it is vital for the continued effectiveness of Ontario’s universities, as universities require the service work of tenured faculty to keep their programs up and running. Both of these measures were backed by more than half of those intending to vote for the Progressive Conservative (55 per cent/52 per cent), New Democratic (90 per cent for both), and Liberal (88 per cent/86 per cent) parties.

Although 81 per cent of Ontarians believe that all eligible students should have access to a university education, two out of three (68 per cent) are concerned that today’s young people might not be able to afford a university education due to the cost and 52 per cent believe that the provincial government offers too little financial support to students wanting to attend. In addition to increasing student financial assistance, 61 per cent of Ontarians support replacing government student loans with grants that do not have to be repaid.

“This latest poll confirms that Ontarians support the priorities of the province’s university faculty and academic librarians for improving postsecondary education,” said Wurtele. “Party leaders and candidates have a mandate to commit to postsecondary education platforms that bring fairness to contract faculty, increase student financial assistance, and provide stronger public funding for Ontario’s universities.”

These poll results paint a clear picture of the policy positions Ontario voters expect the next government to pursue in support of Ontario’s public universities. If Ontario’s next government wants to succeed in building a more vibrant, equitable, and resilient university system, then listening to faculty and academic librarian voices will be the first and most important step.

The full results of the poll can be downloaded here.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals in 31 member associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

-30-

For more information, contact:
Ben Lewis, Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca

With tuition fees frozen, Ontario Budget should increase university funding and student financial assistance

| By |

The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations is pleased to see the Ontario Government extend the tuition fee freeze for domestic students into 2023. However, urgent funding is needed to support education quality and accessibility at Ontario’s public universities.

“If the Ford government is serious about tackling student debt and high tuition fees, the upcoming Ontario budget should provide crucial funding to reduce universities’ dependence on student fees, reverse cuts to student financial assistance, and replace student loans with non-repayable grants,” said Sue Wurtele, OCUFA President. “It is quite troubling that Ontario continues to rank last in Canada in per-student funding and that its students are graduating with historically high levels of student debt.”

On a per-student basis, Ontario’s funding for universities has fallen further and further behind the rest of the country over the last decade, a trend that threatens the future health of these vital public postsecondary institutions. Ontario universities now receive an average of only 33 per cent of their operating funding from the provincial government.

“University faculty and academic librarians are strong believers in a vibrant university education accessible to all students,” said Wurtele. “This goal can only be achieved if the government steps up to address the chronic underfunding of Ontario’s universities, which weakens our postsecondary education system and drives up student fees.”

Extending the tuition fee freeze into 2023 will provide much needed short-term relief for students struggling to make ends meet, but it is a far cry from the commitment to university revitalization that Ontario needs. Bringing the province up to the average level of per-student funding across the rest of Canada will require a large but important new investment of $12.9 billion over the next five years.

“Our students deserve better and Ontario deserves better,” said Wurtele. “Our universities will be a vital part of the province’s post-pandemic recovery, so every dollar spent on postsecondary education now is an investment in our collective future.”

In the coming months, Ontario political parties hoping to form the next government will have an opportunity to put forward their own visions for the future of Ontario’s universities. If they believe in the importance of our public postsecondary institutions, those visions should include policies that increase public investment in Ontario’s chronically underfunded universities and remove financial barriers to higher education.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals in 31 member associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

-30-

For more information, contact:
Ben Lewis, Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca

New articles from Academic Matters

| By | Be the first to leave a comment

There is more to Academic Matters than just the print issue. New articles are being added to the Academic Matters website every week. Here are some recent articles you might find interesting:

The long fight against sexual assault and harassment at universities
“With the return to university campuses this fall, there have been disturbing reports of both sexual assaults and sexist incidents. At Western University, for example, four students reported being sexually assaulted and there was mass student mobilization following social media reports of numerous sexual assaults…”

The pandemic exposed the vulnerability of international students in Canada
“When the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020, students in Canadian universities and colleges faced many challenges. Classes moved online, students were asked to leave campus residences and many students lost jobs or faced reduced work hours. While some domestic students could return home…”

Early-career professors want changes in how tenure is evaluated in wake of pandemic effects on productivity
“After two years of living through a pandemic, thoughts of returning to normal have shifted to focus on establishing a “new normal.” The COVID-19 pandemic yielded profound changes to research activities and operations at universities. These have had impacts on the career progression, productivity…”

Universities: The often overlooked player in determining healthy democracies
“We’ve been hearing recently about the possibility that the United States — assumed to be a prime example of democracy — is in real peril of collapse. Coming into 2022, we find ourselves in the midst of a worldwide democratic recession. Democracy is vulnerable and fragile…”

International student numbers hit record highs in Canada, UK and US as falls continue in Australia and NZ
“International students are heading to Canada, the UK and the US in record numbers despite the pandemic, new research by the Mitchell Institute at Victoria University shows. But Australia and New Zealand continue to experience a dramatic drop in new international students…”

Banning non-disclosure agreements isn’t enough to stop unethical workplace leader behaviour
“Just weeks after Prince Edward Island became the first province in Canada to pass a bill restricting the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) on Nov. 17, some harms of NDAs have been in the news. NDAs are contracts in which parties agree not to…”

Female faculty of colour do extra diversity work for no extra reward – here’s how to fix that
“College faculty members are critical in helping American colleges become more diverse, inclusive and equitable. Professors and instructors not only teach and advise students, they also help institutions make inroads toward equity goals such as improving graduation rates for underrepresented students by connecting with and…”

Universities should no longer ask students for anonymous feedback on their teachers
“Student evaluations, in the form of anonymous online surveys, are ubiquitous in Australian universities. Most students in most courses are offered the opportunity to rate the “quality” of their teachers and the course they take. The original intention of student surveys was to help improve…”

Universities need to focus on students—not teach to targets—to help them succeed
“The Office for Students, England’s higher education regulator, has outlined new proposals to ensure university students reach “acceptable outcomes” from their studies. The proposals, released as consultation documents, include numerical targets. For full-time students, 80% of those studying for their first degree should…”

Why universities are starting to re-evaluate their academics’ travel
“As New Zealand starts lifting travel restrictions at the end of this month, academics may feel the need to catch up on missed opportunities to attend conferences. But flights account for about a third of the tertiary sector’s emissions and universities will need to…”

Remaking Australian universities: notes from the sidelines of catastrophe
“Can we grieve not for a person but for an institution? Should we be angry over possibilities destroyed, young talents denied a chance to flourish? Is there any point in lamenting greed, short-sightedness, the brutality of power? As I write this, in September 2021…”

2 out of 3 members of Australian university governing bodies have no professional expertise in the sector. There’s the making of a crisis
“To say Australian universities are in crisis is to state the obvious. A common narrative suggests the most immediate cause of the current crisis is “reduced international student revenue and income from investments, such as dividends” during the pandemic. Some correlation is undeniable. However, many…”

UOITFA’s two-week strike achieves big gains on workload, equity, and benefits

| By | Be the first to leave a comment

After months of negotiations, escalating pressure on the Ontario Tech administration, and a strike, the University of Ontario Institute of Technology Faculty Association (UOITFA) has ratified a new three-year collective agreement that makes big gains on the faculty association’s workload, equity, and benefits priorities. This represents a hard-fought and well-deserved victory for the UOITFA.

The settlement follows months of action by the UOITFA and its allies. In the lead-up to the deal, the faculty association leveraged the strengths of its membership to demonstrate their collective resolve to holding the university administration accountable for supporting faculty and students. Multiple social media days of action, an email writing campaign that saw over 4,000 messages sent to Ontario Tech’s leadership, and the ongoing mobilization of members and supporters culminated in a two-week strike that confirmed the faculty association’s determination. Faculty were joined on the picket lines by students, labour allies, and even NDP Leader Andrea Horwath—all of whom called on the university administration to come back to the table with a fair deal that addressed faculty priorities.

Workload was a key priority for the UOITFA. In response, an LOU was signed with a “sunlight” clause on course load assignment, which will ensure that each faculty member and the faculty association receive a detailed course load report annually, including variations from maximum course load assignment, course releases, course enrolment, and average course load for all faculty. A working group will meet at least annually to discuss the results. Further, collegially elected faculty-level committees will be able make recommendations on credit for student supervision within each faculty.

With regards to equity, another priority for the UOITFA, hiring, tenure, and promotion processes now include “careful consideration of candidates from equity-seeking groups” and the definition of research in tenure-stream faculty responsibilities now includes “developing reciprocal relationships with historically marginalized communities.” An existing LOU on Employment Equity has been strengthened and renamed to include “Employment Equity and Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Indigenization and Decolonization.” The LOU identifies employment equity as a strategic priority for the university and commits to eliminating or modifying policies and practices that result in discrimination. It sets out more equitable evaluation processes and provides faculty members from equity-seeking groups with access to additional resources and supports. Finally, the salary anomaly LOU from the previous agreement was renewed as an MOU with a commitment to a more timely implementation.

On compensation, the settlement provides one per cent increase for salaries, salary floors, stipends, and overload rates for all faculty in each year of the agreement. In addition, in each year of the agreement, tenured and tenure-stream faculty will receive a $3,600 Career Development Increment (CDI). Teaching faculty will receive a CDI of $2,700, $2,850, and $3,050 in each year of the agreement. CDI ceilings for both appointment types have been increased by one per cent. There is a $125 Professional Development Allowance increase each year for teaching-stream, tenure-track, and tenured faculty. A Bill 124 salary reopener was also agreed to under an LOU.

Benefits coverage has been extended to limited-term faculty members. Limited-term faculty with less than two years of employment or who opt out of benefit coverage will receive an HSA of $1,980 in the first year, $2,725 in the second year, and $2,775 in the third year of the agreement. The list of eligible mental health practitioners has been expanded to include psychologists, psychotherapists, social workers, clinical counselors, and marriage and family therapists. The pooled coverage for mental health practitioners is now 80 per cent of $3,600 in year one, $3,650 in year two, and $5,600 in year three of the agreement.

Finally, the agreement contains a new retirement incentive package under which beneficiaries will receive a lump sum payment of four weeks salary for each full year of service to a maximum of 52 weeks. This payment can be spread over two years.

Reminder: Less than one week to apply for Equity award, and Mandelbaum/journalism fellowships

| By | Be the first to leave a comment

Submission deadline: March 21, 2022

More information about the awards and fellowships

Equity and Social Justice Committee Award of Distinction: This award celebrates the outstanding contributions of OCUFA members whose work has contributed meaningfully to the advancement of professors, academic librarians, and other academic staff who are Indigenous, women, racialized, LGBTQ2S+, living with disabilities and/or belong to other historically marginalized groups. It honours and recognizes members whose leadership has improved the lives and working conditions of equity-seeking members of the university community.

Nominate someone for the Equity and Social Justice Committee Award of Distinction.

Henry Mandelbaum Graduate Fellowships for Excellence in Social Sciences, Humanities, or Arts: Established in 2011 to honour former OCUFA Executive Director Henry Mandelbaum, the fellowship is awarded to two full-time graduate students (one master’s, one doctoral) at publicly funded Ontario universities. Candidates should have demonstrated academic excellence, provided significant community service, and shown exceptional academic promise in their university careers.

Apply for a Henry Mandelbaum Graduate Fellowship for Excellence in Social Sciences, Humanities, or Arts.

Mark Rosenfeld Fellowship in Higher Education Journalism: This fellowship was established to help address the shortage of informed investigative reporting on Canadian higher education issues in the Canadian media. Open to full-time, part-time, and freelance journalists, including students, the fellowship is designed to support those wishing to pursue in-depth and innovative journalism on higher education.

Apply for the Mark Rosenfeld Fellowship in Higher Education Journalism.

University equity work must include job security, equal pay, and benefits for contract staff

| By |

TORONTO, March 9, 2022 – Universities across Ontario have increased their focus on equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives in recent years. However, without commitments to improve job security, pay, and benefits for contract faculty and other precariously employed campus workers, these initiatives will fall short. Contract faculty, who routinely make less than their securely employed colleagues when doing work of equal value, are disproportionately women and individuals from equity-deserving groups.

“Today, university faculty, staff, and students from across Ontario will be making their voices heard and demanding fairness for contract faculty on social media,” said Sue Wurtele, OCUFA President. “University administrations must do more than proclaim their commitment to equity, they need to put an end to Ontario faculty working contract-to-contract with low pay and no benefits.”

It is one thing for university presidents to claim that equity is important, but it is a very different thing for university administrations to roll up their shirtsleeves and engage with the campus community to do the work needed to address the unfair treatment of so many campus workers.

These changes are broadly supported by Ontarians. Polls have shown that they believe universities should be model employers and improve working conditions for contract faculty by paying them fairly, expanding access to benefits, and providing them with better job security.

“We may be precariously employed, but term-after-term and contract-after-contract we show our commitment to our students and our universities in the work we do,” said Kimberly Ellis-Hale, Interim Chair of OCUFA’s Contract Faculty Committee. “If Ontario’s universities are committed to equity, they need to show that commitment to us—not with empty words but with action.”

An institutional commitment to equity means little if work is not being done to improve the working conditions of campus workers employed in short-term contracts. Ontario’s universities should take immediate steps to improve job security, pay, and benefits for contract faculty and their precariously employed colleagues.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals in 31 member associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

-30-

For more information, contact:
Ben Lewis, Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca

OCUFA united in solidarity with striking faculty at the Université Sainte-Anne

| By |

TORONTO, March 9, 2022 – The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) extends a message of solidarity to the striking faculty and academic librarians at the Association des professeurs, professeures et bibliothécaires de l’Université Sainte-Anne (APPBUSA) in Nova Scotia. Members of the APPBUSA have been on strike since March 9 as they pressure the administration to negotiate an agreement that provides fair and equitable working conditions for professors and librarians, and which creates the conditions for a more constructive working relationship between the administration and the APPBUSA’s members.

“OCUFA and our 31 member associations, representing 17,000 faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals across Ontario, extend our solidarity and support to our colleagues at the APPBUSA,” said Sue Wurtele, President of OCUFA. “The administration at Université Sainte-Anne should show its respect for faculty and academic librarians by negotiating an agreement that fosters a more collaborative working relationship and charts a path towards a vibrant future for the university.”

The Association des professeurs, professeures et bibliothécaires de l’Université Sainte-Anne deserve a fair and equitable agreement that embraces collegial governance and addresses faculty and academic librarian concerns about their working conditions. OCUFA calls on the Université Sainte-Anne administration to listen to faculty and academic librarian voices and find a way to move forward with a collective agreement that strengthens the university community.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals in 31 member associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

-30-

For more information, contact:
Ben Lewis, Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca

Access to Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario vital for both unionized and non-unionized workers

| By |

TORONTO, March 8, 2022 – The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) believes that preventing unionized workers from taking claims of discrimination and harassment to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) will strip union members of fundamental rights and undermine work to build more equitable, diverse, and inclusive workplaces. Further, the exceptionally short time-frame that the HRTO provided for input on this important decision effectively excluded members of the public, including those members most likely to be impacted by the outcome, from having any input into the Tribunal’s deliberations.

“Access to a workplace free of harassment and discrimination is a fundamental human right,” said Sue Wurtele, President of OCUFA. “The Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario should do the right thing and make sure all workers in Ontario, regardless of whether they belong to a union or not, are able to bring claims of mistreatment to the HRTO and put them on the public record.”

If the HRTO decides to exclude union members from being able to bring forward claims of discrimination and harassment, it will set back efforts to address processes, policies, and workplace behaviours that disproportionately harm women; those who are Black, Indigenous, racialized, or LGBTQS+; people with disabilities; and individuals from other marginalized groups. Providing only a week for public input sends the damaging signal that feedback from these communities is not valued.

“The HRTO has a duty to uphold the Human Rights Code of Ontario and combat the systemic discrimination that continues to pollute our workplaces,” said Wurtele. “The Tribunal is more important now than ever and must keep its doors open to all Ontarians.”

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty, academic librarians, and other academic professionals in 31 member associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

-30-

For more information, contact:
Ben Lewis, Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca