ULFA struck a Consecutive Term Appointments Working Group with the Board of Governors as a result of the 2022 round of negotiations. We – Rebekah Eckert (Academic Writing) and Jenny Burke (Biology) – served as ULFA’s representatives on the Working Group. Kerry Godfrey (Dean, Dhillon School of Business) and Cathy Kanashiro (Associate Vice-President, Finance) served as the Board’s representatives on this working group. The terms of reference for the group are contained in Schedule V of our current (2020-2024) collective agreement. The creation of the group put a grievance by the Association concerning the repeated use of consecutive term and sessional contracts for some Members into abeyance; the grievance can be reactivated if the Working Group fails to agree on language, and if the current round of bargaining also fails to satisfactorily address the issue.
We write today to announce that the members of the Working Group have mutually agreed to language that addresses when and how Members holding consecutive term contracts have their positions converted into probationary (continuing) positions. The full text of the mutually agreed language can be viewed here. Below are some highlights of the agreed upon language, which we expect to be incorporated into the collective agreement during this round of bargaining:
- Members who have served six years (72 months) on term contracts and are hired on another term contract will have their position converted into a probationary position.
- The number of months served count toward the six year threshold, no matter what Full Time Equivalency (FTE) the term contracts were for. This means that Members holding part-time term contracts have a six year period until their position is converted.
- Members may have their accumulated time on term contracts paused for up to one year where they hold a Sessional Lecturer contract, or where they cannot accept a term contract because of a reason that would have entitled them to a leave of absence if they were already under contract.
- To be eligible for conversion, a Member must have been appointed to a term contract by a duly constituted Search Committee and received at least one evaluation of their performance as at least satisfactory.
- The creation of a new probationary position in the disciplinary area/academic unit where a Member is currently serving a term contract will serve to reduce or eliminate the number of accumulated years toward conversion (as detailed in the agreed upon language), as the newly created position addresses the identified need the consecutive term appointments were used to fill in the interim.
- There are cases where time spent on term contracts does not count toward conversion, including cases where a Member is on leave and has a right to return to their position.
We believe that the language agreed upon by the members of the working group presents tangible gains for Members of our Association. Previously, the collective agreement simply stated that Members could not serve more than six years on term contracts, but it did not specify what happened at that juncture. These new provisions provide a path toward a probationary (continuing) position for our Members holding precarious term contracts. The provisions also provide clarity for both ULFA and the Board about the conditions under which a Member must be converted into a probationary position, and addresses reasonably foreseeable situations in a proactive manner.
These new provisions are not yet in force, as they must first be integrated into the collective agreement in negotiations.
Rebekah Eckert (Academic Writing) and Jenny Burke (Biology)
