Member meeting with University Relations, and looking ahead to bargaining

Last week, AUFA’s membership engagement committee hosted a meeting with AUFA members in University Relations. This was the latest in a series of meetings intended to address topics of interest to each sub-group and allow for more back and forth than is possible in general membership meetings.

The bulk of the meeting focused on the upcoming collective agreement negotiations as well as the unique challenges our more public-facing members encounter.

Bargaining snapshot

Membership engagement committee members opened the meeting by providing a brief snapshot of what we might expect as bargaining gets underway this year. AUFA and AU will be exchanging opening proposals very soon, and the AUFA bargaining committee (Jason Foster is the chair) will share details soon afterward.

While we don’t yet know what the specific issues will be, it is reasonable to expect the two opening proposals to be quite far apart. We expect the employer to come to the table seeking significant salary rollbacks (as this has been the trend in the sector and may be directed by the provincial government, despite AU’s overall positive financial situation) as well as potentially damaging language concessions (based on the employer’s opening proposal in 2018). We emphasized the importance of being well-prepared for a potential work stoppage (lockout or strike) as not doing so would make us vulnerable and more likely to be pressured into accepting negative changes.

Tactics and impact

In the discussion, some members raised concerns about members’ work being impacted by some of the tactics carried out in resistance to de-designation, such as information pickets. This discussion was very relevant and helpful for the membership engagement committee to consider as we consider what we might expect in relation to bargaining.

While the tactics carried out so far have been in no way intended to negatively affect members, it is understandably difficult to separate the employer as the intended target from those members responsible for presenting the university’s public face. We explored some related questions in a recent post about de-designation, but we are also very appreciative of the feedback from members and will actively explore ways to mitigate these impacts as we head into bargaining.

Respectful discussions

Members also raised concerns about the tone of some past comments directed toward campaigns or initiatives from University Relations. There was some discussion about the unfortunate situation that dissatisfaction with the employer (which is high) can sometimes turn into complaints about the work of other members. This situation is not limited to members in University Relations, as the strain of increased pressure and demanding workloads across the university can lead to stress and tension between members.

We want to take this opportunity to encourage all members to maintain respectful dialogue and demonstrate consideration when communicating with AUFA members and other AU staff in any platform. While it can be a difficult balance to achieve at times, criticisms of the employer should maintain focus on the issues and avoid disparaging the efforts of other members. Solidarity among members and across AU unions will be especially important as we head into what may be a challenging round of bargaining.

As usual, all feedback on these or any other topic is welcome, and members interested in getting more involved with any initiatives of the membership engagement committee or the AUFA executive are encouraged to reach out to engagement@aufa.ca.

Rhiannon Rutherford

Chair, Membership Engagement Committee