(Supplied by U of L)

By David Opinko

Update: Statements from U of L Board

Impasse in negotiations between U of L and Faculty Association

Jan 19, 2022 | 9:56 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – UPDATE: LNN has been informed by the U of L that the Board made an offer to the Faculty Association on Jan. 17, but it was rejected.

Yet another roadblock in contract talks between the University of Lethbridge (U of L) and the organization representing its faculty.

The contract for academic staff expired on June 30, 2020, and more than a year and a half later, the two sides have yet to reach a new deal.

Over the last three months, there have been nine days of discussions with the aid of a mediator under the Alberta Labour Relations Code.

Most recently, the U of L’s Board provided an Offer of Settlement to the University of Lethbridge Faculty Association (ULFA), but the ULFA rejected it.

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In the period of 2019-2023, the Board says the Alberta Government cut the university’s operating grant by 21 per cent. At the same time, COVID-related expenses and related losses of revenues totalled more than $8-million.

“The University has been required to make some very difficult decisions considering our financial realities including the elimination of approximately 10 per cent of our total work force. Additionally, the economic realities have been extremely difficult for some of our community members, including students who have incurred three years of seven per cent tuition increases and non-unionized staff who have had their salaries frozen by the Alberta government (both COLA and merit) since 2015.”

The Offer of Settlement from the Board includes the following details:

• Salary
  • The Board negotiating team is offering ULFA members cost of living salary increases of 1.25 per cent on April 1, 2023, and 1.5 per cent on December 1, 2023. These increases are in addition to annual career progress and merit increases which is approximately 2.5 per cent each year. ULFA members would also be entitled to an additional 0.5 percent in February 2024 (retroactive to December 1, 2023) based on a formula that measures Alberta’s economic performance. This represents significant progress from the Board’s opening position. This Offer contains no proposed salary rollbacks in any year of the proposed agreement.
• Benefits
  • The Board is proposing to maintain its commitment to the current benefit packages afforded to ULFA members. Further, the Board has agreed to ULFA’s proposal to expand some benefit coverage, to be paid by Members.
• Job Security (Financial Emergency)
  • ULFA expressed concern that the Board negotiating team had proposed to lower the threshold to declare a financial emergency. The Board negotiating team heard ULFA’s concerns and it has rescinded this language, to maintain the current threshold of job security for ULFA members.
• Academic Freedom, Representation and Accompaniment
  • The Board negotiating team was seeking language to clarify academic freedom, as well as representation and accompaniment. The University removed these items in good faith given concerns expressed by ULFA. The Offer of Settlement proposes the language that exists in the current collective agreement remain unchanged.
• Equity, Diversity, and Inclusivity (EDI)
  • EDI is an issue that is of great importance across our university. The Board negotiating team and ULFA came to agreement on a schedule that will lead to important mutual gains with respect to EDI at the U of L.
• Assignment of Duties
  • The Board is proposing to provide ULFA with copies of policies, procedures and guidelines related to the assignment of duties, to further support equity and transparency.
• Intellectual Property
  • The Board negotiating team and ULFA agreed on a proposal which will lead to mutual gains for the University and ULFA membership with respect to supporting intellectual property and the commercialization of research.
• Presenting to the University Budget Advisory Committee
  • The Board negotiating team has offered to ULFA an opportunity to present to the Budget Advisory Committee on an annual basis. Relatedly, the University has recently amended the terms of reference for this committee and membership will now include faculty, staff and both undergraduate and graduate students. Details regarding this change can be found on the budget website.
• Partnerships Regarding Student Recruitment
  • ULFA expressed concern that if the University entered into an agreement with Navitas, that related courses would not be taught by ULFA members. Responding to this concern, the Board has agreed to work with ULFA toward an outcome, where in the case that the University enters into an agreement with Navitas, all academic courses would be taught by ULFA members. The Board negotiating committee has offered to enter into an MOU in this regard.
• Recognition for ULFA Executives
  • In response to an ULFA proposal, the Offer of Settlement provides support for increased time allocation for ULFA executives to attend to ULFA-related duties.
  • Though significant progress has been achieved through the mediation process, the ULFA bargaining team advised the Board bargaining team late this afternoon that it would be withdrawing from mediation. This results in a mandatory fourteen-day “cooling off” period after which ULFA will be able to ask its members to participate in a strike vote.
  • Our campus communities have endured great uncertainty due to the global pandemic and historic funding cuts. The Board team feels they have put forward an Offer of Settlement that supports the collective well-being and sustainability of our campus communities. The Board negotiating team is ready to re-engage with the ULFA team at the earliest possibility.

ULFA says there are still several key unresolved matters including equity, parity, and respect.

The following three sections were provided directly by the ULFA.

• Equity:
  • Sessional lecturers are the University’s most poorly paid members. They have no job security and do not receive funds to cover professional expenses. The Board will not commit to anything beyond tweaks to existing language to address this inequity. In addition, the Board will not provide any health benefits to sessional lecturers, many of whom have been working in this precarious position for years.
• Parity:
  • There are five universities that ULFA and the Board have, for years, agreed on as comparators in collective bargaining. The U of L’s frontline teaching staff members are paid substantially less than colleagues at any of these institutions. The Board’s latest proposal will leave ULFA Members even further behind, posing challenges for both recruitment and retention of faculty. ULFA Negotiating Team member Joy Morris emphasizes, “The financial offers on the table will not even keep up with inflation and will certainly not result in salaries that are competitive enough to attract and retain high-quality researchers and educators. This is especially hard on our newest Members and our sessional lecturers.”
• Respect:
  • During the worst budget cutbacks of a generation and an aggressive restructuring plan, the Board has limited faculty and students’ ability to contribute to the University’s decision-making. The Board also refused to allow Members a say in how their own money will be spent on benefits like vision and dental care.

ULFA members and community supporters held a rally back in November to raise awareness of these issues and more, utilizing the hashtag #WorthFightingFor.

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Now, both parties are in a two-week “cooling off” period, after which, either party can hold a strike or lockout vote.

The ULFA and Board said in separate statements that they remain hopeful that a settlement can be reached.