Langara Faculty Association
Newsletter Office: A212
October, 2004 Website: Phone: (604) 323-5343
Submissions or suggestions?Contact the LFA office or
LFA Board of Directors: Ted Brown, Lynn Carter (Vice-President), Alan Cooper (President),
Julia Denholm (Secretary), Tim Higgs, Maureen Maloney, Gordon McFarlane,
Cheryl McKeeman (Chief Steward), Lawrence Warren (Treasurer)
President’s Report
Dear Colleagues,
Over the summer and early fall I have started to get used to this position and I hope that your board and I will serve you well over the coming year – which promises to be more “interesting” than I might have expected at the outset.
Of course bargaining was expected to be the major focus of our attention, and that is still the case. During the summer, we learned that the Common Table locals had proceeded to open bargaining, and had tabled their list of objectives. We ourselves are in no rush to proceed, but, as you know, we ratified our main objectives at the recent General Meeting, and Lynn’s report will cover this in more detail. . . . Interesting, but not unexpected.
Something not expected at all was the fact that in July, we were approached by the College to discuss some significant changes of Division Chair responsibilities – especially with regard to Nursing. The College proposal moved certain faculty duties to excluded staff and so was unacceptable to us, but we are hoping that further discussion will lead to a more appropriate way of meeting the College’s needs.
There are also interesting developments outside Langara. For example, the various changes to University-Colleges may not affect us directly, but they certainly do bear watching. And at the CIEA (now FPSE) convention, a motion was passed to divert about $500,000 from the defence fund to pay for a public relations campaign to raise
public awareness and understanding of post-secondary education issues. This requires more than just watching, as the investment is considerable and could come to naught if not used effectively.
Please remember that in dealing with all these issues we need your support in order to be effective. Many of you do contribute in many ways. The LFA reps on our Selection/Evaluation committees are of course essential, and we hope that the orientation sessions that Cheryl is organizing will help that work to go even more smoothly. Our various committees also provide opportunities for input; and don’t forget that by attending Association general meetings you can both learn more about the issues and express your views so that we are in a position to better serve your interests.
Alan Cooper
Bargaining Update
by Lynn Carter
On September 24 the LFA approved the bargaining objectives that were presented at our General Meeting. I was able to update the membership on my recent meeting at the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators’ offices with the other college and university-college bargainers.
As most of you are aware, most of the FPSE (formerly CIEA) locals and several BCGEU locals are meeting at a provincial table in an attempt to bargain common demands. However, the vast majority of the employers are not at this table and will be meeting with their faculty association representatives at local tables.
There were discussions at the meeting among the bargainers about when to open locally and how to coordinate with each other and with the common table. Many of the locals will try to open this Fall, but not all are ready and at least one is not willing.
We are currently drafting language to table when we do open. We believe that there is no advantage in opening this Fall, but will be prepared to open should we receive notice from the College. We also plan to try to coordinate as much as is possible with any locals bargaining when we are, as well as with the common table if circumstances permit.
Report from CARC
by Cheryl McKeeman
FPSE's Contract Administration and Review Committee (CARC) is composed of
the Chief Stewards from each FPSE member institution. CARC meets every
September and January, on Friday evening and all day Saturday. The January
meeting occasionally includes some workshops on the Friday afternoon.
The September 2004 meeting included almost 6 hours of round-robin -- that
is, each local's steward described the issues, complaints and grievances at his/her local. It is a great way to hear about what is going on in the system, but I personally find it a very inefficient way to share information. The September meeting had little else on the agenda.
The January meeting will almost definitely have some Friday afternoon workshops, to address items such as representing faculty
with a documented medical condition. I will try to get FPSE to circulate information
before the meeting so that we can focus on informed discussion. Most of the stewards have several years of experience and so will be interested in applying new information to their local situations.
Report from the LFA General Meeting
by Alan Cooper
After declaring a quorum, the LFA held a productive meeting on September 24. Following are some highlights of the discussion.
- We appointed Nemeth-Thody-Anderson as our auditors for the current year.
- Lynn Carter and Cheryl McKeeman presented a summary of our bargaining objectives and the proposed list was ratified by the meeting.
- Cheryl McKeeman reviewed the current state of Contract Administration, and in particular of our grievance with regard to Continuing Studies
- Alan Cooper outlined the developments regarding Division Chairs and our response to the College’s proposal.
At the social following the meeting we were happy to be able to meet ten or so of the new faculty joining us this fall – it would have been nice, though, if more of our long-time colleagues had been able to assist with the welcome.
Report from the CIEA AGM
by Julia Denholm
The CIEA AGM, held in Whistler this past May, provided an opportunity for all CIEA locals to discuss strategy in this pre-election year. Two items from the meeting are worth particular attention.
First, in an effort to acknowledge the changes to the status of some CIEA members’ institutions (University College of the Cariboo, for example, joining forces with the Open University to become Thomson Rivers University), CIEA members voted to change the name of the organization to the “Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of British Columbia” (FPSE). This name replaced an initial proposal of “Post-Secondary Educators’ Federation,” which many members opposed as sounding too similar to the employers’ association, PSEA.
Much debate about the pronunciation of the acronym FPSE followed, including the initial suggestion of “Fopsy” (which led to jokes about Mopsy and Cottontail). The office staff will be answering the phone “Post-Secondary Educators” without resorting to an acronym.
Second, as Alan notes in his report, FPSE locals voted to fund a public relations campaign to raise awareness of post-secondary education issues. The funding, about $500,000, comes from the defense fund.
There was considerable debate about the merits of setting aside such a large sum in the absence of any budget or action plan, but ultimately the motion was passed.
As part of the LFA’s participation in the AGM, Larry Warren facilitated a workshop entitled “When Rights Collide: The Right to Know vs. the Right to Privacy”
For more information about FPSE events, please see the committee listings in the “Upcoming Events” section of this newsletter.
Did you know?
For October, the LFA paid dues of
$17,769.26 to FPSE.
Upcoming Events
LFA Representative Luncheon
Friday, Oct. 29 1230 – 1430 room A253
All LFA representatives to selection committees are invited to attend a luncheon/ workshop to explore ways to make life as and LFA rep. more effective.
FPSE representative Jeff McKeil and Langara Chief Steward Cheryl McKeeman will lead a discussion on Collegial Authority and Association Responsibility.
Department Chairs are also encouraged to attend. For more information, please contact Lois at 5343 by Friday October 22.
FPSE Committee Meetings
Langara is able to send representatives to a number of FPSE committees. Currently, many of the positions are vacant. If you would like to attend one of the following meetings, please contact the LFA office at 5343.
- Oct. 22/23 Occupational Health & Safety
- Oct.22/23 Professional Development
- Oct. 29/30 Status of Women
- Nov. 5/6 Education Policy
- Nov. 5/6 Non-Regular Faculty
FPSE spends approximately $5000.00 to hold each of these meetings. A second series of meetings will be held at the Committee meetings and Joint Conference scheduled for Feb. 11/12, 2005. FPSE has budgeted $32,500.00 for this event.
LFA Board of Directors: Ted Brown, Lynn Carter (Vice-President), Alan Cooper (President),
Julia Denholm (Secretary), Tim Higgs, Maureen Maloney, Gordon McFarlane,
Cheryl McKeeman (Chief Steward), Lawrence Warren (Treasurer)