Academy for
Academic Personnel Administration
Fall 2003
Round Table Report
1. Institution Information
Name of Institution/System: Concordia University
Name of Individual Responding: Maria Paradiso
Title of Individual Responding: Director, Office of Academic Relations
2a. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and
Composition
Full-time faculty (789) and librarians (30)
Bargaining Agent: Concordia University Faculty Association (CUFA)
Date of First Contract: 1984
Number of Succeeding Contracts: 4
2b. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and
Composition
Part-time faculty hired on a contract basis teaching for credit courses (913)
Bargaining Agent: Concordia University Part-time-Faculty Association (CUPFA)
Date of First Contract: November 1991
Number of Succeeding Contracts: 2
2c. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and
Composition
Part-time faculty for Continuing Education teaching non-credit courses (250)
Bargaining Agent: Concordia University Continuing Education Part-time faculty Union (CUCEPTFU)
Date of First Contract: 1991
Number of Succeeding Contracts: 3
3. Activity Report (e.g., status of current agreement or
negotiations, details of last contract settlement, etc.):
A.
Concordia University commenced negotiations with the CUFA in June
2001 and the parties reached an agreement in December 2002. The new CUFA
Collective Agreement was subsequently signed on 3 March 2003 and will be in
effect until 31 May 2007.
Highlights
of the New CUFA
Collective Agreement
Article 22 –
Grievance and Arbitration
•
Filed
with Office of Academic Relations (OAR)
•
Employer
Grievance
•
Association
Grievance or Employer Grievance
–
Right
to dispense with Stage II
–
Right
to go directly to arbitration
Article 35 –
Pregnancy and Parental Leave
• Eligibility criteria: 600
hours
(approx.
17 weeks)
• Ineligible for EI
– 95% of actual salary for
10 weeks
• Parental Leave at 95% of
actual salary
– from 10 to 20 weeks – 1
Jan. 2003
– From 20 to 35 weeks – 1
Jan. 2004
– 6 months notice to
prolong parental leave through reduced-time appointment (maximum 30 months)
Article 8 – Rights
of the Association
•
Verification
of faculty data on HRIS in first year of signed C.A. (OAR)
•
Information
RE: grievance filed at Concordia implicating CUFA C.A. – forward to CUFA within
time delay
•
No
fewer than 675 positions in any academic year
–
No
mandatory complement
Article 12 –
Appointment of Faculty
• Employment Equity –
parity committee of 2 members from each party to oversee process
• Standard statement for
ads: “Concordia University is committed to employment equity.”
• Maximum number of ETAs –
55
• ETA – Teaching mandatory
• Future Appointments to be
in departments
• Academic Chairs and
Special Professorships
Article 14 –
Reappointment, Promotion and Evaluation
• Clarification of what
comprises teaching dossier
• All information to be
provided at the Departmental Personnel Committee (DPC) /Departmental Tenure
Committee (DTC) level
• Reduction from 23 to 20
years for Promotion to Professor
• Performance Evaluation
(former Article 38)
• Evaluation and Promotion
of Extended Term Appointments (ETAs)
• New Rank for ETAs with
long service – Senior Lecturer
• Faculty Personnel and
Tenure Committee (FPTC)
Article 16 – Duties
and Responsibilities
• Teaching duties for the
next academic year assigned by 20 April
• 2 Additional courses
(Stipend per course @
12 %
of Floor of Assistant Professor - FAP) - Article 16.12 a)
• 3rd additional
course – summer term
• Additional special
teaching stipend not to exceed 80% of stipend specified in Article 16.12 a)
• Clarification for ETA
workload with regard to service
Article 18 – Tenure
for Faculty
• New mandatory
consideration (4th year) if promoted early
• Clearer definition of
years counting for tenure
• Deferral for 1 or 2 years
possible; procedure similar to early consideration
• No entitlement to tenure
process if no contract into next year
• Tenure dossier may be
supplemented by Chair or Dean
• All abstentions are
deemed votes against
Article 20 –
Academic Unit Heads and Supervisory Librarians
•
Stipends
increased form $4,500/$5,500 to $6,000/$7,000
•
Two
Academic Unit Heads to advise on negotiations with unions whose members report
to them
•
Sabbatical
top-up instead of workload reduction
Article 23 –
Personnel Files
•
Documents
placed in file only when process is at the next level or completed
•
Electronic
files o.k. if originals in archives
•
List
of those authorized to have access sent to CUFA by 1 October
•
Factually
false information may be removed
Article 24 –
Outside Professional Activities
• Unpaid activities are
contributions to profession and/or community for evaluation
• Paid activities called
Outside Employment
– Limited to 1 day
equivalent per week
– Prior permission needed
– Annual report to
Dean/Director
– Outside teaching
permitted if denied at Concordia because of reserve course limit
Article 27 –
Intellectual Property
•
To
be negotiated within 6 months
Article 29 –
Disciplinary Measures and Dismissal
•
New
type of letter: letter of concern
•
Letters
of concern/warning issued by Dean/Director
•
Suspensions
and dismissal handled by Vice-Rector and Rector
•
Documentation
segregated in Personnel File until final resolution
Article 38 –
Stipends and Additional Compensation
•
Last
and most difficult Article to negotiate
•
All
stipends either specified elsewhere (e.g. Chairs’ stipends) or discretionary
•
Cap
of $24,000 on discretionary stipends for “special tasks”; must be reported to
the Salary Committee
Article 39 – Salary
Structure
• Major changes:
Introduction of a grid (New Model) and continuation of Old Model
• New Model includes Market
and Individual Supplements; reviewed periodically
• Old Model linked to New
by equating CDI and step increases
• New Model has salary caps
for each rank; Old has diminishing CDI
• Merit: similar to current
but only for tenured and extended term members
Article 40 –
Salaries
• Annual 2.25% indexation
to 2005-06
• Step or CDI increases
• Introduction of Grid and
new salary floors on 31 May 2002
• Internal/External Equity
adjustments: spread over two years; Performance-based amount (PBA) in 2003-2004
• PBA determined by past
performace reviews
Article 42 –
Retirement
• Lump sum for 55 to 64
removed
• New incentive: Early
Retirement Pension Supplement (ERPS) between 62 and 65
• ERPS may be preceded by 2
years of gradual retirement at 75%, 50% load
• Supplemental Retirement
Pension (SRP) tops up capped pensions
• Retired faculty eligible
for 1 – term LTA contracts at 26% of FAP
Article 44 –
Adjustment to Units for Academic Reasons
•
Simpler
process than old Article
•
Academic
priorities determined by Provost and Senate
•
Admission
freeze in a department limited to 12 months unless Senate approves
•
Joint
Retraining and Transfer Committee (JRTC) members appointed by Parties
•
Similar
transfer/retraining/voluntary termination provisions as before
Article 48 –
Miscellaneous
•
Proportional
representation on Search/Evaluation Committees no less than before
•
Association
is the only representative for full-time e-Concordia instructional staff
Article 52 –
Transition, Duration and Retroactivity
•
No
retroactivity except for Articles 20.01 and 20.08 (stipends); 31.06 (vacation
for Librarians)
•
Parental
Leave provisions for 2003 start 1 January
•
Article
27 to be negotiated within 6 months
A.
The
CUPFA collective agreement expired on 15 April 2002. Negotiations with CUPFA
commenced in January 2003 are still in progress.
C. The University also began
negotiations with CUCEPTFU in June 2001 and CUCEPTFU is the first bargaining
unit at Concordia to adopt interest-based bargaining. The new agreement with
CUCEPTFU was ratified by the membership on 4 May 2003 and was signed on 2 June
2003. The CUCEPTFU collective agreement is in effect from 1 September 2001 to
6 September 2007.
Highlights of the New CUCEPTFU Collective Agreement
·
A six-year
contract, covering the period from September 2001 to August 2007
·
Salary
increases totalling 23.5% over 6 years
·
Improved
benefits in the area of social leaves, including up to 7 days of paid
bereavement leave and 7 days paid emergency leave
·
Reduced
class-size limits for workshops and advanced level intensive language courses
·
Paid
parental leave (in addition to regular maternity, paternity and adoption leave)
for 10 weeks upon signing of the Collective Agreement and 15 weeks as of Fall,
2006
·
Salary
insurance coverage for illness or accident extended from one to three sessions
for eligible instructors
·
Access to
the Concordia University Employee Assistance Programme as of September 2005
·
Tuition
waivers increased from 6 to 30 credits per year per eligible person (2 per
family including instructor)
·
New
provisions regarding intellectual property and copyright, which afford
important protection for instructors
·
More
stringent and complete criteria for establishing teaching qualification
requirements; procedures clarified for recognition of TQRs
·
Important
changes to course assignment procedures allowing greater access to courses for
instructors in a ‘simple-emploi’ situation (those for whom the Centre is their
major source of revenue) in the first round of assignments
·
Two new
articles: Representation and Non-teaching contracts