Academy for Academic Personnel Administration
Fall 2003
Round Table Report
1. Institution Information
Name of Institution/System: University of Western Ontario
Name of Individual Responding: Alex Mercer
Title of Individual Responding: Director of Faculty Relations
2a. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and Composition
900 Full Time and approximately 500 Part Time
Bargaining Agent: UWOFA
Date of First Contract: July 1 1998
Number of Succeeding Contracts: One
2b. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and Composition
Number of Succeeding Contracts:
2c. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and Composition
Number of Succeeding Contracts:
2d. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and Composition
Number of Succeeding Contracts:
3. Activity Report (e.g., status of current agreement or negotiations, details of last contract settlement, etc.):
In May 2003 settled a four year collective agreement running from July 1,2002, until June 30, 2006,Increases are as follows 3.5% year one and 3% for each year thereafter.
Provide first refusal status and rights for Part Time Faculty, easier to administer. Increased Professional Expense reimbursement from $750 per year to $900 per year.
Made Promotion and Tenure article more user friendly, and restricted power of arbitrator relating P&T cases. Appointments article revised to include spousal hires. Limited out of country benefit coverage from unlimited, to a cap of $200.000. Minimum Chair stipend of $5.000. Grievance arbitration article rewritten to include non- precedent settlements and informal resolution process. Non-discrimination article rewritten to include independent panel of inquiry as final resolution for complaints.. Changed Pregnancy Parental and Adoption to legislative standards. Obtained flexibility on workload and workload can be in place for a three- year period. Dean can impose workload on unit in special circumstances. Implemented a child and family care center on campus with 50 faculty spots guaranteed. More flexible agreement for the administration, in many other significant areas.
4. Special or noteworthy happenings (e.g., relevant arbitration or court decisions, organizing campaigns, labor agency decisions, etc.)
None in the last year, Union abandoned a promotion to professor case after the hearing commenced.
5. Special happenings related to fiscal issues (e.g., salary reductions, health and dental insurance costs, reductions in force, early retirement programs, program consolidation or elimination, etc.):
We won an arbitration on restricting enhanced early retirement packages. Reduced out of country benefits to a cap of $200.000 from the currently unlimited coverage.