RAAS Report
Friday, June 24, 2022
Ann Dennis, Editor
PRESIDENT’S UPDATE
It is hard to believe that this is my last RAAS President’s Report! The RAAS Report team will be taking a break in July and August. I was planning on keeping this short and sweet, but there seems to always be a great deal to report.
Memorada of Understanding
RAAS has signed two more MoUs. In reporting this, I want to emphasize again that MoUs should used to address unexpected circumstances and not a re-negotiation of the collective agreement on an ongoing basis. Our response to COVID has necessitated more MoUs than normal for the sector. Below you will find italicized text from the newly signed MoUs with bolded text indicating the most important part of the new provision. I provide additional explanation about the MoUs following each italicized text.
Tenure Clock Extension. Article 21.2: Renewals, Tenure, and Promotions Procedures—Timelines.
Recognizing the extraordinary circumstances caused by the Covid-19 Pandemic that may have negatively impacted a Member’s ability to execute research activity and required a Member to adapt the ways they teach, tenure-track faculty in probationary terms hired before July 1, 2021, will receive an automatic one-year extension on their tenure clock.
Furthermore, regarding Article 21.2 (d), Any Member may request deferral of evaluation for tenure and corresponding contract extension as a reasonable accommodation or because of extraordinary personal circumstances. Such deferral shall only be permitted for one (1) year. Any Member hired on or before July 1, 2022, may enact this article to have a Covid-related reason considered as an “extraordinary personal circumstance.”
RAAS requested that all members hired before July 1, 2022 receive the automatic tenure clock extension, rather than only those hired before July 1, 2021. The administration did not agree with our position. Instead, they agreed to include new hires under Article 21.2. Please note that both extensions are optional for faculty. No faculty member is required to extend the tenure clock. If you need assistance clarifying what this means for your tenure clock, please reach out to any member of the RAAS Executive.
Half Development Credit. Article 16.6.9 – Online Learning.
The Collective Agreement addresses compensation for Members who engage in online course development using one full development slot as defined by UW’s Centre for Extended Learning (CEL). It does not address compensation for Members who engage in course development using a half development slot as defined by CEL. Note: As defined by CEL, a full development slot equates to approximately 500 hours of CEL development time, and a half development slot equates to approximately 250 hours of CEL development time. CEL determines whether online course development requires a full or half development slot.
Therefore, to address the missing topic of remuneration for online course development using a half development slots, as defined by the Centre for Extended Learning, the revised text should read as follows: 16.6.9 (c) – Members who develop a new online course with the Centre for Extended Learning (CEL) using one full CEL development slot shall receive one (1) course release in the term in which the Member is developing the course. If the Member does not complete the course development within twelve (12) months, then the Member must teach an additional course in addition to their normal course load in the upcoming academic year. Members, who engage in online course development using a half CEL development slot, shall be compensated with a half stipend at the current sessional value. The stipend shall be paid in three installments—at the beginning, middle, and end phases of development.
The administration initially requested a payback system should a faculty member not complete a half development. RAAS has consistently, including in our collective agreement, resisted payback of compensation. Such a principle is important, for example, should a faculty member leave Renison following a parental leave for which they receive a top-up. RAAS believes that an installment system for the rare half development is overly-administrative and conveys a certain level of mis-trust. The administration did not agree. For the sake of moving forward on this issue, we have signed off on the payment installment plan.
Grievance Officer(s) and Committee
The RAAS Executive have been working over-time to find our next Grievance Officer. We are happy to report that we had two members step forward with the stipulation that they will be Co-Grievance Officers. The Co-Grievance Officers for the 2022-24 term are Colleen McMillan and Jason Blokhuis. They will share the roles of sitting on the Executive Committee, chairing the Grievance Committee, and acting as liaisons with OCUFA and CAUT Grievance Committees. Thank you, Colleen and Jason, for taking on this role. More appreciation goes out to Amir Al-Azraki for continuing on the Grievance Committee and to Meg Gibson who has agreed to join as a new member of the Grievance Committee. Please remember that you can reach out to any member of the Executive and Grievance Committee should you have any informal inquiries/concerns related to your working conditions. All member information is handled in confidence unless you provide permission to disclose a situation. It is critical that members inform the Grievance Committee, in confidence, about emerging workplace situations.
Lifting of Mask Mandate
RAAS was very disappointed to receive notification that Renison, in keeping with the University of Waterloo, will be lifting the mask mandate on June 30th, 2022. The evidence is clear that masks, as with vaccines, offer protection not only to the mask wearer but to others around them. There are also clear indications that we may well be heading into a summer wave of COVID, and that prior infection does not protect against the newer variant and the potential long-term effects from COVID. Cases are starting to come before courts about the role of the employer in protecting employees from infection and in supporting employees should they have long-term effects. RAAS wants to see our employer follow the precautionary principle, which necessitates a mask mandate, C02 monitoring and public reporting, and increased clean air provisions (e.g., ventilation, air purification). COVID is not over, and our precautions should not be either.
TOP 5 Lessons
As I sign-off officially in just 6 days as the inaugural RAAS President, I have been reflecting on some lessons learned.
Unions must prioritize collegial governance. Collegial governance, simply put, means that faculty have the right to participate in academic governance. As academics, you have the right to control the tenure and promotion process, to decide matters related to academic programs, to have transparency and accountability on institutional budgets, to have a voice on the hiring of institutional administrators, and far more. Prioritize participation in collegial governance for the sake of your working conditions and students learning conditions.
Unions must be equity-leading. We have made incredible strides in supporting equitable working conditions. For example, unlike our peers on main campus, we do not have teaching evaluations as part of our tenure, promotion, or annual evaluation processes. This is important since the evidence is clear that teaching evaluations are biased against women, racialized, and other marginalized faculty. While we can applaud such efforts, RAAS has a very long way to go in being equity-leaders. Let’s ensure that equity, diversity, inclusion, decolonization, and anti-racism are at the forefront of our work.
Unions have a broader advocacy role for justice. Unions are part of a broader social movement to protect public post-secondary education. From performance metrics to defunding universities and colleges, we have experienced many attacks in recent years. RAAS has engaged, particularly as members of OCUFA and CAUT, in advocating for academic freedom, research funding, affordable tuition, and anti-racism and decolonization initiatives. Some of the most rewarding work with RAAS happens beyond our local organization and in collaboration with broader justice advocates. We must keep that work going.
Union strength depends on solidarity. This is true in our relationships with FAUW, SJUASA (St. Jerome’s), OCUFA, and CAUT, but it is imperative within our own association as well. RAAS members will always have conflicts, disagreements, and tensions in our work with Renison. We must ensure that conflict never undermines our solidarity as a union if we are to protect one another from workplace harm and to strengthen what is needed for student learning.
We are privileged to have a union. Workers across the globe fight hard to be unionized. Unions offer protection over working conditions that cannot be achieved otherwise. Now that we have a union, let’s fight hard to keep it strong. Service to the union is the most rewarding and valuable service you will give to the institution. Consider big and small ways that you can be more involved.
I continue to celebrate all that we have accomplished in 4 years. We started an association. We certified as a union. We became members of OCUFA and CAUT. We created a service agreement with FAUW. We joined the CAUT Defense Fund. We ratified our first collective agreement. We have successfully settled grievances. And so, so much more. While we celebrate, I am also keenly aware that the year ahead will be challenging. We are heading into another negotiation year at time when the cost of living is soaring and some institutions are expecting faculty to do more with less. May you work in solidarity with one another to secure even better working conditions for all RAAS members.
Join me in supporting your new RAAS Executive – Rob Case, Trish Van Katwyk, Colleen McMillan, and Jason Blokhuis – as they get to work on our collective priorities. Thank you all for your trust in me as RAAS President over the last 4 years. It has been truly the most rewarding work to date in my academic career. I am so proud to work with all of you! With watery eyes as I write this and leave for sabbatical, I wish you all nothing but the best for the summer and the year ahead.
Kristina Llewellyn
RAAS President
BOARD UPDATE
Greetings all,
Our last board meeting for the academic year took place on Wednesday, June 22, 2022. We have two quick updates.
Teaching Excellence Award. Congratulations are in order for Dr. Craig Fortier for being this year’s recipient of the Teaching Excellence Award. Well done, Craig!
Endowment/Investment Portfolio. The Endowment sub-committee reviewed nine RFP submissions and invited two local investment firms, RaeLipskie and McNaughton-Lynch Group – RBC, to give presentations. A motion was passed to hire McNaughton-Lynch Group – RBC as our Endowment Manager.
Our next board meeting will take place in the Fall on Wednesday, September 28, 2022.
Edwin Ng and Jason Blokhuis
Faculty Board Representatives
EQUITY AND INCLUSION COMMITTEE
The committee members Arshi, Kelly, Edwin, and I have begun planning our work together. We will be exploring the paradigm/worldview of 'All Our Relations' to provide our work and the vision of this committee with ongoing guidance. We begin our committee work with a pause, to stop and think carefully about the ground we stand upon. We trust that the worldview of All Our Relations will help us to remain accountable to all the relationships that are to be considered in our efforts to support positive, fair, and just connections. We look forward to sharing our reflections with you in the Fall. Have a wonderful summer, may there be rest and rejuvenation, with opportunities to be outside, to spend time with loved ones, and to sit quietly watching a beautiful sunset or two, even as work continues.
Trish Van Katwyk
RAAS Representative
RAAS LECTURERS COMMITTEE (LC) UPDATE
1. Survey on negotiation priorities for the coming round of CA negotiations
Based on experiences of the RAAS LC members as well as on the relevant RAAS CA articles and clauses, the committee’s co-chairs along with Julia Williams revised a rough list of potential negotiation priorities for the RUC faculty at the rank of lecturer. A brief survey on this topic has been prepared to allow all the respondents to rank these priorities in the order of preference. The survey will be available until June 24.
The LC has also contacted the representatives of contract faculty on the negotiation teams of two comparator institutions: Brescia and St. Jerome’s University. The committee is hoping to meet these individuals in fall 2022.
FAUW LECTURERS COMMITTEE (LC) UPDATE
1. Policy 76-77 (Faculty Appointments & Tenure & Promotion of Faculty Members, teaching stream) updates and FAUW consultation survey results
The results of the recent FAUW survey on further steps regarding the Policy 76-77 revisions for teaching stream faculty as well as other relevant factors are being considered by the FAUW Board now. The qualitative results of the survey have been shared with the LC, but are confidential. During the recent meeting, the LC members raised questions about lecturer representation during these subsequent steps both at the Faculty Relations Committee and in any other possible settings such as the potential mediation/arbitration process. Other significant questions posed by the LC were the starting list of priorities for the next Policy 76-77 revision steps and the involvement of the Waterloo Senate and membership consultation in case of mediation/arbitration.
2. Impact of the current Policy 76-77 revisions on some Waterloo units
A member from the Department of Systems Design Engineering and one from the School of Public Health Sciences reported some positive impact of the Policy 76-77 revision process, including serious administration-level discussions about the workload reduction from twelve to ten courses over each two-year period and the conversion of continuing lecturers’ titles to associate professors, teaching stream, respectively at these units.
A negative impact of the ongoing revision process was also noted: the loss of prospective lecturers due to more competitive working conditions at some other institutions such as the University of Toronto.
3. LC Membership Update
The committee received quite a few applications for the positions of member at large from the Faculties of Arts, Mathematics, and Engineering. The applications were discussed during the meeting in June, and the selected candidates will be contacted soon.
OCUFA CONTRACT FACULTY COMMITTEE (CFC) UPDATE
1. Committees engagements over the summer
To allow its members time to disconnect from some of their work over the summer, the OCUFA CFC will not be holding its monthly meetings in the summer. However, the members have been asked to consider possible engagements for the fall 2022 and communicate with the new chair about them. Also, prompted by a request from the OCUFA’s Engagement and Campaigns Coordinator, the CFC members have collected the information about policies governing the compensation for/treatment of service for the association by the contract faculty. A document compiling this information will be subsequently prepared.
Aga Wolczuk
RAAS Lecturers Committee Co-chair
Renison Representative on FAUW Lecturers Committee
OCUFA CFC Member
SATIRE
Dad who always insists his family get to the airport six hours early grateful his time has come
June 22, 2022, Luke Gordon, The Beaverton
Local father Winston Brown, who has always insisted his family arrive at Toronto Pearson airport no less than 6 hours before their flight’s scheduled departure time, took a bit of pleasure in noticing his moment has arrived.
NOT SATIRE
Police, handcuffs routinely involved for Ontario university students with mental health crisis: Study
June 21, 2022, Olivia Bowden, The Toronto Star
CAMH researchers reveal common use of restraints on students seeking help for mental health crisis on some campuses during transfer to hospital.
CAUT NEWS
RAAS is a member of the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT), a nation-wide association of our peers.
CAUT President’s Message: Administering Disaster, The Mismanagement of Laurentian University
May, 2022, Brenda Austin-Smith, CAUT News
When the administration of Laurentian University filed for insolvency under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) in February 2021, shock waves reverberated across the country.
OCUFA NEWS
RAAS is a member of the Ontario Confederation of University CAUT Associations (OCUFA), a province-wide association of our peers.
SFU suggests new system of decision-making for its Board of Governors
June 22, 2022, Chloe Arneson, The Peak
On May 10, SFU proposed new amendments to their policies on the Board of Governors (BoG)’ decision-making process. The general counsel and university secretary would be able to make amendments to university procedures without Board approval.
Thousands of York University workers could walk off the job July 1
June 22, 2022, Joanna Lavoie, CTV News
Thousands of workers at York University could be on strike by Canada Day. York University Staff Association, which represents administrative, technical and laboratory staff on campus, has been without a contract since July 31, 2021.
Poilievre promises to protect freedom of speech on campus, appoint a ‘Free Speech Guardian’
June 21, 2022, Catherine Lévesque, National Post
The 'Guardian' would be responsible for ensuring university compliance to principles of academic freedom and free speech, and investigate claims of academic censorship
OCUFA holds first University governance workshop
June 4, 2022, OCUFA News
On May 6, the OCUFA University Governance Committee held a virtual workshop, entitled “The Erosion of Collegial Governance: Reclaiming Lost Ground.”
Inside a Halifax university’s battle to save face after spending nearly $500K on a football game
June 4, 2022, Richard Woodbury, CBC News
As Saint Mary's University fought a costly and public legal battle to play in a 2017 football game, the Halifax university hired a high-profile public relations company to get advice on how the institution could improve its public image.
Will 2022 Be the Year of the Strike?
May 27, 2022, Rosa Saba, Toronto Star
Skyrocketing inflation is galvanizing unionized workers to ask for more at the bargaining table, and experts predict more strikes on the horizon.
RAAS Feedback Survey
As we transition to a new executive team, and approach the renegotiation of our Collective Agreement, we would like to hear from you.
RAAS needs to be a community where all of us feel valued and engaged. These questions will help to plan for the continued growth of a strong RAAS membership.
The results of this survey will not be shared through Waterloo email nor processed through a Waterloo Qualtrics account. The survey is set so that it will not collect IP addresses.
Thank you,
Your RAAS Executive Team
Calling All Research Participants
Please review THIS ATTACHMENT (Word Document) calling for research participants for a study examining university academic staffs’ well-being, and perceptions of teaching and student mental health challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study is being led by Dr. Maureen Drysdale, Professor of Psychology and Director of the Well-Link Research lab at St. Jerome’s University.
Welcome!
A warm welcome goes to Dr. Chizuru Nobe- Ghelani and Dr. Manaal Syed, our newest RAAS members who will be joining the School of Social Work effective July 1, 2022. We first met Chizuru in the Member Spotlight in the May RAAS Report, and Manaal is featured in this June edition as found below. We look forward to working with you both and building on the positive momentum we have built with our RAAS endeavours.
Member Spotlight
by Manaal Syed
A warm hello to the RAAS community! My name is Manaal Syed (she/her) and I have recently joined Renison University College's School of Social Work as Assistant Professor. My PhD and MSW are from the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto. I also have a Master of Education from OISE, University of Toronto. My calling to social work has been inspired and driven by listening to migrant stories of settlement and belonging which have led me to working closely with racialized and immigrant communities across the Greater Toronto Area. As a critical gerontology researcher, my scholarship explores the socio-cultural representations and experiences of aging and minority older adults' access to social and citizenship rights. I am currently building a knowledge base around the experiences and challenges of multi-generational families during the COVID-19 pandemic and the community interventions needed to support their needs.
My professional experience in the community services sector has advanced the health and social well-being of socially-isolated seniors, community engagement opportunities for racialized youth and effective employment outcomes of new immigrant women. My work in higher education has centered on students' academic and career success, crisis intervention, and equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) efforts at the institutional level. These experiences also anchor my curriculum interests in social justice and equity-informed teaching which informed my recent development of teaching modules which support instructors in effectively responding to microaggressions in the online classroom and upholding equity in assessment.
When taking a break from work, you will find me enjoying free-hand sketching or experimenting with new art techniques while listening to the greatest hits of the 90s-early 2000s or trying out Ina Garten's baking recipes. As a new member of the Waterloo-Kitchener area, I am excited to explore the region's vibrant history, and arts and cultural scene. I look forward to connecting and working with the RAAS community and embarking on this enriching journey.
Thank You!
Thank you to Kristina, Rob, Jason, and Trish as they move from their current RAAS Executive roles into their next chapter as the new RAAS Executive effective July 1st!
Their leadership, commitment and drive has built our strong association from the ground up into the successful union that we are today. They have instilled in us the importance of shared governance among faculty, staff, students, and administrators which is the heart of university life. Our RAAS Exec played a key role in the decision-making process with administration on issues such as tenure and promotion, leaves, workload, renumeration, grievances and some COVID protocols for RUC. They have been our trusted voice at the table, a dependable ear to listen to concerns in confidence, visionaries as they set precedent with successful collective agreement negotiations and strong leaders who advocate for positive change.
We look forward to your continued leadership in serving as our second RAAS Executive team and again, we THANK YOU!
See you in September!!
We wish you all a great summer full of joy, sunshine, and fond memories. We hope you take in the summer scene and go to beautiful places and enjoy special moments to the fullest.
The RAAS Report will be waiting for you back in September with new updates and stories and a new RAAS Executive!!
Until then, stay safe and we will See you in September!!
