|
|
Where Things Stand
The 2005 - 2008 BOT-UFF Collective Bargaining Agreement expired July 1,
2008. Faculty and librarians continue to be protected by its terms and
conditions, which continue as status quo until a new Collective
Bargaining Agreement is ratified. UFF has been in contract negotiations
with the FIU administration since April. We have made significant
progress, but two important issues remain to be resolved.
Promotions
First, some very good news. We have tentatively agreed on a new
Promotions Policy that would—for the first time—provide opportunities
for promotion (and promotion raises) to Instructors and Lecturers.
Salaries
As Fall Semester began, we ratified a side agreement that allowed
promotion raises to go into effect at the beginning of the contract
year. However, we are still in the process of bargaining over salary
increases for 2007-2008 and 2008-2009. FIU and the rest of Florida’s
public universities have faced significant budget cuts, and expectations
are that more cuts are likely after the election. While UFF believes we
are close to an agreement on salaries, bargaining over salaries has been
shaped by these painful realities.
UFF and the FIU administration are very close in terms of total dollars
to fund salaries. We differ on how those dollars would be distributed.
Both our current proposals would use some of the available funds for
raises for all employees who received at least satisfactory evaluations
last year, and some of the money for one-time merit awards distributed
according to departmental merit policies. UFF proposes to put more of
the money into raises. The administration proposes to put more of the
money into one-time merit awards. We hope that this difference can be
quickly resolved.
Allocation of Research Space
Last year, UFF demanded that the FIU administration bargain over new
policies for the allocation of research space announced in January 2008.
UFF has proposed new contract language that would give faculty
reasonable assurances that research labs would not abruptly be taken
away, even as university priorities change. UFF’s proposal would protect
tenure-earning faculty from losing lab space during their tenure-earning
period. It would protect productive faculty from losing research space
if they have received satisfactory evaluations of their performance of
research assignments in 3 of the last 6 years. It would protect faculty
on leaves of absence from losing research space when they return to
their jobs.
UFF recognizes the university’s need to insure that available space is
fully utilized, but demands that changes in policies must be reasonable
and fair. It is time for the administration to engage in good-faith
bargaining over this very serious matter that affects the careers of so
many members of the UFF bargaining unit. This month, almost a year after
UFF made its first proposal to resolve this matter, the administration
finally put its first response on the table. The administration’s
proposal is far short of what is needed to resolve this issue, but UFF
is encouraged that we are at last engaged in serious negotiations.
We will work to resolve remaining differences over salaries and fair
allocation of research space so that we can soon send a new, three-year
contract to our bargaining unit for ratification .
Membership equals bargaining power. If you have not yet joined UFF, we
need you now. |
|
|
|
