Dear UFF-FIU Members:

As we begin 2011 we can celebrate some significant gains since last year, but we also have some serious challenges. I would like to thank you for being a UFF member, thereby strengthening our voice at the bargaining table and in Tallahassee. Thank you also for attending UFF events and for encouraging your colleagues to join.

• We can celebrate our strong membership, which at FIU is a majority of the faculty. This gives us credibility with the Board of Trustees and strength at the bargaining table and in Tallahassee.
• We are protected by a strong contract, negotiated by your superb and tireless bargaining team. The reinstatement of 20 tenured faculty members at FSU last fall underscores the importance of a strong contract. And our contract--which was ratified by a unanimous vote last fall both from the faculty and the Board of Trustees--granted a significant raise, new benefits, and intellectual property rights during difficult economic times. We are now entering into negotiations for our next full-book contract, and I wish to thank you for your input regarding the issues you would like to see addressed.
• We at FIU also enjoy a collegial and respectful relationship with the FIU administration. They were supportive of additional benefits and raises for the faculty. And the UFF and the FIU administration have worked together to support the faculty with information and training sessions such as Third Year Review, understanding the contract (for administrators and faculty), new on-line policies, promotion and tenure, and the impact of new policies such as a smoke-free campus.

But unions across the country will be coming under attack, and especially in Florida. The model seems to be the state of Texas, which has continued to cut social programs and discourage unions, and which ironically is now facing an even worse fiscal crisis than many other states. From an article by Tom Marshall in the Dec. 1, 2010 issue of the St. Petersburg Times:

Sen. John Thrasher, the architect of last year's failed tenure-reform bill ...took aim squarely at teachers' unions. "There is no way in our state right now that the dadgum unions are going to agree with this kind of stuff," Thrasher told the crowd at the third annual education conference organized by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. "So you either bring them to the table and tell them what you're going to do, or you run over them."

Faced with growing budget deficits , elected officials of both parties are pushing new legislation to limit the power of labor unions. And in Florida:

"With a results-oriented new governor and a Republican Legislature that dislikes teacher unions, the political climate is ripe for sweeping education reform in Florid... . Governor-elect Rick Scott, whose daughter teaches special-needs children, welcomes FEA participation but says "there is going to be a bill" this year, whether the teachers like it or not... . Ending teacher tenure, implementing a form of merit pay and allowing school choice have been core GOP tenets since ex-Gov. Jeb Bush first ran 16 years ago. The hottest bill of 2010 was Senate Bill 6, enacted in a marathon House session that ran into the wee hours only to be vetoed by Gov. Charlie Crist. When the 2011 session starts March 4, the proposal will be back with a top spin." (Bill Cotterell writing for the Florida Capital Bureau on Dec. 12, 2010)

We must maintain and further strengthen the UFF to protect our working conditions, our pensions, our tenure, our jobs and our voice. What can you do?

• Please make a commitment this semester to speak to at least one colleague who is non-member and ask them to join. Explain to them that, as the independent voice of the faculty, it is critical--for the next two years especially--to strengthen our membership. We will have a stronger voice at the bargaining table, with the Board of Trustees, and in the State. On an individual level, the UFF will represent faculty throughout a possible grievance process, all the way to arbitration. These considerable legal costs are paid for by member dues. (And for those who are concerned about the 1% dues, the raise negotiated by the UFF last year will pay for your dues in perpetuity. The faculty who retained their jobs at FSU gave 1% of their salaries to keep 100% .)
• You could also join our Political Action group by sending your personal email to Joan Baker at Joan Baker at UFF-FIU . Feel free to contact her as well to find how to donate or become otherwise involved.

Please let me or any of your UFF-FIU Executive Council Members (see our website for a list) know of any concerns and/or ideas you may have. Stay involved and ask a colleague to join! Best wishes for the spring semester!

Sincerely and in solidarity,
Kathleen

Dr. Kathleen L. Wilson
Chapter President
United Faculty of Florida
Florida International University
Miami, FL 33199

Kathleen.Wilson@uff-fiu.org

JOIN NOW!