Contract Faculty United – UAW seeks self-nominations from members for Unit Chair (1 seat) and Unit Representative (5 seats). Nominations are due 5pm on Monday, May 11. Any bargaining unit member who has signed the UAW Membership Declaration by the closing of nominations is eligible. The election will be held electronically from May 15 through May 22.
We are holding these elections now because our union must tell the administration who will get course releases by July 1, and so that the Unit Chair can serve on the Local 7902 Executive Board over the summer. We will be holding further elections in the fall (see below).
You may nominate yourself for Unit Chair or Unit Representative by filling out this form.
Unit Chair – 1 position, elected at large
The Unit Chair is the executive of our union. They will perform all the tasks listed below as Unit Representatives. In addition, they will perform crucial administrative tasks for the union, assisted by the Representatives. They will liaise with other campus unions and with the administration. If we hire staff, they will supervise that staff in conjunction with the Local President. The Unit Chair will also serve on Local 7902’s Executive Board and Joint Council. Under Article 8 of our collective bargaining agreement, the Unit Chair will be assigned a course release in the fall and spring semesters.
N.B.: technically this vote will be to advise the Local 7902 President to appoint an interim Unit Chair who will serve until a three-year Unit Chair can be elected in the fall.
Unit Representatives – 5 seats, elected at large, no more than 2 per school
Unit representatives will enforce our collective bargaining agreement by representing members in investigatory and disciplinary meetings and in grievances at all steps. They will represent grievants and prepare Step Three grievances (that is, grievances that are appealed from the dean to the Office of Employee Relations) and, if grievances go to arbitration, handle the arbitration with the Local’s attorneys. They will educate members to understand the contract and their rights under it, and they will orient new bargaining unit members as they are hired. Unit representatives will learn the contract backwards and forwards, including the bargaining history that governs its interpretation.
However, we will enforce our new contract not only through grievances but by building and maintaining our power in schools and departments through organizing. Thus unit representatives will also be lead organizers across the university, working to ensure members are ready and able to enforce our contract.
Unit representatives will assist the Unit Chair in the tasks outlined above, and will be part of the Workplace Council that will govern our unit between membership meetings.
Under Article 8 of our collective bargaining agreement, unit representatives will be assigned a course release in the fall and spring semesters.
The term for unit representatives is up to three years; representatives may step down after a year or two to allow us to stagger terms.
Coming in the Fall
In accordance with Local 7902 rules, we will be conducting various other elections in the Fall for our representatives on the Local’s Joint Council (which governs the Local between general membership meetings), and school-based stewards (who will help the Chair and Representatives enforce the contract and will also be members of the Workplace Council). The Workplace Council will make decisions about sponsoring events, signing solidarity statements, and recommending to the Local President which grievances to take to arbitration. Joint Council representatives and school-based stewards will not receive course releases. The Bylaws Committee is working towards making sure there is representation for all schools and programs on the Workplace Council. We also need to wait until fall to elect a long-term Unit Chair, with a three-year appointment. So note that the Unit Chair nominated and elected now will act as Chair until this subsequent election can take place in the Fall; the winner of this election may run again for the three-year position.
You may nominate yourself for Unit Chair or Unit Representative by filling out this form.
David Cregar (Clinical Professor, Faculty of Arts and Science)
CFU-UAW Election Committee