July 3, 2024
Today, we had a half-day session, and we still have not reached another agreement (it has been over 1 month since the last one!) We are getting closer on Personnel Files and Records, and Union Rights and Identification of Union Representatives, though we are in disagreement about several topics. Some of the topics being debated include giving UFISU access to schedule a meeting with new employees in conjunction with ISU’s orientation events and giving release time (or purchased time) to UFISU members who will be doing work of making administration accountable to bargaining unit members and our final contract.
This morning’s session began with UFISU’s Lead Spokesperson, Ashley Farmer, presenting a counter on Union Rights and ID of Union Representatives and a counter package on Grievance & Arbitration, Discipline and Dismissal, and Disability Accommodation, with testimony by Dr. Natalie Shaheen.
Dr. Shaheen, who is legally blind, noted several access barriers in her testimony today, which you can find here: https://nlshaheen.com/union/. Her experiences include challenges finding her course-assigned classroom in CVA because of the lack of accessible signage (this included a visit in June, with reported issues to the appropriate parties, and was still not fixed by August when she started teaching). Dr. Shaheen has also faced challenges with using AV systems for teaching and encountered inaccessible mandatory trainings and digital documents from leadership, as well as difficulty procuring a license to an accessible software platform. The administration dismissed Dr. Shaheen’s experiences, stating that UFISU was accusing ISU of ill intent by suggesting they are not meeting the minimum requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on campus. However, there are many current challenges on campus when it comes to accessibility. These issues are incredibly important to our members and are often relatively simple to fix. Addressing them will demonstrate respect not only to our UFISU members but also to our broader campus community.
Admin Spokesperson Mark Bennett then presented counter proposals on Personnel Files and Records, Academic Freedom, and Intellectual Property. Bennett noted that our next meeting (on Wednesday, July 10th) will include ISU staff from Emergency Health Services and Facilities to discuss issues and concerns that have been raised in our proposals. Some highlights from the session included Bennett noting that in managing Personnel Files and Records, it is too burdensome to date stamp documents when they are added. In the Academic Freedom article, he stated that faculty don’t need additional protection beyond university policy. He also mistakenly told us that all course materials we prepare are considered “works for hire” and therefore owned by ISU, which contradicts our university policy on intellectual property. We then caucused for 1.5 hrs.
Upon return, Bennett presented a packaged counter that contained Union Rights, ID of Union Representatives, and Entire Agreement. The Entire Agreement says that the contract encompasses all aspects of wages, hours, and working conditions. Consequently, under this proposed article, any additional matters related to these issues do not require negotiation unless the employer chooses. It also includes a sentence that says both parties have had a chance to negotiate everything they want to, which is something we cannot agree to given that we have not even seen their economic counter proposals yet. He then asked why we (UFISU) prefer our own Discipline proposal to theirs, to which Ashley answered that if members must engage in remediation processes, we need to have more enforceable protections.
We finished the day with Ashley presenting our counters on Personnel Files and Records, which was followed by discussion on current procedures for adding documents to employees’ Personnel Files and for requesting and gaining access to our own documents.
We NEED you to come out to future sessions! We have a lot of work ahead of us this month, but more visibility creates more pressure that will help us close on more agreements. We need your help to create movement! Join us on Wednesday, July 10, 1-4:15pm.