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May 20, 2014

Please circulate this open letter as widely as you can today.

http://artssquared.wordpress.com/2014/05/18/canadas-academics-invited-to-sign-on-to-open-letter-to-university-of-saskatchewan-board-chair-ms-susan-milburn/

Thanks,

Jim Turk

Executive Director

CAUT

 

May 14, 2014

CAUT is soliciting nominations for the 2014-15 CAUT Distinguished Academic Award. The Award is given annually to recognize an academic who has excelled in each of the three principal aspects of academic life: teaching, research, and service to the institution and to the community. The recipient will be an individual whose teaching, research and service has contributed significantly to the lives of students, to their institution, to their field of study, and to the community.

Nominations for the Award may be submitted by individuals, member associations or others. The deadline for nominations will be September 14, 2014.

Nominators should submit a letter explaining the rationale for the nomination and give detailed information about the nominee’s record in teaching, research and service.  It is essential that the nominator provide information for each of these three areas as excellence in all three is a requirement for eligibility for the Award.  The nominator should also include documentation that would help the jury in its decision making.  It is the responsibility of the nominators to provide all necessary information as the jury will review only the material it receives.

Nominations will be adjudicated by a jury of the most recent former presidents of CAUT.  The jury’s recommendation will be made to the Fall Council for approval.

The award will be presented at the Spring CAUT Council.  The recipient will be invited to give an address to Council. The address will be subsequently published by CAUT.  The recipient will receive a $1,000 honorarium with the award.

Please send nominations by mail, fax or e-mail to:

Distinguished Academic Award

Canadian Association of University Teachers

2705 Queensview Drive

Ottawa, Ontario K2B 8K2

Fax: (613) 820-7244

Email: [email protected]

Attention: Margaret McGovern-Potié

 

March 27, 2014

Dear Colleagues:

In celebration of its 50th anniversary this year, OCUFA has planned a number of initiatives.

The first will be a history of OCUFA, highlighted in two ways: through a portable exhibit, and an interactive section of our website. Both components will be ready for unveiling at the October 24, 2014 OCUFA conference, “Faculty Associations on Campus: Past, Present and Future”, and the October 25-26, 2014 Board meeting.

The intention is that this will not be a dry institutional history, but rather a dynamic story that focuses on:

the environment in which OCUFA emerged and developed;
what shaped the organization in the context of changes in higher education, labour relations, and government relations;
the evolution of the role of faculty and faculty associations in the past half-century; and
what has been accomplished, what has not, and what the future might hold.

The project will use existing documents, interviews with those involved in OCUFA, and other sources to construct a history of the organization.

We have retained Carol Anderson as a researcher/writer for this project. As part of her work, she is looking for photos, videos, recordings, graphics, and other visual material to help illustrate OCUFA’s history.

If you have any material that you think may help illustrate OCUFA’s history or achievements, or the history of postsecondary education in Ontario over the last 50 years, please contact Carol at [email protected], so that she can assess what you have and arrange to have it sent to OCUFA’s offices.

Thank you for any assistance you can provide.

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
17 Isabella Street
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4Y 1M7
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.ocufa.on.ca
www.academicmatters.ca
www.weteachontario.ca
Subscribe to the OCUFA Report

March 14 ,2014

Dear colleagues;

As you know, yesterday HEQCO released a new research report on “faculty productivity.”  The paper is, frankly, awful, and we have published a response in the Globe and Mail. It can be read here: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/education/professors-teaching-less-thats-measuring-the-wrong-thing/article17465987/

Kate Lawson has also been quoted in several stories on this issue, including in the Toronto Star (http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2014/03/11/ontario_professors_should_have_to_teach_more_courses_reports_say.html) and Maclean’s  (http://www.macleans.ca/education/university/teaching-load/).

We will continue to monitor this issue going forward, and will continue to push back against HEQCO.

Best Regards,

Grae,e

Graeme Stewart

Communications Manager

Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations

17 Isabella Street | Toronto, ON | M4Y 1M7
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA

Subscribe to the OCUFA Report

 

March 11, 2014
The English version follows

Le 5 mars 2014

NOTE 14:10

DESTINAIRES : Présidents et agents administratifs

Associations fédérées et locales

EXPÉDITEUR : James L. Turk, directeur général

OBJET : Conférence des francophones de l’ACPPU, du 6 au 8 juin 2014

Hôtel Sheraton, Ottawa

L’ACPPU est heureuse d’annoncer la tenue de sa conférence portant sur les défis du personnel académique francophone. Cette conférence, intitulée Améliorer les conditions de travail du personnel académique francophone : Solutions innovatrices, aura lieu à l’hôtel Sheraton d’Ottawa, du 6 au 8 juin 2014.

Il s’agit de la deuxième conférence consacrée aux questions francophones parrainé par l’ACPPU. Cet événement permettra aux chefs de file du milieu académique francophone de se rencontrer, de partager leur expérience, de cerner les principales questions d’intérêt commun et d’établir des stratégies.

La première conférence avait mis en lumière une série d’obstacles auxquels se heurte le personnel académique francophone à l’extérieur du Québec dans l’accomplissement de son travail. Le colloque de juin prochain permettra de réfléchir et de discuter sur des solutions syndicales pour surmonter ces obstacles. En plus des séances plénières, les participants auront l’occasion de discuter en petits groupes sur les solutions qui existent dans les conventions collectives et sur les voies à explorer à court et moyen terme.

Il est essentiel, pour le succès de cette initiative et l’amélioration des conditions de travail de nos collègues francophones, que votre association appuie l’événement et que vos membres en fassent activement la promotion. Manifestement cruciales pour nos associations des universités bilingues et francophones, les questions qui seront abordées au cours de ce colloque sont tout aussi importantes, même si cela est moins évident, pour le personnel académique francophone qui travaille dans des universités souvent considérées comme « anglophones ».

Cette conférence se déroulera en français, et aucun service d’interprétation simultanée ne sera assuré.

Programme – Conférence des francophones 2014 New

Le formulaire d’inscription et les renseignements relatifs à l’hôtel sont affichés en ligne sur le site de l’ACPPU, à http://evenements.caut.ca/francophones-2014 .

Veuillez remplir le formulaire d’inscription et le retourner au plus tard le 5 mai 2014. Nous vous conseillons de faire vos réservations d’hôtel le plus tôt possible.

Si vous avez des questions au sujet de la conférence, n’hésitez pas à communiquer avec Anik Godbout ([email protected]).

March 5, 2014

MEMORANDUM 14:10

TO: Presidents and administrative officers

Federated and local associations

FROM: James L. Turk, Executive Director

RE: CAUT Francophones’ Conference, June 6 to 8, 2014

Sheraton Hotel, Ottawa

CAUT is pleased to present a conference on the challenges facing Francophone academic staff. The conference, entitled Améliorer les conditions de travail du personnel académique francophone : Solutions innovatrices, will be held at the Sheraton Hotel, in Ottawa, from June 6 to 8, 2014.

This event is the second sponsored by CAUT to examine the issues faced by its Francophone members. The conference will bring together leaders from the Francophone academic community to share experiences, identify the primary common issues, and set out strategies.

The first conference focused on a series of obstacles impeding the work of Francophone academic staff outside of Quebec. The upcoming June meeting will provide a forum for examination and discussion of union solutions for these obstacles. In addition to plenary sessions, participants will have an opportunity to break into smaller groups to discuss the existing solutions contained in collective agreements, and the avenues to explore in the short and medium term.

We urge your association to support this event and call on your members to promote it. The success of this initiative and the opportunity to improve the working conditions of our Francophone coworkers rest on your participation. Although the issues on the discussion roster are clearly of vital importance to our Francophone and bilingual university associations, they are also pertinent to Francophone academic staff working in what are frequently considered Anglophone universities.

The conference will take place in French. Simultaneous interpretation will not be provided.

Please find the conference agenda attached.

The registration form and hotel information are posted on the CAUT website http://evenements.caut.ca/francophones-2014 .

Please complete and submit the registration form by May 5, 2014. We recommend that you make hotel reservations as soon as possible.

If you have questions about the conference, please do not hesitate to contact Anik Godbout, [email protected].

_______________

Nancy Gordon
Meeting and Event Planner
CAUT
2705 Queensview Drive
Ottawa ON K2B 8K2
Phone: 613-820-2270 x 167
Fax: 613-820-7244
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.caut.ca


March 7, 2014
Dear Colleagues:

OCUFA has obtained a copy of the Strategic Mandate Agreement (SMA) template: SMA Agreement Templates 2014 that will be used by the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) to structure their agreement with your university administration. As it currently stands, the SMA will be used to make decisions about future program approvals, as well as graduate allocations. The template is attached for your reference.

The template reflects the principles, components, and metrics expressed in MTCU’s Differentiation Policy Framework: Differentiation Policy Framework Analysis FINAL, and can be seen as part of the Ministry’s push to “differentiate” the sector. The SMA template appears to reflect MCTU’s stated intent to pursue differentiation in collaboration with individual institutions, and according the institution’s self-identified strengths. OCUFA’s analysis of the Differentiation Policy Framework is also attached to this email.

There are several areas of potential concern in the template:

1. The template approach suggests that MTCU will be compiling the final SMA agreement from each institution’s SMA proposal, indicating greater MTCU power to “edit” proposals than was originally indicated.

2. It continues to advance a “standardized” process for differentiation. OCUFA has argued that using standardized metrics runs the risk of damaging organic diversity in the interest of a narrow vision of differentiation.

3. The template reiterates the government’s desire to revisit the university funding formula. However, the Ministry again stated that this work will be done in consultation with the sector.

4. It is not clear whether new undergraduate spaces will be allocated through the SMAs, as with the graduate expansion.

5. The template also indicates that the government wishes to update the program approval process. This is a new area of interest, and it is not clear what needs to be updated, or what the updates might look like.

6. The template suggests that institutions will continue to be “accountable to the Ministry with respect to effective and efficient use of resources” but does not indicate the design and character of accountability mechanisms. There is some suggestion that the current Multi-Year Accountability Agreements (MYAAs) will be re-purposed as SMA progress reports.

OCUFA will be working with MTCU, and with the Council of Ontario Universities, to clarify these potential areas of concerns. Where clear problems are identified, we will push for more appropriate policies.

If you have not already done so, please request a copy of your institution’s SMA proposal. If shared, this document will provide important information on how administrators at your university are interpreting MTCU’s Differentiation Policy Framework. It will also provide insight into how the final SMA is likely to look.

In the meantime, please do not hesitate to get in touch with any comments or questions.

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
17 Isabella Street
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4Y 1M7
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.ocufa.on.ca
www.academicmatters.ca
www.weteachontario.ca
Subscribe to the OCUFA Report


January 26, 2014

Dear Colleagues,

The attached SWC Feminist Transformative Leadership flyer is information on a workshop sponsored by the OCUFA Status of Women Committee. Please circulate the information to your members on behalf of the committee and encourage attendance. Thank you for your help.

Sent on behalf of the OCUFA Status of Women Committee

February 21, 2014

Dear Colleagues:

This is a reminder about nominations for the OCUFA Service Award, which was established three years ago to honour individuals who have done, or continue to do, exceptional work on behalf of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations and its Members.

Up to six awards may be given each year and are presented during OCUFA’s Annual General Meeting, which will be held this year on May 10, 2014.

The deadline for 2013-14 nominations is April 4, 2014.

For more information about the award and the nomination form — in English or French — please visit:

http://ocufa.on.ca/ocufa-awards/ocufa-service-award/ or

http://ocufa.on.ca/ocufa-awards/le-prix-du-service-de-l%e2%80%99ocufa/ [French version]

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly.

Best regards,

Mark

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
17 Isabella Street
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4Y 1M7
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.ocufa.on.ca
www.academicmatters.ca
www.weteachontario.ca
Subscribe to the OCUFA Report

 January 14, 2014

Dear Colleagues:

The OCUFA Service Award was established three years ago to honour individuals who have done, or continue to do, exceptional work on behalf of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations and its Members.

Up to six awards may be given each year and are presented during OCUFA’s Annual General Meeting,  which will be held this year on May 10, 2014.

The deadline for 2013-14 nominations is April 4, 2014.

For more information about the award and the nomination form — in English or French — please visit:

http://ocufa.on.ca/ocufa-awards/ocufa-service-award/   or

http://ocufa.on.ca/ocufa-awards/le-prix-du-service-de-l%e2%80%99ocufa/  [French version]

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly.

Best regards,

Mark

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
17 Isabella Street
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4Y 1M7
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.ocufa.on.ca
www.academicmatters.ca
www.weteachontario.ca
Subscribe to the OCUFA Report

January 14, 2014

Greetings,

OCUFA (The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations) is now calling for nominations for the 41st Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards. Please find the following links for both Teaching and Librarianship Awards in English and French. Please help to distribute as widely as possible.

Librarian Package (EN) https://anchor.horn-it.com:510/shares/file/c0f4933b1724a0/

 

Librarian Package (FR) https://anchor.horn-it.com:510/shares/file/bdbaba6a6f0f83/

 

Teaching Package (EN) https://anchor.horn-it.com:510/shares/file/b96028c36817b3/

 

Teaching Package (FR) https://anchor.horn-it.com:510/shares/file/e41a17d6ddfdf8/

 

 

 

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
41th ANNUAL
OCUFA TEACHING AWARDS
OCUFA ACADEMIC LIBRARIANSHIP AWARD FOR 2013-2014

 

Deadline for receipt of nominations: May 23, 2014

 

PROGRAM 

  • Each year OCUFA recognizes outstanding teachers and academic librarians in Ontario universities through its Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards.
  • Since 1973 OCUFA has presented 383 awards.
  • The recipients are selected by the OCUFA Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards Committee.
  • Approximately 7 awards are presented.

CATEGORIES

 

  • Teaching, in the context of the OCUFA awards, embraces virtually all levels of instruction – graduate and undergraduate teaching, continuing education and faculty development. Similarly, proficiency in teaching may extend well beyond the    classroom, the laboratory or the faculty member’s office. Activities such as course design, curriculum development, organization of teaching programs and other significant forms of leadership are often important contributions to the instructional process. Those who excel in any of these are eligible for the OCUFA Teaching Awards.
  • Academic librarianship, in the context of the OCUFA Awards, embraces all aspects of librarianship that contribute to the scholarly achievement of all members of the university community. Activities such as development and delivery of services, provision of educational materials, collection development and management and other contributions to academic librarianship are important to the intellectual functioning of the university. Those who excel in any of these are eligible for an OCUFA Academic Librarianship Award.

 

NOMINATIONS

 

  • Nominations are invited from individuals, informal groups of faculty or students, or both, and such organizations as local faculty associations, faculty or college councils, university committees concerned with teaching and learning, librarians, local student councils, departments, alumni, etc.
  • Guidelines to assist in organizing a nomination should be consulted by prospective nominators and are available on request from your Faculty Association Office, the Provincial Office of OCUFA, or the OCUFA website (www.ocufa.on.ca).
  • Nominations should include a covering nomination form (appended to Guidelines for OCUFA Teaching Award Nominations and Guidelines for OCUFA Academic Librarianship Award Nominations), a nominator’s brief, and sufficient evidence, from as many sources as possible, to make it clear that outstanding work deserving of  recognition has been done.

PROCEDURE

 

  • Deadline for receipt of nominations: May 23, 2014
  • We request that all submissions be uploaded onto OCUFA’s secured online submission system as a single PDF file at http://ocufa.on.ca/?p=3991
  • Inquiries to: 416-979-2117

 

Regards,

 

Karat TenBrinke

Policy Officer of Information Systems and Office Management

OCUFA

17 Isabella Street, Toronto ON

M4Y 1M7

E-mail: [email protected]

Phone: 416-979-2117

January 8, 2014

Greetings,

 

The producer for CBC Fifth Estate has just advised us that its long-awaited program on science in Canada will be aired on Friday, Jan 10th at 9 pm.

 

CBC has been working on this program for a year and has drawn on CAUT. They did interviews in our office and at the first CAUT Town Hall in Waterloo. They also have done interviews with dozens of scientists and researchers across the country.  Who knows if we will appear in what is aired, but it should be a program worth watching.  It is hosted by Linden MacIntyre.

 

Regards,

 

Jim

 

 

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk

 

 

 

January 8, 2014

Dear Colleagues:

Please find Call for nominations — January 2014 from OCUFA Board Chair, Constance Adamson, regarding the call for nominations for the OCUFA 2014-15 Executive Committee.  The elections will take place at the May 10, 2014 OCUFA Board meeting.

 

Best regards and happy new year,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
17 Isabella Street
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4Y 1M7
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.ocufa.on.ca
www.academicmatters.ca
www.weteachontario.ca
Subscribe to the OCUFA Report

 

 

 

January 2, 2014

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release

Monday, December 23, 2013

CAUT and CFS withdraw from Copyright Board Tariff Hearing

OTTAWA-The Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) and the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) announced today that they will withdraw their participation from the Post-Secondary Educational Institution Tariff (2011-2013) hearing before the Copyright Board of Canada. Access Copyright has been attempting to use this tariff to force colleges and universities to pay a dramatically higher per-student fee in order to use works in their repository. “When the university and college associations dropped out of the process, the CAUT and CFS were left as the last institutional adversaries to the tariff,” said CAUT Executive Director James Turk. “We had to weigh the potential positive impact we can have in the hearing against appearing to legitimize a process of which we are increasingly doubtful. In the end we believe it would be better to withdraw.”

Universities and colleges across Canada are opting out of licensing agreements with Access Copyright, relying instead on open access journals, fair dealing, and direct licenses with publishers. Throughout the hearing, the Copyright Board has shown little interest in CAUT’s and CFS’s request to first address fundamental legal questions relating to the scope and authority of the tariff. In this context, the likelihood of CAUT and CFS influencing the outcome of the hearing, and the relevance of the hearing itself, have become increasingly remote.

“Remaining involved in the Copyright Board hearing is no longer advantageous in defending students against exploitation by Access Copyright,” said Jessica McCormick, National Chairperson of the CFS. “We will continue this fight on our campuses and in our classrooms until students’ right to use materials for educational purposes takes precedence over private profits.”

The Copyright Board hearing is scheduled to begin February 12, 2014. CAUT and CFS filed a formal objection to the tariff in August 2010. The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada and the Association of Community Colleges of Canada withdrew from the process on April 24, 2012 and October 25, 2013 respectively.

The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada’s largest student organisation, uniting more than one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Canadian Federation of Students and its predecessor organisations have represented students in Canada since 1927.

The Canadian Association of University Teachers is the national voice of more than 68,000 academic and general staff at over 120 universities and colleges across the country.

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:

Jessica McCormick, CFS National Chairperson, 613-232-7394

Paul Jones, CAUT Policy & Education Officer, 613-726-5181 (office) [email protected]

December 11, 2013
Members for CAUT Committees

We are asking for your assistance in identifying potential members for CAUT’s Academic Freedom and Tenure; Collective Bargaining and Economic Benefits; Equity; and Librarians’ and Archivists’ committees. We would appreciate names of CAUT individual affiliated or associate members you feel would be interested and would bring expertise to the work of these committees. For any names you suggest, we must have information about each individual’s appropriateness for the relevant committees. Committee vacancies will also be advertised in the CAUT Bulletin.

The CAUT Executive will review all names that have come forward (whether submitted by the candidate or others). It will recommend to Council committee membership that will have the expertise required to fulfill each committee’s functions and will reflect the diversity specified in each committee’s terms of reference (available on the CAUT website). We welcome recommendations of members of marginalized groups. These groups include but are not limited to Aboriginal peoples; women; racialized academic staff; academic staff with disabilities; and lesbian, gay, transgendered, queer and two-spirited academic staff. The final list of members approved by the Executive will be approached to serve and will be advised that their selection will be dependent on the ratification by the CAUT Council at its spring meeting.

It is important that you forward names of, and information about, potential committee members as soon as possible, and no later than February 3, 2014. The form can be found on the CAUT web site: http://www.caut.ca/docs/default-source/default-document-library/standard-information-form—caut-committees.pdf?sfvrsn=2 and should be sent to:

Margaret McGovern-Potié

Executive Assistant to the Executive Director

CAUT

2705 Queensview Drive

Ottawa ON K2B 8K2

Fax: (613) 820-2270

Email: [email protected]

Committee Members

Academic Freedom and Tenure Committee (three vacancies)

Members of the Academic Freedom and Tenure Committee should have had considerable involvement in and knowledge about academic freedom. They must be sympathetic to, and have had experience in the defence of academic freedom and tenure, and they should be willing and available to dedicate considerable time to the work of the Committee between meetings, including promotion of academic freedom, drafting of documents, and other related activities.

Collective Bargaining and Economic Benefits Committee (three or four vacancies, dependent on whether an incumbent member of the committee is elected Chair by Council)

Members of the Collective Bargaining and Economic Benefits Committee should have demonstrated experience in collective bargaining. They should be able to commit time between meetings to the work of the committee, including drafting of model clauses, development of policy statements and other related activities.

Contract Academic Staff Committee (no vacancies)

Six of the eight members of the Contract Academic Staff Committee are from the six CAUT member associations with the largest CAS membership. The other two are a representative from small associations and a representative from medium-size associations. Both those positions are filled until 2015.

Equity Committee (ten vacancies including two co-chairs to be elected by Council)

The composition of the Equity Committee is to be the two-co-chairs and two members from each of the following groups: Aboriginal academic staff; academic staff with disabilities; lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgendered, queer and two-spirited academic staff; racialized academic staff; and women academic staff. Members of the Equity Committee should have considerable experience in and commitment to the advancement of equity. Members should be willing and available to dedicate significant time between meetings to the work of the Committee, including drafting and editing policy documents, preparing advice for the Executive and Council, and other related activities.

Librarians’ and Archivists’ Committee (three or four vacancies, dependent on whether an incumbent member of the committee is elected Chair by Council)

Members of the Librarians’ and Archivists’ Committee should have considerable experience and knowledge of the professional interests and academic concerns of librarians and archivists at Canadian post-secondary institutions. They ought to be aware of policy matters pertaining to academic rights and working conditions of academic librarians and archivists. Members should be willing and available to dedicate significant time between meetings to the work of the Committee, including the conference planning, drafting or editing documents, responding to enquiries and other related activities.

Term of Office

The term of office for members of standing committees is normally three years, with the possibility of one renewal. Every effort is made to ensure continuity by having terms overlap so that approximately one-third of the committee changes annually.

A list of the current members of each of the four committees is attached for your information.

CAUT Committee Memberships 2013

December 11, 2013

Dear Colleauges;

On November 29, 2013, the Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities Released its Differentiation Policy Framework Analysis FINALThis document is the finalized version of the framework that was leaked in September and then made public on the Ministry’s website. It lays out the principles, components, and metrics that will guide the Ministry’s differentiation policy going forward, and is intended to inform the Strategic Mandate Agreements (SMAs) currently being negotiated by university administrations and the government.

OCUFA has completed an analysis of the policy, which you can find attached to this email. Overall, it shows that MTCU has softened its top-down approach to differentiation, and is prepared to let universities chart their own course, with some limits. The policy framework is very high level, and does not contain an “action plan” for government. Crucial areas – such as a new funding model to support the government’s goals – have not been addressed. In discussions with senior MTCU staff, it is clear that an outcomes-based funding formula is favoured, but no model has been developed at this time.

The tension between competing goals of the framework, and the confusion within the underlying logic of differentiation remain in this version of the paper. On the one hand, the government insists that one of the central goals of differentiation is to ensure that higher education in Ontario maintains and enhances quality. On the other hand, the entire exercise is proposed against the backdrop of fiscal uncertainty and the pressing need for institutions to contain costs and “financial sustainability and accountability” are presented as a key priority for differentiation.

While cost cutting is never explicitly articulated as the overriding motivation, it is clear that the constrained fiscal context is driving the entire differentiation exercise. Cost-containment is often at odds with the imperatives of equitable student access and quality education, so we are concerned that the push towards differentiation may harm the quality and accessibility of higher education in Ontario.

OCUFA believes that Ontario’s universities are already highly differentiated. If implemented poorly, the differentiation framework may have the effect of stamping out meaningful, bottom-up diversity and replacing it with limited vision of top-down differentiation.

We are also concerned that the movement towards an outcomes-based funding model will harm students studying at institutions deemed by government to be “under-performing.” We are also worried that an outcomes-based model will politicize university funding, aligning it to the short-term priorities of the government of the day, rather than the long-term needs of Ontario.

The government has signaled that it is willing to work with stakeholders to achieve its differentiation goals. While they have under-delivered on this promise up to this point, OCUFA is prepared to work with MTCU to ensure that faculty interests are fairly represented in all policies going forward. If our interests are not reflected in future policy, we will oppose these developments using all of the resources at our disposal.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me directly at this email or at 416 306 6033.

All the best,

Graeme

Graeme Stewart

Communications Manager

Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations

17 Isabella Street | Toronto, ON | M4Y 1M7
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA

Subscribe to the OCUFA Report

Graeme Stewart

Communications Manager

Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations

17 Isabella Street | Toronto, ON | M4Y 1M7
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA

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December 6, 2013

CAUT Statement on December 6

(December 6, 2013) Each year, as we approach December 6, the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, CAUT and its members reflect upon the past year to identify the gains and losses for Canadian women who experience violence in their lives.

This past twelve months we have witnessed our federal government’s continued failure to develop a national action plan to end violence against women in Canada. Despite support at the meeting of provincial ministers this past summer, the Conservative government has yet to agree to launch a national investigation into the missing and murdered Aboriginal women and girls in our country.

Work of the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women and published in their recent Fact Sheet documents the following about violence against women and girls in Canada:

· 51% of Canadian women experience at least one incident of sexual or physical assault since the age of 16

· Women are killed by intimate partners at a rate three times higher than men

· There are 582 documented cases of missing and murdered Aboriginal women – if applied proportionately to the rest of the female population, there would be over 18,000 missing Canadian women

· Younger women under the age of 25 experience the highest incident of intimate partner violence

· Women over the age of 65 are more likely than men of the same age to be victims of violence by marital partners

· 11% of women experienced assault from a marital partner while pregnant

· Women with an activity limitation (i.e. disability) have rates of marital violence almost twice as high as other women

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives’ report “The Gap in the Gender Gap: Violence Against Women in Canada” examines national and provincial budgets and shows how a lack of investment in strategies to end violence perpetuates the problem and creates additional financial costs more broadly.

Responding to similar concerns, the Canadian Network of Women’s Shelters and Transition Houses have launched Canada’s first national shelter data count project to provide a ‘snapshot’ of life in a shelter on a “typical” day. The results of the data count will be fed into the Global Shelter Data Count to help situate Canada internationally.

The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) in partnership with the University of Western Ontario’s Centre for Research & Education on Violence against Women & Children (CREVAWC) is launching the first nation-wide survey on the impact of domestic violence on workers and workplaces, the results of which will help unions, employers, advocates and governments develop good public policy as well as provide essential data to support the labour movement’s work at the bargaining table.

Disturbingly, we have seen in the past year the rise of misogynist men’s rights groups on campuses and in communities across the country – an alarming trend that requires our attention and action. At the CAUT Council meeting last week, a motion was passed that CAUT commission a report to study the nature and impact of male rights groups across Canadian universities and colleges and take appropriate action to implement the Commission’s recommendations.

On December 6, CAUT encourages all its member associations to support projects and community actions that work towards ending violence against women and girls, and to actively participate in efforts to eliminate gender-based violence on our campuses.

Resources:

CRIAW English fact sheet on violence against women

http://www.criaw-icref.ca/print/new-criaw-fact-sheet-violence-against-women-canada

CRIAW French fact sheet on violence against women

http://www.criaw-icref.ca/fr/publications/feuillets-d%27information

CCPA report, “The Gap in the Gender Gap”

http://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/gap-gender-gap

CLC English survey

http://fluidsurveys.com/s/DVatWork/

CLC French survey

http://fluidsurveys.com/s/violence_conjugale/

November 19, 2013

Henry Mandelbaum Graduate Fellowship Application Package 2014

Dear Colleagues,

Attached is the 2014 Application package for this prestigious OCUFA award. Information on past awardees can be found under the “awards” section on the OCUFA website.  Please encourage your graduate students to look into applying.

Karen Wheeler

Senior Policy Analyst

OCUFA

 

October 23, 2013

Salutations,

Attached (see link below) is the letter CAUT sent to each member of the Senate re Bill C-377. Ci-joint est la lettre de l’ACPPU envoyée à chaque membre du Sénat concernant le projet de loi C-377.

Cordialement,

Jim

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk

2013.10.21 Raynell Andreychuk re Bill C-377

September 24, 2013

CAUT NewsWire

Demands grow for release of 2 Canadian academics detained in Egypt

Education International, the global union federation representing more than 30 million education workers world-wide, is urging its member organisations to press the Egyptian authorities to immediately release two Canadian professors who have been detained without charges since August 17th. At the request of CAUT, EI is supporting a LabourStart petition calling for the unconditional release of Dr. Tarek Loubani and Prof. John Greyson. //Read more


Canada’s Drowning Ocean Science

Ocean science ought to be a high public policy priority—but recent actions indicate the federal government thinks otherwise. Canadian ocean science is at risk of drowning amid cutbacks, layoffs, and the muzzling of scientists. //Read more


Science at risk

Professor Thomas Duck of Dalhousie University addresses CAUT Council on the threats to Arctic research and science in general as a result of the federal government’s policies and lack of funding. //View on Youtube


Alberta campuses reeling under impact of cuts

University and college staff and students in Alberta returned to classes this month under a cloud of cutbacks and growing concern about the province’s plans for the sector.The Progressive Conservative government of Alison Redford sent shockwaves through campuses last March by drastically cutting $147 million from university and college budgets after earlier committing to a 2 per cent increase. The result has been a growing list of institutions in recent weeks announcing staff reductions, enrolment cuts and program eliminations. //Read more


Calendar

Fair Employment Week

Oct. 21 – Oct. 25

Parliament Hill Day

Nov. 28, Ottawa

CAUT Council Meeting

Nov. 29 – Dec. 1



Resources

What you need to know about custody and control of your records

With universities now under access to information legislation in all provinces and federally, there are a growing number of requests for academic staff records. Find out what you should do if your administration is asking you to turn over your records. // Read more


Serious problems at Ontario Veterinary College: Report

An investigatory committee established by CAUT to look into a series of allegations by staff has concluded there are serious problems at the Ontario Veterinary College that can be traced “both to the policies and to the style of OVC’s current management.”  //Read more


September 18, 2013

Note of concern about the Ontario government’s Productivity and Innovation Fund for universities and colleges

Dear Colleagues:

As some of you may be aware, the latest instalment of the Ontario government’s “transformational change” agenda for the post-secondary sector is a Productivity and Innovation Fund of $45 million.  [I am attaching the English and French versions of the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) letter to the university executive heads and college presidents announcing the fund, and the Productivity and Innovation Fund guidelines and requirements for project proposals.]

The creation of the Innovation and Productivity Fund follows last year’s MTCU discussion paper (Strengthening Ontario’s Centres of Creativity, Innovation and Knowledge), which floated a number of proposals for making universities and colleges more productive while limiting growth in government funding. Ontario Budget 2013 announced funding for the next three years that will actually fall in inflation-adjusted terms. Meanwhile, enrolment continues to rise. OCUFA has already identified the pitfalls of a misplaced focus on productivity in its research commentary — The University Productivity We need: The Ontario Faculty Perspective.

We wanted to draw your attention to productivity-related initiatives that may soon be undertaken at your institutions, if they have not already. Universities are invited to apply for funding to implement projects that correspond to the priority areas identified in the attached memo from the Minister and MTCU guidelines: “program prioritization” and “course redesign.” (The guidelines document provides links to descriptions of these programs by their primary proponents.) The funds are available on a one-time basis for this fiscal year only, with up to $22 million for projects submitted by individual institutions and $23 million for joint projects. There are enough funds for each institution to undertake at least one project.

The deadline for a proposal to MTCU for funding from your institution is September 30, 2013 — i.e in less than two weeks.  The impact on faculty members and university programs will depend entirely on the specifics of what each institution proposes to have the government fund. Some of the funding areas, such as course redesign, could have the potential to violate your collective agreement, and the academic freedom of your members. Others may potentially conflict with departmental and senate processes. Other types of project funding could be benign, such as the administrative savings envelope. In light of this, we recommend that if you are not currently aware of your administration’s intent with respect to the Productivity and Innovation Fund, that you request the specifics of the projects they intend to submit as soon as possible.

If you have any concerns about the nature of the projects your institution is choosing to fund, I would be pleased to discuss this with you.

In addition to the implications on each campus of this program, OCUFA has concerns about the impact on university autonomy of the directive nature of this type of envelope funding. Next steps with respect to the entire differentiation and program prioritization agenda of this government will be discussed by the OCUFA Board at its September 28-29, 2013 meeting.

 

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
17 Isabella Street
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4Y 1M7
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.ocufa.on.ca
www.academicmatters.ca
www.weteachontario.ca

September 10, 2013

Dear Colleagues;

OCUFA President Kate Lawson has written an Op-Ed featured on the Huffington Post website. The article calls for a more balanced understanding of what universities can and should do, and questions those who believe the only role of higher education is job training. The article can be accessed at:

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/kate-t-lawson/university-employment-canada_b_3861137.html

Please feel free to re-post on your own websites, or to share through social media. Please let me know if you have any questions.

All the best,
Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communications Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
17 Isabella Street | Toronto, ON | M4Y 1M7
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA

 

August 29, 2013

Dear Colleagues:

Please find attached a letter from OCUFA President Kate Lawson to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Canada regarding the arrest and imprisonment in Egypt of York University Professor John Greyson and the University of Western Ontario’s  Dr. Tarek Loubani.

As you may be aware, CAUT and a number of faculty associations in Ontario and across the country have sent letters of concern.  You are encouraged to write a letter if you have not done so already.

As well, the York University Faculty Association, working with LabourStart, is circulating a petition requesting that the Egyptian government release John Greyson and Tarek Loubani immediately and is asking that the petition be circulated widely, even if you have already participated in other petitions on the same issue.  The link for the petition is below:  
www.labourstartcampaigns.net/show_campaign.cgi?c=1943&src=unicontacts
 

 

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
17 Isabella Street
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4Y 1M7
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.ocufa.on.ca
www.academicmatters.ca
www.weteachontario.ca

June 26, 2013

 

CAUT is soliciting nominations for the 2013 CAUT Distinguished Academic Award. The Award is given annually to recognize an academic who has excelled in each of the three principal aspects of academic life: teaching, research, and service to the institution and to the community. The recipient will be an individual whose teaching, research and service has contributed significantly to the lives of students, to their institution, to their field of study, and to the community.

 

Nominations for the Award may be submitted by individuals, member associations or others. The deadline for nominations will be September 9, 2013.

 

Nominators should submit a letter explaining the rationale for the nomination and give detailed information about the nominee’s record in teaching, research and service.  It is essential that the nominator provide information for each of these three areas as excellence in all three is a requirement for eligibility for the Award.  The nominator should also include documentation that would help the jury in its decision making.  It is the responsibility of the nominators to provide all necessary information as the jury will review only the material it receives.

 

Nominations will be adjudicated by a jury of the most recent former presidents of CAUT.  The jury’s recommendation will be made to the Fall Council for approval.

 

The award will be presented at the Spring CAUT Council.  The recipient will be invited to give an address to Council. The address will be subsequently published by CAUT.  The recipient will receive a $1,000 honorarium with the award.

 

Please send nominations by mail, fax or e-mail to:

 

Distinguished Academic Award

Canadian Association of University Teachers

2705 Queensview Drive

Ottawa, Ontario K2B 8K2

Fax: (613) 820-7244

Email: [email protected]

Attention: Margaret McGovern-Potié

 

 

June 14, 2013

Greetings,

 

In light of the discussions over the past several days about the secret agreement to privatize digitizing LAC records, I thought you would like to see the article in today’s Ottawa Citizen “Former Library and Archives Canada boss criticizes private digitizing deal.”   Former Librarian and Archivist of Canada Ian Wilson  finds the deal wrong – arguing that the contents of our archives are  “a public good” like historic sites and national parks, and shouldn’t be sold back to us; and that “In effect we’re downloading the cost of digitization to the universities,”

 

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/travel/former+chief+archivist+Canada+criticizes+deal+private/8522836/story.html]

 

Regards,

 

Jim

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk

 

June 14, 2013

Greetings,

 

We want to thank the many of you who have written to Minister Moore and opposition critics about the secret agreement to outsource digitization of Library and Archives (LAC) material to the consortium Canadiana.org.

 

Our concerns about the project have been several:

 

(1) This whole arrangement was negotiated in secret without any disclosure, much less consultation, with the archivist community or the public.

 

(2) It involves the contracting out of LAC work at a time when 50% of the LAC digitization staff have been laid off.

 

(3) Access to the public holdings of LAC for the period in which Canadiana.org is involved will be restricted. One will have to pay for access to the full records and access will be limited to those with password access to university or similar institutional connections.

 

We understand the desperation that may have led well-intentioned members of Canadiana.org to see this as a solution to the destructive policies of the federal government and of the management of LAC. But, Canadiana.org’s action only succeeds in taking the pressure off the Harper Government and the LAC management to reverse what they have been doing at LAC. In the process, Canadiana.org becomes a partner in the dismantlement of LAC.

 

In the face of criticism, Canadiana.org has attempted damage control. We have received two contradictory reports. Both are ostensibly from Canadiana.org – one through an internal leak earlier this week; the other a direct response to what they characterize as the “highly distorted interpretations of the agreement [between LAC and Canadiana]”.

 

Two days ago (the leaked document from Canadiana.org):

 

“Each year 10% of the collections will be made Open Access to Canadians. At the end of the project term 100% will be Open Access. Users will be charged access fees for non-Open Access content during the 10-year exclusivity term.

 

Basic and Premium Access accounts will be offered. Basic Access will offer virtual microfilm tape images with collection descriptions with basic finding aids.

Premium access will provide enhanced searching and data analyses using the metadata created and content images transcribed during the project.”

“There are potential risks of public criticism related to LAC out-sourcing in times of lay-offs and not funding it in such a way as to make it Open Access immediately.”

 

[Posted June 10, 2013 on http://bibliocracy-now.tumblr.com/post/52639678572/details-canadiana-lac-proposal]

 

Yesterday (posted on the Canadiana website):

 

“Contrary to persistent reports, there will be no paywall on any of the digital images. As collections are digitized, they will be viewable, for free, on our website—making them much more accessible than before.”

“We hope to generate the revenues to create this text data from donations, sponsorships, and an optional premium site with enhanced features—this last being at the origin of the “paywall” myth. Individuals will be able to choose whether they want to pay and support the project (again, the digitized images will always be free) but the more revenue we collect, the more data we can create.”

 

[Posted June 12, 2013 on http://www.canadiana.ca/en/lac-project-faq]

 

It is Library and Archives Canada that is responsible for collecting, preserving and making accessible Canada’s cultural and historical heritage.  Unjustified budget cuts and ill-considered management policies have put the future of LAC at risk.  The damage can be reversed.  Restoring the proper budget of LAC is easily within the federal government’s capability. The total amount of the cut is less than half of what was spent on its “celebration” of the War of 1812 and less than two percent of the cost of just one of the 65 jet fighters it is planning to purchase.

 

We can afford to properly collect, preserve and make accessible our country’s cultural and historical heritage properly. The only question is whether our government will allow us to do so.

 

Reversal of the damage at LAC should be our priority, not trying to put a Band-Aid on it.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

James L. Turk

Executive Director

Canadian Association of University Teachers

www.CanadasPastMatters.ca

 

 

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk

 

 

June 12, 2013

Greetings,

 

We learned today that Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is planning to turn over exclusive rights to millions of its holdings of publically-owned books and artefacts to a private consortium to make available digitally for the next ten years.  During that time, access to these LAC holdings will require payment to the private consortium.  Below is the update we are posting today on the Canada’s Past Matters web site with more details and links to full reports on the deal LAC has negotiated with the private provider – Canadiana.org.

 

After reading about the details in the links below, please take a moment today to send an email to the Heritage Minister and to the opposition critics (contact information below) insisting that this privatization arrangement be cancelled. Please cc or bcc us on any message you send.

 

Thank you,

 

Jim

 

James L. Turk // Executive Director / Directeur général // Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université // 2705 promenade Queensview Drive / Ottawa, (Ontario) / K2B 8K2 // tél  613.726-5176 / téléc  613.820-7244 / mobile  613.277-0488 / [email protected]  / twitter @jameslturk

 

 

 

Canada’s Past Matters

Save Library and Archives Canada – Update June 2013

 

Library and Archives Canada (LAC) has entered a secretive digitization agreement with Canadiana.org, a private consortium. During the 10 year contract, Canadians will have to pay to access materials they already own.

 

“The Heritage Project” will give the private Canadiana.org exclusive rights to millions of publically-owned books and artefacts.  The contracting out of our collective heritage to private interest is contrary to LAC’s proclaimed interest in democratization and commitment to increased public access to its  materials and services.

 

Read more:

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Library+Archives+Canada+private+deal+would+take+millions+documents+public+domain/8511544/story.html

http://bibliocracy-now.tumblr.com/post/52639678572/details-canadiana-lac-proposal

 

CAUT strongly opposes this privatization of public records and the limitations it places on access to our collective heritage. CAUT is also concerned with the lack of transparency and public accountability that has accompanied this project.

 

CAUT calls on all Canadians to contact the Heritage Minister, James Moore, and the Opposition Heritage Critics to demand that the planned privatization deal between LAC and Canadiana.org be cancelled.

 

The Hon. James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage & Official Languages
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6

[email protected]

Pierre Nantel , NDP Heritage Critic

Room 1260, La Promenade Building
Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0A6
613-992-8514

[email protected]

Scott Simms, Liberal Heritage Critic

House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6

[email protected]

Andrew Cash, NDP Associate Heritage Critic

House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6

[email protected]

 

To find out more about the Save LAC campaign see:

http://www.savelac.ca /

 

For more information contact Rosa Barker: [email protected]

(613)726-5166

 

 

 

 

May 30, 2013

Save Library and Archives Canada – Update May 2013

 

Librarian and Archivist of Canada Resigns

 

On May 15, 2013 Daniel Caron, Chief Librarian and Archivist of Canada, resigned from his post. Caron’s leadership at LAC has been immensely unpopular. He oversaw the introduction of a “modernization” process which led to the cessation of purchased acquisitions, a severe decline in on-site service, a 20% cut to staff, a punitive code of conduct for employees, and the elimination of both the National Archival Development Program and the Inter-Library Loans program at LAC.

 

On May 22nd LAC employees were informed that Hervé Déry – Assistant Deputy Minister and Corporate Secretary in Policy and Collaboration – will be filling in as Interim Deputy Head of LAC. It is imperative that Monsieur Dery’s role is only interim and that the next Librarian and Archivist of Canada does not come from the ranks of current LAC management. LAC needs someone who is willing to reverse the damage that has been done at LAC over the past few years, as well as someone who will advocate for both LAC and libraries and archives across the country.

 

LAC has the opportunity to take up a new direction with a strong commitment to comprehensive collections and access for all Canadians both on-site and on-line.  However, the dismemberment of LAC must also be understood as part of a more systemic problem, that is the federal government’s disregard for scientific evidence, data and a comprehensive historical record that is also occurring, for example, through the decimation of archeological research at Parks Canada, and the elimination of key Statistics Canada surveys.

 

A coalition of professional associations representing librarians, archivists, and historians has written an open letter outlining the qualities they expect in the next Librarian and Archivist of Canada. Click here to read the letter.

Here also is a thoughtful op-ed about the next leader of LAC.

 

CAUT`s statement on what it calls for in the next Librarian and Archivist of Canada can be found here.

 

LAC “not meant for public access”

 

In a telling exchange on Twitter, Minister James Moore responded to questions about deteriorating funding and access at LAC by stating “Is why (sic) we’re creating the History Museum: access. The LAC main building is not designed or meant for public access. History is.”

 

The subtext here couldn’t be clearer: While the government is actively thwarting access to resources that makes independent historical research possible, it is simultaneously eager to represent a version of Canada’s past that supports its own ideological vision in the present.

 

CAUT’s Executive Director wrote to Minister Moore requesting clarification about his statement.

 

A violation of the charter: LAC’s Code of Conduct

 

In March 2013, the LAC’s code of conduct restricting the activities of librarians and archivists was publicized.

 

The NDP has since requested that the Information Commissioner investigate the LAC Code of Conduct in the context of her investigation into the muzzling of government scientists and experts.

 

The Canadian Association of Professional Academic Librarians has issued a statement condemning LAC’s new Code of Conduct and analyzing the ways in which the code contravenes the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

 

Specialist Archivists become generalists

 

Although there has been no official announcement from LAC, it appears that all specialist archival portfolios at LAC have been eliminated. Specialist portfolios have been replaced by function-based portfolios such as arrangement, description, appraisal etc. Specialist archivists are vital to the accessibility of LAC collections to Canadians.

 

Research will be greatly impoverished without the specialist archivists to help guide researchers through the collections. In fact, some researchers have actually been told that certain fonds are not available to them because the archivist expert with knowledge of the particular collections-area is no longer in the position.

 

This is not simply an issue of access to specialized material for individual researchers; this is will affect all Canadians. Without access to the full range of our historical documentary materials, our ability to understand our history is seriously compromised.

 

Canadian History on the Auction Block

 

With the revelation that “a huge cache of Canadian history” will be going to auction in the UK in June, LAC’s stalled acquisitions program is under public scrutiny. The key question is whether Library and Archives Canada will purchase these vital historical records or allow them to be acquired by a private collector.

 

Read more.

 

LAC: Lender of no resort

 

In the wake of LAC’s elimination of the popular and effective Inter-library loans program at LAC, researchers are at a loss. While LAC officials have indicated that LAC will ultimately be developing a “Lender of Last Resort” policy, this policy will not be in place until September 2013.  In the meantime, researchers are being told they are simply out of luck.

 

Royal Society of Canada Expert Panel

 

The Royal Society of Canada is establishing an Expert Panel on “The Status and Future of Canada’s Libraries and Archives”.

 

 

For more information contact:

Rosa Barker (613-726-5166)                    [email protected]

 

 

 

 

Rosa E. Barker

Professional Officer / Agente professionnelle

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université

2705 promenade Queensview Drive

Ottawa ON, K2B 8K2

Tel / tél  613-726-5166

Fax/ télé 613-820-7244

[email protected]

 

 

 

May 28, 2013

Dear Colleagues:

Attached you will find an update on Ontario Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) issues prepared by Cathy Lace and Emma Phillips, counsel with Sack, Goldblatt, Mitchell (SGM).  As you may recall,  OCUFA initially put together briefing and other materials related to the inclusion of Ontario universities under the requirements of the Act in 2006-8, and has provided periodic updates.  

I asked staff to work with SGM late last year to prepare appropriate updated materials on FIPPA, including implementation issues, for association use.  

The update emphasizes that the application of FIPPA at universities is very much evolving and that many issues still have no clear answers. The update discusses what decision-making has occurred and provides an analysis related to personal information, custody and control of records, the importance of customary practices at universities, exemptions from the Act, teaching-related records, student evaluations, access to university records, donor agreements, intellectual property rights, and the important role of faculty associations. Appended also are some suggestions for faculty associations attempting to bargain FIPPA issues in their agreements.

The attached technical analysis may be useful to association officers, grievance officers, bargaining teams, and others expected to represent members or explain the Act regarding these issues.

OCUFA staff will be preparing a more general pamphlet which associations may wish to distribute to their broader membership.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.


Best regards,
Mark


——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

May 15, 2013

CAUT Statement on the International Day against Homophobia & Transphobia

 

On May 17, the International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia, the Canadian Association of University Teachers recognizes those who have worked tirelessly to combat discrimination, harassment and violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transexual, queer and two-spirited (LGBTQ2S) communities. The eradication of homophobia and transphobia is crucial for the realization of an equitable and just society.

 

While there have been important advances through legal challenges, education campaigns, and legislative changes, homophobia and transphobia still resonate throughout many workplaces, schools, and communities around the world.

 

The social, physical, economic, and psychological harms resulting from these forms of discrimination are stark. Suicide rates among LGBTQ2S youth remain overwhelmingly high, as do incidences of violence and bullying in our communities and on our campuses. When schools and post-secondary institutions ignore or downplay oppressive and discriminatory incidences instigated by ignorance around gender expression and sexual orientation, access to education is compromised.

 

Internationally, many nations continue to permit or legislate punitive actions against LGBTQ2S communities, compromising their civil rights to life, liberty, and security. In 2011, it was reported that 76 of the United Nations’ 192 member countries had laws on the books criminalizing homosexual behavior.  It was also reported that at least 5 of these countries impose the death penalty as punishment for same-sex relations.

 

Until 1969, it was a crime to be gay in Canada.  We have seen many advances for LGBTQ2S communities since then, including more recently the amendment of human rights codes in Ontario and the Northwest Territories to include “gender identity” and “gender expression” as prohibited grounds of discrimination. Federally, Bill C-279 passed third reading in parliament, amending the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code to include “gender identity”. CAUT supports Gay-Straight Alliances in schools and calls on schools to end bans against such associations aimed to promote diversity and acceptance.

 

CAUT supports the expansion of positive spaces in workplaces and on campuses, including: expanding gender-neutral washrooms, university policies that support staff and students to self-identify their gender, anti-oppression training available for students and university personnel, and other campus educational campaigns aimed to end all forms of discrimination.

 

CAUT encourages its member associations to ensure that collective agreements and employer policies make reference to “gender identity” and “gender expression” in regards to harassment and non-discrimination, that health and leave benefits meet the needs of transitioning members and that designated groups under employment equity provisions are expanded to include LGBTQ2S.

 

On this global day opposing homophobia and transphobia, CAUT stands in solidarity and pride with LGBTQ2S communities, activists and allies to end violence, discrimination and harassment.

 

————————————

 

 

May 15, 2013

Solidarity Appeal: Speak out against the intimidation of lecturers in Zimbabwe

 

(May 8, 2013) CAUT is issuing an urgent solidarity appeal in support of our colleagues with the College Lecturers Association of Zimbabwe (COLAZ).

 

In September 2011, members of COLAZ participated in a peaceful job action to protest pay and working conditions. The Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education responded by suspending thirty-one national and branch executive members of COLAZ, including the President of the union, without pay for three months. A further 250 lecturers were charged with misconduct for their participation in the protest.

 

Following investigative hearings conducted by the Ministry that lacked independence and impartiality, further disciplinary measures were taken. In addition to fines and demotions, the thirty-one branch and national executive members were transferred to institutions far away from their homes and family as punishment for exercising their democratic and trade union rights. COLAZ has successfully appealed the findings of the investigative hearings.  However, to date the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education has not complied with the court rulings.

 

CAUT is urging members to write to the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education in Zimbabwe to:

 

    remind the government of its obligation to respect and uphold internationally recognized human and trade union rights;
cease its intimidation and harassment of COLAZ members;
abide fully with legal rulings of the appeals courts;
reimburse lecturers who were unjustly suspended without pay; and
allow senior officials of COLAZ to return to their previous posts and institutions.

 

You may adapt the letter that CAUT has issued to authorities in Zimbambwe. Please address your letter to:
Dr. Ignatius Chombo
Acting Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education
The Permanent Secretary
New Complex Building, 6th Floor
F Block
Government Composite OfficesCnr 3rd Street/ Samora Machel Avenue Harare, Zimbabwe
Fax: +263-4-706516

 

Please copy the following:Her Excellency Florence Zano Chideya
Ambassador
Embassy of the Republic of Zimbabwe
332 Somerset Street West
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada, K2P 0J9
Fax: (613) 422-7403

 

Mr. David Dzatsunga President
College Lecturers Association of Zimbabwe No. 90 Alverston Court, ZIMRIGHTS Hse, Corner Baines Avenue and Fourth Street
P.O. Box HR 8723
HARARE
Zimbabwe
Email: COLAZ

 

David Robinson
Associate Executive Director
Canadian Association of University Teachers
2705 Queensview Drive Ottawa, ON
K2B 8K2
Email: David Robinson

 

Website:

 

May 7, 2013

Dear Colleagues:

Please find attached OCUFA’s analysis of the 2013 Ontario Budget provisions regarding postsecondary education funding and research, and directions for pension reform.

2013 OCUFA Budget Analysis – FINAL

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

 

May 3, 2013

Dear Colleagues:

Please find below and attached OCUFA’s media release regarding the 2013 Ontario Budget, tabled this afternoon.  We will also be sending you an analysis of various Ontario Budget provisions in the near future.

Best regards,

Mark
————————————–

2013.05.02 – OCUFA Release – Ontario Budget 2013

Professors and academic librarians to Premier: It’s time to invest in universities

TORONTO – Ontario’s 17,000 professors and academic librarians are calling on Premier Wynne to
invest in the province’s universities after today’s budget missed an opportunity to introduce new
funding for higher education institutions. The 2013 Budget continues to impose small cuts on the
university sector, leading to an overall decline in per-student funding.

“Ontario already has the worst level of per-student funding in Canada, and this budget continues this
trend,” says Constance Adamson, President of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty
Associations (OCUFA). “We’re pleased to see that youth and youth employment are priorities for
Premier Wynne. Investing in universities is a natural way to ensure that young Ontarians will find
success in the job market and in their communities.”

Increasing the level of per-student funding in Ontario would bring many benefits to young people in
the province. There would be more professors, improving student engagement and mentorship.
Aging labs, libraries, and classrooms would be upgraded, contributing to an enhanced learning
environment. Students would have greater access to the latest technology. Increased per-student
funding would also help control rising tuition fees, keeping university affordable for Ontario
families.

“We’re worried that the narrow focus on reducing the provincial deficit is crowding out other
priorities equally important to Ontarians. Investment in universities helps reduce the deficit by
stimulating economic growth and building a strong society,” said Adamson.

Austerity policies that seek to reduce the deficit through cuts to valuable public services like
education are now widely seen as harmful to economic growth. The International Monetary Fund is
now cautioning governments against aggressive deficit reduction.

“Austerity is based on sketchy research, and has failed to generate economic growth around the
world,” said Adamson. “We should be investing in the things that we know lead to economic growth
and social vitality, like our universities.”

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 professors and academic librarians in 27 faculty
associations across Ontario. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at
http://www.ocufa.on.ca.

                                                        -30-

Media Contact:
Graeme Stewart at 416 306 6033 (office), 647 280 3175 (mobile), or [email protected]


——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

 

April 18, 2013

Dear Colleagues;

In a paper released today, the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO) reviews the performance of Ontario’s postsecondary education system in terms of access, quality, productivity, and social impact. It confirms what Ontario’s professors and academic librarians have known for years – our universities are efficient, productive, and accessible (though more work is needed to ensure participation for under-represented groups, such as Aboriginal and first-generation students). Unfortunately, the paper also furthersHEQCO’s tunnel-vision approach to narrow outcomes-based accountability regimes.

HEQCO argues that promoting quality is the “next frontier” in higher education. OCUFA certainly agrees that quality must be a focus of the provincial government going forward – we have been arguing for quality enhancements for the past two decades. However, HEQCO’s conception of “quality” is confined to poorly defined outcome measures. While outcomes – attainment rates, employment, and research output – are important, they are only one part of the quality picture. To really understand what is happening in Ontario’s universities, we must also consider inputs (such as public funding) and processes (such as student-faculty ratios and student engagement). Outcomes are useless unless we understand the resources and approaches that created them. Otherwise, continuous improvement is impossible.

The paper also continues HEQCO’s narrow focus on labour market outcomes. While the employability and labour market success of graduates is extremely important, job training is only one of the many important individual and social functions of the university. Followed to its logical conclusion, over-focusing on job training will distort our institutions and diminish their ability to educate and engage with students and their community.

This paper reflects HEQCO’s disappointing belief that improvements to quality must somehow be made in the absence of new government funding. This is problematic for three reasons: it ignores the transformative role that public investment has played in creating the current system; it posits fiscal constraint as an immutable fact, rather than the result of political choices; and it provides a convenient excuse for the provincial government to ignore the urgent financial needs of the sector by offering false-hope alternatives. OCUFA will continue to argue that the only way to ensure quality and accessibility is sustained and robust public investment. Anything else is just fiddling at the margins.

If you have any questions about this paper or HEQCO in general, please do not hesitate to get in touch. The paper can be downloaded at: http://heqco.ca/SiteCollectionDocuments/Performance_Indicators_ENG.PDF

Best Regards,
Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communications Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. | Toronto, ON | M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA

 

April 5, 2013

Dear Colleagues;

Today, the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario released the recommendations of its “expert panel” convened to review the Strategic Mandate Agreements (SMAs) submitted by each university and college in Ontario. Overall, the panel recommends that the Government of Ontario take a more directive, interventionist role to drive greater differentiation and competition within the sector. The paper does not address each institution’s SMA proposal directly.

OCUFA has long been critical of HEQCO’s position on differentiation, and this new paper contains many problematic suggestions:

·        The idea that government should play a more active role in “designing” the system fails to protect universities from the vicissitudes of short-term political decision-making. Governments are notoriously bad at long-term planning in higher education, and shifting political priorities may lead to an unstable and unproductive planning environment for the sector. Ironically, this will make effective system design much more difficult.
·        The paper suggests that “learning outcomes” be used to apportion operating funding, despite failing to outline what outcomes are desirable, who defines the outcomes, and how they should be measured. In addition, funding models that only use outcome measures tend to make it difficult for under-performing institutions to improve, by removing funding from the institutions that need it most.  
·        The panel recommends that there should be more competition for operating funds in Ontario. Such a model will inevitably create institutional “winners” and “losers”, thereby harming students at institutions judged to be somehow inferior. OCUFA believes that the funding formula should aim to support a high quality experience for every student.
·        The paper suggests that funding decisions be made, or at least heavily informed, by an external body. HEQCO advocates for an “expert” model for this validating authority, but does not specify how these experts should be selected, or who they should represent. Given HEQCO’s fondness for former administrators and representatives of the private sector, it is likely that they will push for a similar model.

The paper also makes frequent use of phrases like, “The evidence suggests that.” without indicating what that evidence might be, or where it might be found.

Ultimately, it is hard to avoid the conclusion that HEQCO’s advocacy for third-party validation is an indirect argument for expanding HEQCO’s mandate and budget, adding a certain element of self-interest to the argument. The full report can be accessed at: http://heqco.ca/en-CA/About%20Us/policyadvice/Pages/smas.aspx

OCUFA believes strongly that any reforms to Ontario’s universities should be developed through meaningful consultation with those who know the system best – students and faculty. HEQCO has so far embraced a model – both in its behavior and its recommendations – that depends heavily on advice solicited from outside the sector, provided by unaccountable panelists who develop their recommendations behind closed doors. This is not a model that will develop recommendations sensitive to Ontario’s unique challenges and responsive to its needs.

OCUFA agrees that a serious discussion needs to occur on the future of Ontario’s postsecondary system. We will continue to work to build the quality and accessibility of our institutions with those who share our commitment.

If you have any questions or concerns, please get in touch at 416 306 6033 or at [email protected]

Best Regards,
Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communications Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. | Toronto, ON | M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA

 

 

April 4, 2013

Dear Colleagues;Today, OCUFA released a research paper examining recent proposals around increasing university productivity as part of its Trends in Higher Education series. The paper finds that the current discussion in Ontario is plagued by unclear definitions, problematic assumptions, and troubling policy ideas. Reviewing the available evidence, the paper argues that:
  • The discussion in Ontario has no clear definition of productivity, which makes serious or useful discussion of the issue difficult.
  • Ontario’s universities have already made significant productivity gains – decades of under-funding and rising enrolment have meant that professors are already teaching many more students with much less public funding.
  • This productivity increase has done little to improve the quality of education at Ontario’s universities – in fact, by many measures quality has come under threat even as productivity has increased.
  • For professors and academic librarians, the most meaningful measures of productivity are attainment rates and research output.
  • Proposed productivity enhancements, such as increased faculty teaching loads and increased use of online learning, are properly seen as secondary to the broader goals of greater student success and research effectiveness.
  • Over-focusing on these secondary elements – like teaching loads and online learning – is ineffective and may harm larger productivity goals.
  • A productivity agenda focused on reducing government investment in higher education will have a negative effect on higher education in Ontario.

The complete paper is attached to this email. It can also be accessed at http://ocufa.on.ca/wordpress/assets/TrendsInHigherEducation-Productivity-FINAL.pdf

OCUFA plans to release a series of papers over the coming years that examines – and challenges – the emerging “productivity agenda” advanced by some policy observers in Ontario. This agenda, closely linked with austerity policies, manifests in a variety of ways, from calls for faculty to teach more, to the need for “teaching only universities”, to calls for greater university differentiation. In all cases, we are concerned that the primary objective of the productivity agenda is to obscure the need for sustained public investment in Ontario’s universities, thereby compromising the quality of education received by students and the quality of research produced by our institutions.

If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact me at 416 306 6033 or at [email protected].

Best Regards,

Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communications Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. | Toronto, ON | M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA

 

April 2, 2013

Dear Colleagues:

Today, Minister of Training, Colleges, and Universities Brad Duguid announced a new tuition framework for Ontario’s higher education institutions. The new policy caps yearly increases for undergraduates at 3 per cent (down from 5 per cent under the previous framework, while graduate and professional fees will increase by 5 per cent (down from 8 per cent). Total institutional increases are also capped at 3 per cent. The Minister also announced that steps will be taken to align OSAP payments to fee deadlines, in order to help students avoid late penalties.

The new framework will last for four years.

While controlling tuition fee increases is an important first step to restoring affordability to Ontario’s universities, the new policy does not go far enough. OCUFA has long recommended that tuition fees in Ontario be frozen, with compensatory public funding provided to universities for lost tuition fee revenue. The new tuition framework does not have any provision for increased per-student funding for universities.

OCUFA is concerned that the new policy continues the slow privatization of Ontario’s universities by shifting costs onto students and their families. Students now pay for nearly 50 per cent of the operating budgets of universities (and at some institutions, more than half). The only way to ensure that our universities are accessible and high quality is through robust public investment. Unfortunately, the Government of Ontario is actually cutting funding to Ontario’s universities  and colleges ($40 million this year, and $81 million next year), fueling the ongoing decline in per-student funding. Ontario has the worst level of per-student public funding in Canada, and this framework will put the province even further behind.

In our 2013 Budget submission, OCUFA urges the Government to begin re-investing in universities now by freezing tuition, providing compensatory funding, hiring new full-time faculty, and increasing per-student funding to the national average by 2020.

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 

March 26, 2013

Save Library and Archives Canada Update – March 2013

LAC gives up on purchased acquisitions of Canadian history

In 2009, LAC announced a 10-month moratorium on purchasing acquisitions.  Now, almost four years later, acquisitions have still not resumed.  LAC’s purchased acquisitions – items  of national significance  acquired from private individuals or organizations – constitute  an essential part of the LAC collection mandate. They offer Canadians insight into the unofficial stories of Canada’s past.   The gaps that have been created in our historical record as a result of this cessation will seriously compromise the ability of present and future generations to know our history.

Antiquarian booksellers, previously an important supplier of rare material to LAC, have all but given up on offering their significant Canadiana to our national library and archives.

“ABAC (The Antiquarian Booksellers of Canada) remains disappointed that the Harper Government continues its active role in the destruction of Canada’s historical depository, Library and Archives Canada.   Because of the policies and cuts of this government, the library has abandoned the acquisitions of historical pieces of Canadiana, and now most booksellers have given up offering LAC important pieces of Canadian history.” Liam Mcgahern, president of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of Canada (ABAC)

Joseph Hall, Toronto Star, “Historical letters not wanted at Library and Archives Canada, critics say”, March 10, 2013
http://www.thestar.com/news/insight/2013/03/10/historical_letters_not_wanted_at_library_and_archives_canada_critics_say.html

Interlibrary Loans Service Closed

In spite of widespread protest from user groups from across the country, the Interlibrary Loans Service (ILL) of Library and Archives Canada officially closed its doors on Friday February 15 2013.
The ILL at LAC allowed any Canadian library to borrow material from our national library at Library and Archives Canada when the material is not available elsewhere. Without this service, the only access is if individuals travel to Ottawa to consult books and other documents that previously could have been forwarded directly to their local library.

In the fiscal year 2012-2013 alone LAC filled 21,294 requests for loans and copies from its collections and helped locate materials at other facilities in response to another 11,658 requests. The loss of ILL is a huge a blow to Canadians’ ability to access to our collective history.

LAC officials have defended the cut with the claim that Canadians will have digital access to LAC’s holdings. This assertion is, simply put, a lie. CAUT’s access to information request revealed that approximately 0.5% of LAC holdings (both textual and non-textual) have been digitized to date. Based on LAC’s own estimated costs for the digitization, digitizing LAC’s books, journals, and newspapers alone would cost between $1.5 billion and $3.5 billion which, at the current rate of spending on digitization (approx $5 million annually), would take LAC 300-700 years.

Visit John D Reid’s blog to read the farewell letter written by the staff of the Interlibrary Loan Service of Library and Archives Canada:
http://anglo-celtic-connections.blogspot.ca/2013/02/60-years-of-interlibrary-loan-service.html

Charelle Evelyn, “National library cuts severing ties with past,” The Prince George Citizen, January 28 2013
http://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/article/20130108/PRINCEGEORGE0101/301089966/-1/PRINCEGEORGE/national-library-cuts-severing-ties-with-past

LAC’s new Code of Conduct

In January 2013, LAC’s Code of Conduct: Values and Ethics came into effect. The code is a clear indication of the contempt with which LAC administration treats its staff. The code outlines severe restrictions on staff behavior both in their public and personal lives.

Professional development activities such as attending conferences, teaching, publishing, or working with LAC client organizations were all activities which were promoted, even celebrated, as important staff activities in the past. LAC’s new code of conduct qualifies these activities as “high risk” and lays out a series of restrictive conditions that employees must meet before they can engage in these activities without discipline.

LAC employees’ personal activities, including use of social media, are also restricted. The code goes as far as to assert that an employee could be subject to disciplinary measures if their commentary about LAC or the Canadian government, made in a limited access forum, accidently became public.

The code further includes a provision encouraging employees to report on one another.

The outcry over the muzzling of LAC staff has exploded in the media. Please see the following list of links to recent media coverage of this issue:

Margaret Munro’s story “Canada’s federal librarians fear being ‘muzzled'”, March 16, 2013:

http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Federal+librarians+fear+being+muzzled+under+code+conduct/8105500/story.html

Margaret Munro’s follow up story “ABCs of ‘behaviour regulation’ for federal librarians and archivists”, March 19, 2013:

http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/national/ABCs+behaviour+regulation+federal+librarians+archivists/8122156/story.html

On March 19th, in the House of Commons, James Moore, the Minister responsible for Library and Archives Canada, distanced himself from the LAC administration and their “Code of Conduct” (more appropriately named “Muzzle for librarians and archivists”):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BlEYlzwvJXg&feature=youtu.be

Daniel Caron’s response:

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Balance+freedom+responsibility/8129270/story.html

CAUT’s Executive Director, James Turk, interview on Radio-Canada International:

http://www.rcinet.ca/english/daily/interviews-2012/14-44_2013-03-18-librarians-warned-of-loyalty-duty-to-canada-s-government-high-risk-activities/

Myron Groover’s, chair of British Columbia Library Association’s Information Policy Committee, interview on As it Happens:

http://www.cbc.ca/player/AudioMobile/As+It+Happens/ID/2352464065/

Writer’s Union of Canada letter:

http://www.writersunion.ca/news/chilling-code-conduct-library-and-archives-canada#.UUsVE1OOLg0.twitter

An editorial in the Calgary Herald – March 25, 2013:

http://www.calgaryherald.com/opinion/editorials/Editorial+Ottawa+muzzling+librarians+free+speech/8146848/story.html

For more information about the Save Library and Archives Canada campaign visit our website at www.savelac.ca or contact:

Rosa Barker (613-726-5166)
barker@caut

Angela Regnier (613-726-5186)
[email protected]

 

March 26, 2013

Dear Colleagues:

Please find attached OCUFA’s 2013 Pre-Budget Submission to the Ontario Legislature’s Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs.

The intent of the OCUFA plan outlined in the 2013 Pre-Budget Submission is to enhance the quality and affordability of university education in Ontario by 2020 through increased government investment.

It recommendations reflect both the estimated minimum and maximum cost of our proposals, and notes that the Ontario government can choose to make a smaller or larger investments as finances dictate. At the same time, it notes that the fiscal challenges the government faces are not the result of overspending, but rather reflect a short-term impact of the 2008 financial crisis and the recession it created. Long-term damage to universities cannot be justified by a short-term fiscal challenge. When it comes to the education of our young people, investment is the only option.

The submission outlines critical needs in Ontario’s universities – per-student funding, tuition fees, faculty hiring, and research support – and indicates the amount of new investment needed to address the needs and strengthen our institutions. Such investment will pay dividends in student success, economic growth, and in the health of our society and communities.



Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

March 26, 2013

CAUT Statement on the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

 

Today the Canadian Association of University Teachers commemorates the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination — a day whose origin was on March 21, 1960. That day, people gathered peacefully outside a police station in Sharpeville, South Africa, without their passbooks, to oppose the apartheid regime’s ‘pass laws’ that separated families, limited movement and deemed racialized individuals to be lesser human beings.  Firing into the crowd, police killed 69 people and wounded many more. In commemoration of that day, the United Nations declared March 21st International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in 1966 and called on the international community to eliminate racism in all its forms.

 

On this day, we affirm that we stand strongly opposed to racism and in favour of the advancement of human rights, equality and social justice.  We acknowledge and commit ourselves to opposing racism that continues to be a part of our workplaces, our unions, our communities and our societies — through practices such as discriminatory hiring, racial profiling, the non-recognition of skills, and the exploitation of migrant and precarious workers. In Canada, people of color are three times more likely to be poor than other Canadians. In Canadian universities and colleges, under-representation of racialized staff remains a major problem to be remedied.

 

On this day we also wish to reaffirm our support for the Aboriginal and Treaty rights of the First Peoples of Canada. Aboriginal communities often experience persistent inequality – in income, in access to good health care, proper housing, and access to education.

 

We affirm our commitment to work to change current federal government policies that perpetuate racial profiling, the increased criminalization of racialized and aboriginal peoples, and other programs that discriminate and promote inequality such as, recent changes that deny civil liberties and health care to refugee claimants and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program that allows migrant workers to be paid less than domestic workers and often denied basic human rights, including citizenship, while subjected to harassment, abuse and unsafe working conditions.

 

We all must renew our determination to oppose racism in our workplaces, in our academic staff associations, and in our society. We must all accept our responsibility to pursue a racism-free world.

————————————————————–

 

 

March 26, 2013

Greetings,

 

Please find attached the CAUT Analysis of the Federal Budget 2013.

 

_________________________________________________________

Jocelyne Fortier
Executive Assistant (Research & Advocacy) /
Adjointe de direction (Recherche et promotion des intérêts)
CAUT / ACPPU
2705 promenade Queensview Drive
Ottawa, ON   K2B 8K2
tel/tél: 613.820.2270 x. 171
fax/téléc: 613.820.7244
email/courriel: [email protected]
http://www.caut.ca

 

March 26, 2013

CAUT comment on today’s federal budget

Attached is CAUT’s statement on today’s federal budget.  While not surprising, the budget is truly disappointing. A more detailed commentary will be sent to you in the next day or so.

If you have any questions, please let me know.

Sincerely,

Jim

James L. Turk // Executive Director / Directeur général // Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université // 2705 promenade Queensview Drive / Ottawa, (Ontario) / K2B 8K2 // tél  613.726-5176 / téléc  613.820-7244 / mobile  613.277-0488 / [email protected]  / twitter @jameslturk

 

March 20, 2013

Greetings/Salutations,

 

Yesterday in the House of Commons, the Minister responsible for Library and Archives Canada distanced himself from the LAC administration and their “Code of Conduct” (more appropriately named “Muzzle for librarians and archivists”).

 

http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/national/ABCs+behaviour+regulation+federal+librarians+archivists/8122156/story.html

 

Hier, à la Chambre des communes, le ministre responsable de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada prends ses distances de l’administration de BAC et de leur “Code de conduite” (plus correctement appelé «Museau pour les bibliothécaires et les archivistes”).

 

Cordialement,

 

Jim

 

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk

 

March 20, 2013

Dear Colleagues: We are pleased to announce that the upcoming Toronto universities Town Hall Meeting, “Austerity and Ontario’s Universities: Finding a way forward” will be accessible via live webcast on Wednesday. March 27, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.  For those associations who have not already held a town hall meeting and would like to do, this will be an excellent opportunity to view an education and mobilization event on the issue of austerity and universities. We encourage you to join us and to begin thinking about what might be possible on your campus. Could you also please share this notice with your networks:Austerity and Ontario’s Universities: Finding a way forward
A joint Town Hall Meeting for University of Toronto, York, Ryerson and OCADU faculty, students and staff.
Wednesday March 27, 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

University of Toronto: OISE Auditorium
(252 Bloor St. West, Toronto)Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/485754828154901
____________________________________________________________________________________________** CAN’T MAKE IT TO THE EVENT?  JOIN THE LIVE WEBCAST AT: http://tinyurl.com/TOtownhallwebcast  **
____________________________________________________________________________________________

With:JOHN SHIELDS: Professor, Department of Politics & Public Administration, Ryerson UniversityFAIZ AHMED: Chair, Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 3903, York UniversityCAROLYN HIBBS: President, York University Graduate Students’ Association (YUGSA)SARAH JAYNE KING: Chairperson,  Canadian Federation of Students – Ontario (CFS)PAUL TSANG: President, United Steelworkers (USW) Local 1998, University of TorontoCHARLES REEVE: President, Ontario College of Art and Design Faculty Association (OCADFA)…and moderator, LUC TREMBLAY: VP of University & External Affairs, University of Toronto Faculty Association (UTFA)
Event Details:
“Government austerity”- the aggressive program of public sector cutbacks and belt-tightening that governments claim is the only cure for these “tough economic times”– has been frequently cited as the provincial policy responsible for the eroding quality and accessibility of higher education. But the reality is that public funding of higher education has been in decline for some time now, with serious implications for university faculty, students, staff and society in general. It’s an issue that affects all of us in different ways.This event aims to bring together students, faculty and staff from Toronto’s four universities to discuss the issues, share their insights, and start working together towards solutions.Discussion topics include:
  • Government austerity, alternatives to austerity, and the government’s disinvestment from funding higher education.
  • The financial situation of universities in Toronto and the impact of university administrations’ spending priorities on the quality and accessibility of higher education, and on staff, students and faculty.
  • The changing mission, role and workings of the university and its impact on the nature and quality of higher education, and its impact on educators, students, and society more generally.
  • The shift in financing of university operations from the government to students, and the immediate and long-term impacts this has on students, their families, and the broader community.

Please join us.

 

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

March 7, 2013

Greetings,

I want to recommend a superb, disturbing, but all too true article on university presidents. It is published in The Nation and written by Scott Sherman. It is entitled, “University Presidents – Speak Out!: Where are their voices on major issues of the day.”  You will find it at http://www.thenation.com/article/173015/university-presidents-speak-out

I feel his characterization of US university presidents applies equally well (if not more so) in Canada.

I’d appreciate your thoughts.

Regards,

 

Jim

 

 

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk

 

 

 

 

March 1, 2013

Greetings,

Please find attached the CAUT’s 2013 International Women’s Day statement. The statement is also available on our website at http://www.caut.ca/pages.asp?page=1139.  Feel free to distribute widely via email and other social media networks.

The official women’s day twitter handle is @womensday. Please use the following hashtags when tweeting: #womensday, #IWD2013, #cdnpse, and #cdnpoli

Regards,

Jim

James L. Turk // Executive Director / Directeur général // Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université // 2705 promenade Queensview Drive / Ottawa, (Ontario) / K2B 8K2 // tél  613.726-5176 / téléc  613.820-7244 / mobile  613.277-0488 / [email protected]  / twitter @jameslturk

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

February 26, 2013

Greetings,

In April 2011, CAUT released a document entitled Guidelines for the Use of Copyrighted Material. Since that time the Parliament of Canada has amended the Copyright Act, adding important new rights for the education community. Additionally, in December 2012 the Supreme Court of Canada handed down a series of copyright decisions — decisions that again powerfully benefit our sector.

To reflect these developments, CAUT has substantially revised the original document. Copies of the new Guidelines are attached and are available online at:

http://www.caut.ca/uploads/Copyright_guidelines_2013_en.pdf

The Guidelines explain the copying rights enjoyed by academic staff and provide direction on their lawful exercise. Please bring them to the attention of your institution’s Head Librarian, Copyright Officer as well as your membership.

If you have any questions about the Guidelines, please feel free to contact Paul Jones at (613) 820-2270 ext.181 or by email: [email protected].

Sincerely,

Jim

James L. Turk // Executive Director / Directeur général // Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université // 2705 promenade Queensview Drive / Ottawa, (Ontario) / K2B 8K2 // tél 613.726-5176 / téléc 613.820-7244 / mobile 613.277-0488 / [email protected] / twitter @jameslturk


February 26, 2013

Dear Colleagues:

On February 19, 2013, new Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne presented her first Speech from the Throne, outlining the priorities of her government. As expected, the speech contained a heavy focus on deficit reduction, economic growth, and employment.

The speech signaled that the government will continue to pursue austerity policies, but reflected a softer approach to controlling the deficit. In particular, it emphasized the need to work respectfully with the public sector to achieve the government’s spending goals. Nevertheless, it is clear that the government still expects compensation restraint.

From the speech:

Your government will create a better process to ensure that all its partners, including those within the public sector, are treated with respect.

But it will call upon these same partners to work with this new government so we can journey forward, boldly, as one.

.It will also introduce a balanced approach to balancing the budget so that all parties can work together to find savings without impacting the services on which people rely.

However, your new government understands that Ontario’s true potential cannot be reached through austerity alone.

And so it will continue to implement recommendations found in the Drummond Report, including work to evaluate corporate tax compliance.

The speech continues the government’s commitment to reducing the deficit, conforming broadly to the goals outlined in the Drummond Report:

Your new government will restrain program spending to reduce Ontario’s debt-to-GDP ratio, while recommitting itself to eliminating the deficit by 2017-2018.

And after that, it will restrict overall spending increases to one per cent below GDP growth until the province’s debt-to-GDP ratio returns to the pre-recession level of 27 per cent.

It will also introduce a balanced approach to balancing the budget so that all parties can work together to find savings without impacting the services on which people rely.

The speech also signaled a desire to influence labour relations in Ontario, and introduce reforms to the current arbitration system:

As your government moves forward, Ontario’s labour force will be treated fairly and with respect.

It will sit down with its partners across all sectors to build a sustainable model for wage negotiation, respectful of both collective bargaining and a fair and transparent interest arbitration process, so that the brightness of our shared future is not clouded by the indisputable economic realities of our time.

It also appears that universities are envisioned as part of Ontario’s employment strategy:

To address the serious issue of youth unemployment, your government will join forces with high school educators, colleges, universities, training partners and employers to establish opportunities for young people to enhance their skills; find placements, internships and co-op programs; and gain valuable, real world experience.

A renewed partnership with business, educational institutions, not-for-profits and labour will be at the heart of your government’s plans to build a modern, competitive and dynamic economy.

In addition, the speech announced the continuation of the 30 Per Cent Off Ontario Tuition Grant and the desire to expand the availability of French postsecondary programs in central and southwestern Ontario.

It should be noted that the throne speech does not contain specific policies, but is rather a general statement of the government’s directions. Actual policies should become more clear in the upcoming budget, and in policy directions announced by specific government ministries.

OCUFA will be tracking the government’s policy initiatives closely, and intervening to ensure that local collective bargaining is protected and that all activities of the university – inquiry and critical thought, not just job training – are funded for success.

The full speech can be read at: http://www.premier.gov.on.ca/news/thronespeech.php?Lang=EN

——————————————————-
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


February 15, 2013

Dear Colleagues:

Following from the email sent on February 19, 2013 regarding the Ontario Conservative Party’s white paper — “Better Learning for Better Jobs”, please find attached OCUFA’s analysis of the white paper, which was released on Tuesday.

As noted in the OCUFA analysis, the paper articulates an instrumental vision of higher education in which the primary purpose of the university is to provide students with job training in order to ensure graduate employment tied to presumed labour market demands. It calls for increased reliance on teaching-only faculty, claiming that this will improve quality within a context of limited finances, and argues that government funding for universities should be tied to a range of performance indicators. The paper’s proposals for higher tuition coupled with increased reliance on restrictive student aid would create further inequities for students and their families and represent a troubling tendency toward greater marketization of higher education.

The policy paper’s proposals for cutting the costs associated with universities by imposing an across the board wage freeze and converting university pensions to defined contribution plans undermines local collective bargaining rights and signals a race to the bottom. Despite attempts to soften its message by characterizing its proposals as driving economic development and ensuring student access, “Higher Learning for Better Jobs” presents proposals that would result in a narrowly conceived, highly directive model of higher education in Ontario that would exacerbate the inequalities that already exist in our universities.

Best regards,
Mark

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

February 14, 2013

Greetings,

I am pleased to advise you that our colleagues at St. Francis Xavier have reached a tentative settlement after 17 days on strike. A ratification vote is scheduled for tomorrow, with the Executive unanimously recommending acceptance. Details of the settlement will be released to the membership at the meeting.

As we saw with Brandon last year, it sometimes takes a strike to convince administrations and boards of governors that they must agree to fair and equitable terms in a collective agreement. Congratulations to our everyone in the St.FXAUT for their determination, commitment and solidarity in these difficult times.

In solidarity,

Jim

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk

January 31, 2013

Hello all,

Please see below a message from OCUFA President Constance Adamson regarding the Liberal leadership outcome and what to expect moving forward.

Best,
Erica

Erica Rayment
Policy Analyst – Government and Community Relations
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, ON M5C 1S8
Office: 416-979-2117 x 223 | Mobile: 416-671-3230
[email protected]

Liberal Leadership – Results and Next Steps

Kathleen Wynne was elected leader of the Liberal Party of Ontario on the third ballot at the Liberal leadership convention on Saturday, Janurary 26. She defeated the perceived front-runner, Sandra Pupatello, by winning the support of leadership opponents Eric Hoskins (St. Paul’s), Charles Sousa (Mississauga South) and Gerrard Kennedy (no seat).

This message is intended to provide our members with a sense of what to expect – both in terms of process and policy – with Kathleen Wynne as Premier.

Process
Kathleen Wynne committed throughout the leadership campaign to bring the legislature back as soon as possible. She also positioned herself as the candidate most willing and best positioned to work with the opposition parties in order to continue to govern in the minority parliament and prevent an immediate election.

The earliest the legislature can come back is Tuesday, February 19.

The first order of business for the new government will be to deliver a Speech from the Throne that will outline (in very broad terms) their legislative agenda and priorities for governing. The Throne Speech is a confidence question that could potentially defeat the government, but that is an unlikely outcome. The only time in Ontario’s history that a government has been defeated following debate on the Throne Speech was in 1985 when the Progressive Conservatives formed a minority government. An election was not triggered because the Liberals and NDP agreed to govern under an Accord.

After the Throne Speech, the government will need to present a Budget. If the Liberals can secure the support of one of the opposition parties by including some key budget measures that the opposition parties want to see included, then the Budget (another key confidence question) will pass and the Liberals, under Kathleen Wynne, will continue to govern.

At this point, it is still early to determine if Kathleen Wynne will be able to secure the support of one of the opposition parties, but a Spring election is certainly not an inevitable outcome at this stage.

Policy Direction
OCUFA met with Kathleen Wynne in December to discuss the three major provincial issues that are affecting faculty right now: Collective bargaining, pensions and the transformational change agenda set by former Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities Glen Murray. She also completed OCUFA’s Liberal leadership candidates’ questionnaire on the same topics. Below is an overview of what we heard from her.

Collective Bargaining
– In the meeting with OCUFA, Kathleen Wynne indicated that she did not intend to introduce the proposed Protecting Public Services Act that had been floated in the fall and would have vastly restricted the collective bargaining rights of all broader public sector workers in Ontario.

– While she indicated that she did not want to introduce legislation that would interfere with collective bargaining, Wynne was clear that wage settlements in the broader public sector – including university faculty – needed to include zero per cent increases. As an end goal, there is not likely to be any change from the previous government’s position when it comes to the need for zeroes. What might change is the tools this new government will use to achieve that goal.

– In her response to the OCUFA Liberal leadership candidates’ questionnaire Wynne indicated that she is committed to finding a collective bargaining process that is fair and sustainable, but that also takes into account the realities of the current fiscal situation.

Pensions
– In the December meeting with Wynne, OCUFA indicated that funding from the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities had been committed to conduct a research project investigating options to improve the sustainability of university pension plans and we would like to be able to conclude that project before decisions about the Morneau asset pooling initiative were made. Kathleen Wynne seemed open to this proposal.

– In her response to the OCUFA Liberal leadership candidates’ questionnaire Wynne indicated a broad commitment to ensuring the sustainability of defined benefit public pensions and an openness to further discussions with OCUFA on this matter.

Higher Education Reform
– In her response to the OCUFA Liberal leadership candidates’ questionnaire Wynne provided an overview of her higher education platform, which included proposals that ranged from support for graduate education and scholarships for students who demonstrate an entrepreneurial spirit to better labour market preparation and flexibility and mobility within the system. The commitment to “Sustainable and predictable funding that reflects the real needs across the sector” was promising, but vague.

January 29, 2013

Greetings,

Our colleagues in the St Francis Xavier Association of University Teachers (St FXAUT) began went on strike today. The Association represents over 400 members in eight different employee groups engaged in teaching and research at StFX, over one third of whom are on limited-term contracts. Details are available at www.stfxaut.ca.

Please send messages of support and solidarity to the following address:

[email protected]

Peter McInnis

President

SFXAUT

Suite 37 – 133 Church Street

Antigonish NS B2G 2E3

Phone: 902 735-3261

The STFXAUT can be followed on Facebook and Twitter at:

https://www.facebook.com/StFXAUT

Twitter: @stfxaut – suggested hashtags #stfx, #stfxonstrike, #cdnpse

In solidarity,

Jim

James L. Turk // Executive Director / Directeur général // Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université // 2705 promenade Queensview Drive / Ottawa, (Ontario) / K2B 8K2 // tél 613.726-5176 / téléc 613.820-7244 / mobile 613.277-0488 / [email protected] / twitter @jameslturk

January 18, 2013

Dear Colleagues:

Below is a University Affairs article on a panel discussion, “Debating Austerity: Is Public Constraint the Only Way Forward?” featuring Jim Stanford, Alex Himmelfarb, and Derek DeCloet that took place at OCUFA’s Academia in the Age of Austerity conference last week.

The article highlights many of the key critiques of austerity policies that featured at the conference and are underscored in OCUFA’s current education and mobilization campaign.

The complete recording of the panel discussion noted in the article can be found here:

OCUFA holds “Academia in Age of Austerity” conference

Best regards,

Mark

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

Just say ‘no’ to austerity
Posted on 16 January 2013 by Léo Charbonneau
I’ve heard it said many times before, and I have caught myself saying it as well: in the current economic climate, universities can likely forget about any increases in public funding for the foreseeable future. And indeed, austerity has been the watchword for most governments here and abroad since the collapse of the world’s financial markets in 2008. But, at a recent panel discussion, two well-known public commentators argued that we should just say no to austerity.

The two were Jim Stanford, an economist with the Canadian Auto Workers and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, and Alex Himelfarb, director of the Glendon School of Public and International Affairs at York University and former clerk of the Privy Council. They were joined by Derek DeCloet, editor of the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business magazine. The three were speaking on Jan. 10 at the “Academia in the Age of Austerity” conference held in Toronto and organized by the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations. It’s a long post that follows, but there were many interesting points made and I encourage you to plow through.

Government spending not the problem

Starting off, Dr. Stanford’s main message was that government spending did not cause the deficit. “It was the recession that caused the deficit – not spending on teachers’ salaries, or university pension plans, or unionized garbage collectors.” Until the financial crisis in 2008 and the resulting recession, in Ontario “we delivered our programs, paid for them, and delivered balanced budgets.”

The current deficit in Ontario will likely be in the $10-billion range this year, which represents about 1.5 percent of GDP, Dr. Stanford estimated. We need to work to reduce this deficit over time, but if it takes a little longer than planned, “it’s not the end of the world as we know it.” There has been “a lot of scaremongering” about debts and deficits, he said, “this ridiculous charade . where finance ministers want to make it look as bad as possible to scare people into accepting tough medicine.”

What’s more, “not only is austerity not necessary, it is not even going to work. It’s self-defeating. If the recession caused the deficit, then trying to solve the deficit by slashing billions of dollars from spending . and throwing lots of people out of jobs, is obviously worsening the underlying problem that created the deficit in the first place.” The International Monetary Fund, the “holy church of free-market economics, has just woken up to this and finally recognized the macroeconomic spinoffs of all this belt-tightening. We see this in Europe, where the more they cut, the more the economy falls and the worse the deficit becomes.”

There “has to be another way”

Dr. Himelfarb said he “more or less” agreed with Dr. Stanford’s analysis, adding that it was a good time to have this discussion because, in the U.K. and Europe, austerity “is beginning to lose its luster.” Why? “It’s not only because of protests in the streets, often violent, and the breakdown of social cohesion – although that’s a good reason,” said Dr. Himelfarb. “And it’s not only because of significant job losses and rising inequality; and it’s not only because of the devastating impact on the most vulnerable – women, young people and the poorest.” But, austerity is also coming into disrepute “because the impact on growth has been even deeper than the critics had anticipated.” Because of austerity, “what you’re getting is continuing joblessness, growing debt, stagnant economies and no end in sight to the cuts. So people are starting to say, ‘There has to be another way. Any other way has got to be better than this.'”

Also, “it has become apparent in this debate how much of the austerity agenda is driven neither by fiscal objectives nor economic policy,” said Dr. Himelfarb. Rather, “it’s driven by ideology – the absolute commitment to reduce the role of government in economic and social affairs. In many ways deficits are a gift to those who would wish to reduce government because they become the cover for doing so.”

Austerity, he continued, is not the same as fiscal responsibility. “Everybody would agree that we should be fiscally responsible, spend wisely, reduce waste, and that we should over time keep revenues and expenditures in balance, and in good times reduce the debt. But, austerity is something different. It’s ‘damn the consequences,’ cut government, even at the expense of growth and increased debt, and irrespective of the human consequences, which are extraordinary.”

The Canadian version of austerity is different than in the U.K. and Europe. Here, he calls it “austerity in slow motion,” but he says the consequences are equally pernicious. “In large part our austerity is self-induced from over a decade of tax cuts that were sold to us as a free good but which we couldn’t actually afford. And that’s true at every level of government.”

As an example, Dr. Himelfarb noted that when the current federal government came to power in 2006, it had a $16 billion surplus, and that was “after the biggest tax cut in Canadian history in 2000.” This, he said, was “a signal that maybe we didn’t have a spending problem.” That extra $16 billion “would have provided some significant resilience in a time of recession, which came shortly thereafter.” Instead, we cut taxes. Just the “two-penny” cut in the goods and services tax (when the GST was reduced from 7 percent to 5 percent) represents a $14-billion annual loss in revenue, he said.

No magic wand

Mr. DeCloet of the Globe and Mail was asked to argue the contrary side for the sake of debate, but his defence of austerity was lukewarm. He said “we can all agree” that the recession caused the deficit. Likewise, “there is lots of academic evidence that austerity curbs growth, it’s just simple math.” And, he said, if you can get the growth rate back up to pre-recession levels, then that will largely solve the issue.

However, the problem, he said, “is that we don’t have a magic wand to get the growth rate up.” Ontario’s sluggish growth is a factor of many problems, many of which are global and beyond our control. You can’t just ignore government deficits, he said, because if you do, “an ever increasing proportion of tax dollars will go towards bond holders in New York and elsewhere,” he said.

“We fell into this trap at the federal level in the 1970s and 1980s,” said Mr. DeCloet, “when we believed deficits didn’t matter, and we woke up one day and found 25 cents of every dollar went to investors rather than being spent on social programs.” The federal government managed to solve the problem through a mix of “good policies and good luck, a lot of that external.” As a result, when the crisis hit in 2008, Canada had the lowest proportion of debt relative to economic output of any G7 country. That meant that “we could run a $50-billion deficit and bail out the auto makers. That was the fruit of what came before. So, if you look at it as a long game, rather than a short game, austerity doesn’t’ look quite so bad.”

Dr. Himelfarb countered that “we talk about austerity in the ’90s and how brilliant it was, but this is not the ’90s.” First, the tax levels then were higher, so revenues “were more solid.” As well, at the time, we were the only country contracting, he said, while other countries were expanding. “So we grew ourselves out of deficit to a significant degree. We fed off the growth in the U.S.” But now, when most countries’ economies are contracting, “you have a problem.”

There was much more back and forth during a question-and-answer period that followed which mainly reinforced the points made. To sum up, I’ll give the last word to Dr. Himelfarb:

“The biggest lesson to learn is that we oughtn’t be shaped by the neo-liberal ideology that has driven us for three decades that less tax, less government, less intervention is the answer. We need a new paradigm, and that paradigm ought to put people . at the centre of the agenda, and not the fisc (the public treasury). We need to ask ourselves, when did the health of the fisc become more important than the health of the people?”

January 17, 2013
Dear Colleagues:

Please find attached a Globe and Mail article on the OCUFA provincial poll released at the OCUFA “Academia in the Age of Austerity” conference on January 10, 2013.

Regional results of the OCUFA poll will be released on January 18, 2013 in Hamilton (GTA), January 29, 2013 in Ottawa (eastern Ontario), February 6, 2013 in London (southwestern Ontario), and February 28, 2013 in Sudbury (northern Ontario).

The results of the poll released last week can be found here.

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

Postsecondary cuts not solution to deficit, poll finds

JAMES BRADSHAW

The Globe and Mail

Published Friday, Jan. 11 2013

A majority of Ontario residents are reasonably satisfied with the quality and affordability of a university education, but believe there have been few improvements to postsecondary education in the province under the McGuinty government, a new study from the province’s association representing faculty has found.

The economy, jobs and the deficit were all rated as foremost concerns, ahead of the cost of university education, with 87 per cent of Ontarians agreeing that lowering the provincial deficit is important. Still, when probed further, a third of Ontarians also said lowering or capping tuition fees is the single most important thing the government should do for university education in Ontario, and more than seven in 10 oppose cutting provincial spending on universities.

The poll results show that Ontarians value university education but are struggling to balance that conviction with desires for quality education as well as fiscal responsibility, said Constance Adamson, president of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations, which represents 17,000 professors and academic librarians.

“I think there’s a level of anxiety, as well. … Especially those that have kids in university, they’re living it,” she said. “That’s complicated by the understanding that universities and colleges are key to getting the economy back on track.”

The poll was commissioned by the association as part of its annual conference taking place in Toronto Thursday and Friday, which this year focuses on the impact of austerity on academia.

The results appear show the ongoing battle between teachers and the province at the elementary and secondary level has shaped the public’s view of the government and public service unions: 56 per cent of respondents have little trust in the information provided by unions representing the postsecondary sector, a number exceeded only by the 63 per cent who don’t trust Premier Dalton McGuinty and the 61 per cent who lack trust in the media. (OCUFA and university administrators scored much higher levels of trust).

Nevertheless, more than a third of respondents believe a future Liberal leader would be better equipped to handle coming challenges than NDP leader Andrea Horwath or PC leader Tim Hudak.

“It is interesting,” Ms. Adamson said. “Even though the (Liberal) tuition rebate doesn’t seem to have had much of an impact, at least they see them trying. They are acknowledging that you can do something and wrestling with it.”

January 10, 2012

OCUFA releases new public opinion data concerning attitudes to government austerity and higher education. The results (OCUFA Survey 2013 – General Results – Jan. 10 2013)are attached to this email along with the accompanying press release (2013.01.10 – OCUFA Release – Austerity Survey Release).

December 14, 2012

Bill C-377 passed Tuesday by the House of Commons, unless it can be stopped in the Senate or through legal action, will require every labour organization [local, provincial and national] – whether unionized or not –to file the following detailed information annually.  This information will be posted by the Canada Revenue Agency on a public web site in a searchable format:

“(a) a set of financial statements for the fiscal period, in such form and containing such particulars and other information as may be prescribed relating to the financial position of the labour organization or labour trust, including
(i) a balance sheet showing the assets and liabilities of the labour organization or labour trust made up as of the last day of the fiscal period, and
(ii) a statement of income and expenditures of the labour organization or labour trust for the fiscal period;

(b) a set of statements for the fiscal period setting out the aggregate amount of all transactions and all disbursements — or book value in the case of investments and assets — with all transactions and all disbursements, the cumulative value of which in respect of a particular payer or payee for the period is greater than $5,000, shown as separate entries along with the name of the payer and payee and setting out for each of those transactions and disbursements its purpose and description and the specific amount that has been paid or received, or that is to be paid or received, and including

(i) a statement of accounts receivable,
(ii) a statement of loans exceeding $250 receivable from officers, employees, members or businesses
(iii) a statement showing the sale of investments and fixed assets including a description, cost, book value, and sale price,
(iv) a statement showing the purchase of investments and fixed assets including a description, cost, book value, and price paid,
(v) a statement of accounts payable,
(vi) a statement of loans payable,
(vii) a statement of disbursements to officers, directors and trustees, to employees with compensation over $100,000 and to persons in positions of authority who would reasonably be expected to have, in the ordinary course, access to material information about the business, operations, assets or revenue of the labour organization or labour trust, including gross salary, stipends, periodic payments, benefits (including pension obligations), vehicles, bonuses, gifts, service credits, lump sum payments, other forms of remuneration and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, any other consideration provided,
(vii.1) a statement with a reasonable estimate of the percentage of time dedicated by persons referred to in subparagraph
(vii) to each of political activities, lobbying activities and other non-labour relations activities,
(viii) a statement with the aggregate amount of disbursements to employees and contractors including gross salary, stipends, periodic payments, benefits (including pension obligations), vehicles, bonuses, gifts, service credits, lump sum payments, other forms of remuneration and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, any other consideration provided,
(viii.1) a statement with a reasonable estimate of the percentage of time dedicated by persons referred to in subparagraph (viii) to each of political activities, lobbying activities and other non-labour relations activities,
(ix) a statement with the aggregate amount of disbursements on labour relations activities,
(x) a statement of disbursements on polit­ical activities,
(xi) a statement of disbursements on lobbying activities,
(xii) a statement of contributions, gifts, and grants,
(xiii) a statement with the aggregate amount of disbursements on administration,
(xiv) a statement with the aggregate amount of disbursements on general overhead,
(xv) a statement with the aggregate amount of disbursements on organizing activities,
(xvi) statement with the aggregate amount of disbursements on collective bargaining activities,
(xvii) a statement of disbursements on conference and convention activities,
(xviii) a statement of disbursements on education and training activities,
(xix) a statement with the aggregate amount of disbursements on legal activities, excluding information protected by solicitor-client privilege,
(xix.1) a statement of disbursements (other than disbursements included in a statement referred to in any of subparagraphs (iv), (vii), (viii) and (ix) to (xix)) on all activities other than those that are primarily carried on for members of the labour organization or labour trust, excluding information protected by solicitor-client privilege, and any other prescribed statements;

(c) a statement for the fiscal period listing the sales of investments and fixed assets to, and the purchases of investments and fixed assets from, non-arm’s length parties, including for each property a description of the property and its cost, book value and sale price;

(d) a statement for the fiscal period listing all other transactions with non-arm’s length parties; and

(e) in the case of a labour organization or labour trust having its headquarters situated outside Canada, a statement in the prescribed form and containing such particulars as may be prescribed showing
(i) amounts paid or credited to the labour organization or labour trust in the fiscal period by, on behalf of or in respect of taxpayers resident in Canada, and
(ii) expenditures made by the labour organization or labour trust in the fiscal period inside or outside Canada and recorded separately in the accounts of the labour organization or labour trust as being directly related to its operations in Canada.”

There is no equivalent reporting requirement imposed on any other type of organizations in Canada – not private corporations, not public corporations, not non-profit corporations, not even charities. The anti-labour objective of the bill was apparent when the same Conservatives whose supported this bill, defeated an amendment that would have made the same reporting requirement obligatory for employer organizations.

Every effort will be made to defeat this bill in the Senate, and every legal angle for overturning it will be explored, should it pass the Senate too.  If it is enacted, the Canada Revenue Agency estimates that it would not be operable until 2014.

In the meantime, CAUT, along with many labour and non-labour organizations will be lobbying aggressively in the Senate. We will be advising you what your association can do to help.

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk

 

 

December 14, 2012

Dear Colleagues:

On December 12 the Auditor General of Ontario tabled his 2012 Report.  It contained the results of the audit of university undergraduate teaching quality and resulted in five recommendations. OCUFA staff have had an opportunity to review the entire report, in particular the section (3.12) most pertinent to our members. The report can be accessed at http://www.auditor.on.ca/en/reports_2012_en.htm.

The text and recommendations are couched in language that is not sensationalist and encourages rather than prescribes. The recommendations are as follows:

·        More information from all faculty evaluations should be conveyed to students and administrators. Course evaluation information should be aggregated by university, faculty, and department so that best practices and areas needing further professional development can be identified. A common set of core questions for evaluations should be developed to assist in comparative analyses. Faculty should be given more constructive feedback on teaching;

·        There should be a specific emphasis on teaching quality in tenure and promotion processes in order to reflect the importance of teaching quality. All relevant information on teaching quality should be made available to committees. All documentation related to teaching quality should be retained for a certain period.

·        More professional development opportunities and more formal encouragement to participate in these opportunities should be instituted;

·        Universities should assess the impact of class size on teaching quality and study how to address the challenges posed by large classes, including weighing the impact of using teaching and sessional faculty and the extent to which they can best be used to address resource constraints;

·        The Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities should provide more information on student outcomes and student satisfaction and consider meaningful measures for student learning outcomes.

For the most part, the section on university undergraduate teaching quality was relatively measured and not cause for great concern. That being said, the section was not entirely unproblematic. For example, the report failed to distinguish between data that refer to full-time faculty only and data that include contract academic staff – an oversight that can lead to errant conclusions about total (full-time and part-time) faculty numbers and average compensation. Similarly, references to collective agreements in the report were generally not positive and emphasized restrictions on access to faculty information.

In his media release accompanying the report the Auditor noted: “We found that Ontario universities generally had good processes to allow undergraduate students to evaluate their professors and courses. But the three universities we visited need to make better use of this good information to assess the overall quality of undergraduate teaching and should make more of this information available to students to help them in their course selection.”

We do not expect a great deal of media attention on section 3.12, given the more newsworthy aspects of some of the other audits contained in the report. Media attention, so far, has been focused on overspending at Metrolinx, untoward cost increases at the Crown Attorney’s office, the OPP, and Youth Justice Services, and the $1.4 billion uncollected taxes that may be written off by the provincial government at a time of relatively high deficits and anticipated program/service reductions. There may be some reaction from special interest groups and consultants (this is their bread and butter), as well as education reporters. A story ( http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/politics/article/1301230–auditor-general-s-report-ontario-slow-to-catch-tax-dodgers ) covering the Auditor’s Report in the December 13 print edition of the Toronto Star noted toward the end of the article that universities need to get more information on teaching quality to undergraduates so they know which courses to take (and, by implication, which to avoid). There was also an online-only story  ( http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/education/poor-teaching-does-not-slow-promotion-ontario-auditor-general-finds/article6257861/ )at the Globe and Mail that focused specifically on section 3.12 and the need to use available tools for improving teaching quality better.  We will track coverage and respond as necessary.

I will keep you informed on any issues raised by the report. If you have questions or comments, please get back to me.

Best regards,

Mark

Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

December 13, 2012

Greetings (sadly),

The House of Commons narrowed passed anti-labour Bill C-377 this evening by a 147-135 margin. The Bill now goes to the Senate.

The Bill amends the Income Tax Act of Canada to require all labour organizations (including unions, associations, and federations) to file 29 schedules of financial information with the Federal Minister of National Revenue, who is then required to post them online for all Canadians to access, searchable by key word. The Bill imposes financial disclosure requirements on labour organizations and associations (union and  non-union) far greater than those required of any other organization in Canada. Not even the government itself is required to provide this level of disclosure. The cost of compliance will be very substantial for every local association, as well as every regional, provincial and national federation of labour associations and unions.

Government auditing costs will also be substantial. The Government estimated it will cost the Government of Canada $2 million to administer in the first two years, and then $800,000 after that — for 1,000 reports. The Parliamentary Budget Officer in his assessment said there would be 18,000 organizations affected.

No other jurisdiction in North America has reporting legislation this punitive.

The Bill passed despite months of aggressive lobbying by the Canadian labour movement and despite strong opposition from the opposition parties and even some Conservative MPs.  But the Prime Minister’s Office aggressively promoted this private member’s bill.

CAUT has been working with the Canadian Labour Congress, supported by other organizations, including the Canadian Bar Association. Attention will be turned to trying to stop the bill in the Senate and considering legal options.

More details to follow tomorrow.

Jim

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk

 

 

 

 

November 22, 2012

For immediate release

 

Canadian Association of University Teachers launches Canada’s Past Matters campaign

 

(Ottawa: November 22, 2012) The Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) has unveiled a national campaign exposing the threats to Canada’s cultural institutions and historic sites and proposing what must be done to reverse the damage.

The “Canada’s Past Matters” campaign will highlight how federal funding cuts and policy changes are putting the survival of libraries, archives, museums and historical sites across the country at risk.

“Our ability as Canadians to know, understand and appreciate our past is at stake because of the federal government’s short-sighted cuts and ill-advised changes to historical programs and services,” CAUT executive director James L. Turk said at a news conference in Ottawa today.

“We’ve launched this campaign because the changes we’re seeing affect not just our members, but all Canadians in very damaging ways,” added Turk. “We cannot chart our future properly unless we know and understand our past. Until government policy is changed, that will be less and less possible for our children and future generations.”

Turk said the five aspects of the campaign are:

  • Save Library & Archives Canada: The federal institution responsible for preserving Canada’s history and cultural heritage is seriously threatened by major budget cuts, service reductions, and a narrowing of its mandate.
  • Preserve Canada’s Historical Sites:  A $29 million reduction in the budget for Parks Canada is threatening the future of Canada’s 167 historic and archaeological sites.
  • Protect Canada’s Public Libraries: The inter-library loan program between Library & Archives Canada and regional public libraries is being eliminated along with public internet access in local libraries, making it more difficult for Canadians to access information and knowledge.
  • Restore Canada’s Local Archives: The elimination of the National Archival Development Program has put at risk regional archives and their projects across Canada.
  • Retain the Canadian Museum of Civilization: The government plans to end Canada’s largest and most popular museum – the only museum committed to promoting knowledge and critical understanding of, and appreciation and respect for, human cultural achievements and human behaviour.

For more information about the “Canada’s Past Matters” campaign, visit www.canadaspastmatters.ca.

The Canadian Association of University Teachers is the national voice of more than 68,000 academic and general staff at 120 universities and colleges across the country.

Contact:

Angela Regnier, Communications Officer, 613-726-5186 (o);  613-601-6304 (cell);

[email protected] (email)

 

 

 

 

Posted: November 20, 2012

November 15, 2012

M E M O R A N D U M   12:44

 

TO:                 Presidents and Administrative Officers – Local, Federated and Provincial Associations

FROM:            James L. Turk, Executive Director

 

RE:                  CAUT Statement for the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women on December 6th

 

In recognition of the fourteen women murdered at L’Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal in 1989, December 6 is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.

This year, CAUT’s statement will be published in the Bulletin and on our websitein advance of December 6. Attached is a copy of the statement which is in the form of a poster that you can print, circulate to your members and display.

We encourage member associations to issue their own statement for the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women and to participate in and support campus and community events that seek to end violence.

If your association issues a statement or participates in activities, please let us know.  If you have any questions, require assistance or would like to share information about the events happening locally on your campus or in your community, please do not hesitate to contact Linda Rumleski ([email protected] or 613.820.2270 x.178).

——————————————————————————————–

November 6, 2012

Dear Colleagues:

Nominations are now open for OCUFA’s  2012 Lorimer Award. This award recognizes outstanding contributions to improving the terms and conditions of employment of Ontario university faculty through bargaining. It was created by OCUFA in 2009 in honor of Doug and Joyce Lorimer.

Attached to this email, please find a promotional flyer you can print and share with your Association. Additional information, nomination forms and guidelines can be found at http://ocufa.on.ca/ocufa-awards/ The nomination deadline is December 10, 2012.

The 2012 Lorimer Award will be presented at the February 8, 2013  Lorimer and Status of Women Awards Dinner at the Westin Habour Castle Hotel in Toronto.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

 

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

 

 

October 25, 2012

Dear Colleagues:

The theme of OCUFA’s annual conference for January 2013 will be “Academia in the Age of Austerity”.   In light of Ontario government’s “austerity agenda”, including its proposed sweeping anti-labour legislation and agenda for higher education, and in light of other government initiatives across Canada and globally, the OCUFA conference will be addressing issues of pressing critical concern.

The conference will feature speakers from Canada, the US, the UK and Europe, and have keynote address and interviews, panel presentations, and opportunities for informal discussion and audience participation.  The conference will also release OCUFA’s new polling data on public perceptions of austerity and its impact on higher education.  Information about the conference and registration is appended below.

Could you please send the notice below about the “Academia in the Age of Austerity” OCUFA conference to those who might be interested.

Thank you.

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


Take advantage of early-bird pricing for the 2013 OCUFA Conference “Academia in the Age of Austerity”,  January 10-11, 2013

                                                               
Governments in Canada and elsewhere have embraced “austerity” as a necessary public policy to eliminate budgetary deficits and ensure future prosperity.  How has this “austerity agenda” affected faculty, students, administrators and institutions in Ontario, in Canada, and globally?  Is “austerity” inevitable, or are there alternatives?   And what might universities do now, and in the future, in response to the “austerity agenda” or possible alternatives?

The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Association’s 2013 Conference –   “Academia in the Age of Austerity” – will seek to answer these questions and more. Join us for two days of insightful presentations and engaging discussion with speakers and participants from universities, research institutes, government, and the private sector in Canada, the United States, and Europe.  The conference will critically explore the idea of “austerity” by unpacking the meaning of the term, its implications and impact on higher education, as well as consider other possible policy directions.  Like previous OCUFA conferences, a diversity of views will be sought in each of the keynote and panel sessions.

The conference will take place on January 10-11, 2013 at the Pantages Hotel in Toronto.

The fee for those registering on or before November 15, 2012, is $375.00, which includes continental breakfasts, lunch, refreshments, an evening reception, and all materials. The regular registration fee after November 15, 2011 is $425.00; and $400.00 for OCUFA members.  The student rate is $150.00. To register, please click here.

The Pantages Hotel also has a special conference hotel rate of $159.00 per night.  Bookings must be made before December 9, 2012.

Conference Agenda

Day 1, Thursday January 10, 2013

8:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Registration and continental breakfast

9:00 a.m. -9:15 a.m.
Welcome and introduction


9:15 a.m. -10:45 a.m.

         Polling Presentation
        “Public views of austerity: Release and discussion of OCUFA new polling data”

        11:00 a.m. -Noon
        Keynote Discussion
        “Debating austerity: Is public constraint the only way forward?”

        Noon – 2:00 p.m.
        Lunchtime Keynote Address
        “The corporate university ascendant?”

        2:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
        Panel Session
        “Austerity in Ontario: From “transformational change” to the rewriting of Ontario labour legislation

        3:45 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
        Panel Session
        “Students and austerity: Ontario, Quebec and beyond”

        5:15 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
        Evening Reception

Day 2, Friday, January 11, 2013                    

        8:30 a.m. -9:00 a.m.
Continental breakfast

        9:00 a.m. -10:15 a.m.
        Keynote Address
Austerity in the United Kingdom: Dramatic impact, uncertain future

        10:30 a.m. – 11:50 a.m.
        Panel session
        Austerity, the professoriate and academic librarians: International perspectives

        11:50 a.m. to noon
        Concluding remarks

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


 

October 25, 2012

Dear Colleagues:

The OCUFA Pension webcasts — Pensions Now (held October 16 and 17, 2012) and Pension Alternatives (held October 22 and 23, 2012) —  were recorded and can now be viewed again on the OCUFA website.

The link to the webcasts is:

http://ocufa.on.ca/members-area/pesionwebcasts/

To enter, please use the pass code: ocufaPeNsi0n

Could you please forward this information to those in your association who might be interested.

Best regards,

Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

 

 

October 18, 2012

Dear Colleagues:

You will now have heard that this evening (October 15, 2012) Dalton McGuinty resigned as premier and prorogued the Ontario Legislature.  This means that all legislative business comes to a halt and all legislation currently being considered dies on the order paper.  When a new session of the Legislature is eventually convened, it will be a new session of parliament, accompanied by a Throne Speech.  All legislation that was previously being considered will have to be re-introduced, along with any new legislation.

We do not know when the Legislature will meet again.    The Liberals will be preoccupied with a leadership convention, and will likely not want the Legislature to be in session for a significant part of that period.  A prorogued legislature will give the Liberals time to elect a new leader,  present itself as a “new and refreshed” party, and gear up for an election — which could very well take place in the Spring, with a new budget.

In his resignation speech, the Premier also said that during the period that the Legislature is prorogued, the government would like to discuss a negotiated wage freeze with its labour “partners”, and failing that, with the support of at least one of the opposition parties, bring in wage freeze legislation.   As he put it “two tasks lay ahead —  first to negotiate wage freezes with public sectors unions; second, to work with the opposition to form a legislated plan that can pass the minority government.  When the House returns we’re going to either have negotiated agreements in hand or a legislative plan supported by the opposition,”  he said.

We will be seeking more information from our contacts in government, opposition parties and the bureaucracy on what the process may be going forward, and its implications.  What will this mean for the draft “Protecting Public Services Act”, for the higher education initiative, for pension proposals?  We don’t know at this point — but it is likely that a Liberal government with a new leader will still pursue some form of wage restraint (legislated or negotiated), pension reform designed to reduce costs and promoted “efficiencies”, and some higher education “reforms”.  

At the OCUFA Board meeting on October 27, OCUFA’s Education and Mobilization plan will be discussed.  It is now being redrafted to take account of the changes that were announced this evening and will be sent to you by the beginning of next week.  And the October 26 pension workshop will also take into account the implications of the changes announced this evening.

We will keep you informed as more information comes available.

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

October 11, 2012

Dear Colleagues:

As recent headlines attest, the Ontario government appears to be closing in on a new framework for university pension plans in this province.  In order to develop an informed response to government proposals, faculty members need a full understanding of the potentially dramatic impact these government actions could have on their financial futures.  

To this end, OCUFA has worked with industry experts to develop two educational webcasts and we ask that you actively participate in each of these online sessions. The sessions will be highly informative and interactive webcasts tailored to meet your information needs.
 
Space for these webcasts is limited, so you must sign up in advance.  Select the time that works best for you for each of the webcasts and click on it to register online.

Once registered, you’ll receive an email with the information you need to access the webcast.

Registration for each session will remain open until all available spaces are booked or until 60 minutes before its starting time, whichever comes first.

Please pass this invitation along to your faculty association members.  [And we apologize if you receive this notice more than once].
 

CLICK HERE for the Webcast invitation.

 

Webcast title Content Webcast schedule & online sign-up
1.     Pensions now
 
§  Introduction to key government proposals§  Why now? The shifting pension landscape §  How did we get here? Factors and trends that impact pension funding§  Setting the stage: guiding principles for Ontario university pension plans§  Defined benefit vs. defined contribution (capital accumulation)§  Assets vs. liabilities§  Introduction to alternative pension plan designs October 16, 2012
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
orOctober 17, 2012
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
2.     Pension alternatives
 
§  A closer look at government proposals, including o   Governance and reportingo   Potential impacts on collective bargainingo   Transitional issues§  Other options, including merging with existing public sector plans§  Our collective government relations strategy
o   Framing our discussiono   Identifying preferred outcomes
October 22, 2012
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
orOctober 23, 2012
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

 

Best regards,

Mark

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


October 10, 2012

Dear Colleagues:

A comprehensive summary and analysis of the Ontario government’s draft labour legislation, Protecting Public Services Act 2012 has been prepared for OCUFA by the legal team at Sack, Goldblatt, Mitchell.  It focusses in particular on Schedule 2, titled Respecting Collective Bargaining Act (Public Sector), 2012.

The summary and analysis can be accessed by following this link on the OCUFA website.  For those who have trouble accessing the link, please paste the following address into your browser:
http://ocufa.on.ca/members-area/conference-call-recording-legislation-55/

The passcode to access this section of the website is: ocufalegi55

Additional material in this section of the OCUFA website includes the September 28, 2012 OCUFA conference call briefing on the draft legislation with Steven Barrett from Sack, Goldblatt, Mitchell,  as well as a Question and Answer section which allows you to ask further questions to which we will respond and add to the website.  Please feel free to share this information with your members.

As noted by the legal team at Sack, Goldblatt, Mitchell in its summary and analysis, the legislation as currently drafted “goes far beyond simply implementing a wage freeze for workers in the broader public sector; rather it would give the Government unprecedented control over collective bargaining, the right to strike, interest arbitration (in the case of essential services), and the content of every term and condition of every collective agreement.”  Not to put too fine a point on it, if passed, this legislation will profoundly affect every university faculty association in the province, certified or not.  As the legal analysis concludes, “while purporting to respect collective bargaining (to quote the Orwellian pretense of its title), the Respecting Collective Bargaining Act (Public Sector), 2012 would actually eviscerate it.”

Over the next few weeks you will hear more about the various communication, education and mobilization initiatives OCUFA plans to undertake in response to this unprecedented attack on collective bargaining in the broader public sector.  There will also be a special session of the October 27-28 OCUFA Board meeting to discuss a plan going forward.

If you have any questions about any of the above, please let me know.

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]

 


October 3, 2012

Dear Colleagues;

This morning, OCUFA released its response to the Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities discussion paper, Strengthening Ontario’s Centres of Creativity, Innovation and Knowledge. Our submission, titled Growing Ontario’s Universities for the Future, will be officially launched at a Queen’s Park press conference this morning alongside responses from the Canadian Federation of Students, The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).

The OCUFA response highlights our concerns with the assumptions that underpin the MTCU discussion paper, and critically evaluates the policy proposals put forward by the government. Overall, OCUFA believes that, taken to their logical end, the ideas, concepts, and proposals contained within the discussion paper would lead to an unprecedented government intrusion into academic decision-making and would seriously impair academic freedom within Ontario’s universities. Such an intrusion would be unacceptable, and would seriously damage the sector. Instead, OCUFA is urging the government to take a step back from the discussion paper. In collaboration with stakeholders, MTCU should reframe the assumptions contained within the existing document and begin a long-term co-operative project to improve quality, enhance student success, and ensure the viability of our institutions for decades to come. While we do not believe that the higher education sector can be re-designed in a few short months, we do believe that a vibrant, well-funded university sector can be grown through careful research, realistic goals, and meaningful partnership.

Please find the response attached: OCUFA Submission – MTCU Consultation 2012 – FINAL WEB It can also be accessed on the OCUFA website. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to get it touch,

Many thanks,

Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communications Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. | Toronto, ON | M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA


October 2, 2012

I am forwarding this message on behalf of the CAUT Executive Committee.

CAUT Declares an ALERT for Concordia University College of Alberta

CAUT has issued an ALERT to draw attention to the serious threat to the collective bargaining rights of the faculty at Concordia University College of Alberta. This is the first time in more than a decade that CAUT has had to take this step.

An ALERT signals a situation in which a university or college board and administration goes beyond hard bargaining to engage in an extreme form of bad faith bargaining and is seriously inhibiting the free collective bargaining process.

In late 2011, the academic staff at Concordia University College of Alberta were given a ‘draft faculty agreement’ that contained an unprecedented assault on job security and other employment rights. In response, the academic staff applied to the Alberta Labour Relations Board for certification, and in late April were certified by the Board after a vigorous effort by the employer to block unionization.

Subsequently, the new union served notice to bargain days after receiving the certificate. The employer immediately began to refuse offered bargaining dates on the grounds that its team would be unavailable. Finally, bargaining began in late summer only to be stopped again by the resignation from the university of the vice-president academic who was the employer’s chief negotiator. The university president then wrote to the university community blaming the presence of the union for VPA’s departure.

Since then the employer:

· has refused to meet regularly and frequently enough to make progress in bargaining possible;

· has refused to follow normal bargaining conventions that allow the parties to identify changes made to its most recent proposals;

· without even considering the union’s opening set of proposals, reintroduced its pre-certification “draft faculty agreement” and insisted the union work from its language;

· engaged in “receding horizon bargaining”, i.e. new counter-proposals move further backward from its previous position;

· has ruled core articles in the sector out of bounds for the bargaining process, including academic freedom, permanence, promotion, performance evaluation and appointments.

This ALERT means that CAUT will be taking all measures necessary to publicize the events which led to the invocation of an ‘ALERT’, and provide all possible support to its member association. As well, CAUT encourages every academic staff association to offer all possible support to the CUCAFA which is facing a threat to its collective bargaining rights.

Should these measures not resolve the situation, CAUT may decide to impose censure through its Council.

Messages of solidarity and support to our colleagues at Concordia University College of Alberta should be sent to Deb Hemmerling, President, Concordia University College of Alberta Faculty Association, [email protected].

For more information, contact Angela Regnier, CAUT communications Officer, 613-726-5186, [email protected].

Margaret McGovern-Potié

Executive Assistant to the Executive Director / Adjointe exécutive au directeur général

Canadian Association of University Teachers
Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université

2705, promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa (Ontario) K2B 8K2
Tel \ Tél. (613) 726-5179 | Fax \ Téléc. (613) 820-7244
www.caut.ca


September 27, 2012

Greetings,

Yesterday, the Ontario Government brought forward legislation that will freeze compensation and benefits for all those in the broader public sector, including all staff at universities and colleges, for two years. It also imposes a permanent salary cap for all in the public sector and limits the powers of the labour relations board, arbitrators and even the courts.

In many ways, it parallels the legislation brought in previously that did the same thing for Ontario’s elementary and secondary teachers.

The government’s intervention to block free collective bargaining is harmful in itself, but the new legislation raises an important constitutional question – whether it denies a fundamental Charter right. This is an issue of concern to all our members because if the Ontario Government can get away with this harmful intervention, there are other provincial governments that likely will follow suit.

We are consulting top constitutional and labour law experts in preparation for launching a challenge to yesterday’s legislation in court, as well as intervening in the challenge that four unions are bringing to the earlier bill regarding teachers.

A copy of yesterday’s bill can be found at http://www.fin.gov.on.ca/en/savings/protecting.html.


September 26, 2012

Save Library and Archives Canada

Campaign Update – Latest News

September 2012

Archival organizations across Canada withdraw from Library and Archives Canada’s Pan-Documentary Heritage Network

On May 31st, 2012, the Association of Canadian Archivists (ACA) withdrew from LAC’s Pan Canadian Documentary Heritage Network (PCDHN). Citing the elimination of the National Archival Development Program (NADP) and the lack of consultation with archival organizations, the ACA suggested that LAC has violated its legislated mandate to “support the development of the library and archival communities” and to “provide professional, technical and financial support to those involve in the preservation and promotion of the documentary heritage and in providing access to it.”

According to the ACA, while the LAC had successfully fulfilled its mandate through the NADP, with its “sporadic meetings” and controlled agendas”, the PCDHN cannot possibly address the “diverse needs and interests of archives across Canada.”

Since May 2012, the Canadian Council of Archives, the Association of Provincial and Territorial Archivists of Canada, and the University and College Archivists of Canada have also withdrawn from the PCDHN.

LAC withdraws from the Association of Research Libraries

In August 2012, LAC pulled out of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), North America’s preeminent organization of research libraries. LAC has yet to make a formal announcement of its withdrawal. CAUT became aware of this through a widely posted letter by H. Thomas Hickerson, Vice Provost and University Librarian at the University of Calgary:

http://utlibrarians.wordpress.com/2012/08/31/library-and-archives-canada-lac-to-withdraw-from-the-association-of-research-libraries-arl/

For more information, and speculation on the reasons for LAC’s withdrawal from ARL, check out the following post:

http://bibliocracy-now.tumblr.com/post/30889096523/lac-announces-withdrawal-from-association-of-research

The real scoop on digitization at LAC

The cuts to services at LAC were justified by promises that digitizing LAC’s material and online access would make up for the deficiency of on-site services. But, this argument made little sense when the April 2012 cuts reduced digitization staff by 50%. As a result, CAUT made an access to information request to find out the truth. This is what we found out:

Total percentage of records digitized

· LAC internal estimates indicate that approximately 0.5% of LAC holdings (both textual and non-textual) have been digitized to date.

· Based on LAC’s estimated costs for the digitization, from January 2012, we can calculate the following:

o Digitization of the published books, journals, and newspapers in LAC’s holdings (which in 2004, Ian Wilson indicated numbered about 19 million) would cost between $1.5 billion and $3.5 billion

o At the current rate of spending on digitization (approx $5 million annually) it would take LAC 300-700 years to digitize its published holdings (acquired pre-2004).

NB: These are only the costs incurred for the physical process of digitizing the material. These numbers do not reflect the time, labour, and technology involved in cataloguing and preserving the material once it has been converted into a digital file format.

Audio-Visual Migration Project at LAC

· LAC will be contracting with an external company for the digitization of (a portion of) LAC’s audio and video recordings. Estimated costs range from $27.7 million to $65 million.

· Of the 29 AV migration projects proposed, 14 will take longer than 10 years to complete; 2 will extend as far as 2039 (reel to reel); and 1 will take until 2253 (disc).

· This migration of AV material is largely being considered for preservation purposes. LAC’s AV Migration Action Plan (updated in 2010) indicates that material “where possible” may be available online for research purposes.

· LAC has no clear plan for cataloguing and managing the massive amount of digital material that will be generated by this project.

Legal Deposit: digital and analogue acquisitions of published titles

· The number of born digital records for published titles that have been acquired by LAC has increased by over 50% since 2009.

· The number of analogue records for published titles that have been acquired by LAC has steadily decreased by 27% since 2009.

This either means that there has been a 27% reduction in analogue published material in Canada since 2009 or that LAC is not living up to its legislated mandate with respect to legal deposit.

PSAC National Day of Action, “We are all affected”

On Saturday, September 15, 2012, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) held events across Canada to demonstrate support for public services and to share stories about the impact of federal cuts on our communities.

CAUT encouraged its members to attend National Day of Action events in their local communities. Representatives from CAUT joined PSAC members and allies in Ottawa’s Confederation Park.

CAUT has been working with PSAC to highlight layoffs and restrictions on public access at LAC. The “Save Library and Archives Canada” campaign has been an important public resource for all of those concerned about Canada’s ability to preserve, maintain, and make publicly accessible Canada’s documentary heritage.

Documentary Producers speak out!

The Documentary Organization of Canada (DOC), the group representing documentary film makers from across Canada, has produced a short video outlining their concerns with the cuts to service and resources at LAC. Please follow the link below to view:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReluC6sxYrY&feature=relmfu

Stay Informed; Stay Involved!

www.savelac.ca

www.facebook.com/savelac

Twitter: #savelac

Rosa E. Barker

Professional Officer / Agente professionnelle

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université

2705 promenade Queensview Drive

Ottawa ON, K2B 8K2

Tel / tél 613-726-5166

Fax/ télé 613-820-7244

[email protected]


Dear Colleagues;

Attached [posted below this statement], please find our response to the government’s imposition of compensation freeze legislation on the university sector.

In the coming weeks, we will be working with other unions, sympathetic politicians, and the media to fight the proposed legislation. We will also be looking at ways to engage faculty across the province in a coordinated pushback. This press release is only our first shot in the battle.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Many thanks,
Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communications Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. | Toronto, ON | M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA

McGuinty breaks his promise to respect rights. Again.

TORONTO – Ontario’s professors and academic librarians are disappointed that Dalton McGuinty has once again broken his promise to respect collective bargaining by imposing legislation on the province’s broader public sector workers that attacks their constitutional rights.

“A year ago, Premier McGuinty said he would respect the rights of hard-working Ontarians,” said Constance Adamson, President of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA). “First, he broke his promise to our teachers. Today, he is breaking his promise to professors, academic librarians, and the broader public sector. I guess we know now what a McGuinty promise is worth.”

Ontario’s professors and academic librarians have a long tradition of responsible bargaining sensitive to the needs of citizens and government. Today’s announcement takes away their ability to reach fair agreements, and will deliver few real benefits to government.

“McGuinty’s own advisor – Don Drummond – made it clear that wage freezes provide no long-term savings to government,” said Adamson. “One wonders why the government spent all that money on Drummond if they were just going to ignore his advice.”

University faculty are also asking why the government would choose to strip away the rights of professors and librarians while also trying to push through a series of controversial university reforms.

“On one hand, the government is asking faculty to be partners in changing our universities. On the other, they are willing to bully away our fundamental rights. From minute to minute, it’s hard to know which version of the government we’re talking to,” said Adamson.

“Ontario’s professors and academic librarians are more than just dedicated educators who help students succeed while building a more vibrant and prosperous province. We are parents. We are members of the community. And when the government plays politics with our constitutional rights, they hurt our families, our communities, and our students.”

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 professors and academic librarians in 27 faculty associations across Ontario. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at http://www.ocufa.on.ca.

Media Contact:
Graeme Stewart at 416 306 6033 (office), 647 280 3175 (mobile), or [email protected]


Sept. 12, 2012

Dear Colleagues:

As many of you may have heard, the Ontario government has stated that it intends to introduce legislation that will freeze compensation for employees in the Broader Public Sector. This follows legislation that was passed yesterday, with the support of the governing Liberals and Progressive Conservatives, freezing compensation for teachers and banning strikes for two years.

We understand that the Ministry of Finance is drafting the legislation but do not as yet have any details. We are in contact with various officials in the government to get more information, and do not know how it will apply to the university sector.

As you know, unlike the teachers, or Ontario civil servants, collective agreements in the university sector expire at different times, and a number of agreements have just been concluded that have a multi-year duration. We assume that any freezes would not roll back existing agreements but apply to agreements going forward — but again no details.

The issue of Ontario government compensation legislation for the university sector will be discussed this Friday, September 14, 2012 at OCUFA’s Collective Bargaining Committee meeting. As well, as soon as we have more information on the government’s legislation, we will let you know.

Needless to say, OCUFA will be vigorously opposing the government’s legislation to freeze compensation.

Best regards,
Mark
——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


Sept. 11, 2012

Dear Colleagues;

Today, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives released a paper exploring the relative affordability of higher education across Canada. Not surprisingly, it finds that Ontario’s high tuition fees makes it one of least affordable provinces to go to school. The complete report can be found at: http://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/eduflation-and-high-cost-learning

The paper was commissioned by the Ontario University and College Coalition, representing students, staff, and faculty, chaired by OCUFA. Attached, please find OCUFA’s press release concerning the CCPA research.

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know.

Best Regards,
Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communications Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. | Toronto, ON | M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 | [email protected]
www.ocufa.on.ca | @OCUFA | www.facebook.com/OCUFA


 

Subject:  PSAC “We are all affected” September 15 National Day of Action and Save Library & Archives Canada

 

Dear members,

 

On Saturday, September 15, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) is inviting people across Canada to join them in demonstrating support for public services and sharing stories about the impact of federal cuts on our communities.

 

Events are being organized in communities in numerous regions across Canada. You can find out more about the National Day of Action, “We are all affected”, and local events at the PSAC website (http://www.psac-afpc.com/federal-government-layoffs/index-e.shtml).

 

Please consider joining PSAC members and allies in your communities to show your support for strong public services.

 

One important issue to highlight on September 15 is the systematic dismantling of Library and Archives Canada (LAC). CAUT has been working with PSAC to highlight layoffs and restrictions on public access to at LAC . CAUT’s “Save Library and Archives Canada” campaign has been an important public resource for all of those concerned about Canada’s ability to preserve, maintain, and make publicly accessible Canada’s documentary heritage.

 

Materials are available, including a poster that you can print out to bring to “We are all affected” events in your region at the campaign website http://www.savelibraryarchives.ca/downloads.aspx. A PDF of the Save Library and Archives Canada poster is also attached to this email.

 

Regards,

 

Rosa E. Barker

Professional Officer / Agente professionnelle

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université

2705 promenade Queensview Drive

Ottawa ON, K2B 8K2

Tel / tél  613-726-5166

Fax/ télé 613-820-7244

[email protected]

 

 


August 28, 2012

TO: Presidents and Administrative Officers

Local and Federated Associations

FROM: James L. Turk, Executive Director

RE: Labour Day – September 3, 2012

Across the country, labour rights are under attack, as are social justice, environmental protections, equity, and democratic practices.

This September 3rd on Canada’s 139th Labour Day, CAUT member associations are called upon to unite with students, general staff and others in your community and the broader labour movement to celebrate labour’s achievements and to renew our commitment work for labour rights and social justice.

We encourage your association to participate in local or regional Labour Day activities organized by other local unions, your community’s labour council or your provincial federation of labour. You may also want to consider issuing your own statement on Labour Day. Finally, if your association has not considered membership in the National Union of CAUT (NUCAUT), this September would be a good time to do so.

Attached you will find a copy of the CAUT Statement on Labour Day which is posted on our website at: http://www.caut.ca/pages.asp?page=1099&lang=1&txtSearch=&nid.

It is important to remember on Labour Day, that our ability to have one of the best post-secondary education systems in the world is partially a result of academic staff having one of the highest rates of unionization in the country, Strong faculty associations a vital guarantor of good working conditions for the staff and good learning conditions for our students.

­­­­­­­­——————————————————————————————­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­————————————–

May 29, 2012

Salutations,

Please see attached memo (12 20 Quebec Student Protest and Government response (2012-05-24)) detailing CAUT’s response to the efforts of student groups in Quebec in fighting tuition increases as well as our condemnation of the Charest government’s Bill 78.

___________________________________________________

Voir la note ci-jointe exposant (12 20 Mouvement de protestation étudiante au Québec et réponse du gouvernement (2012-05-24)) la position de l’ACPPU à l’égard du mouvement d’opposition des organisations étudiantes du Québec contre la hausse des frais de scolarité, et faisant état de notre condamnation de la loi 78 du gouvernement Charest.

Cordialement,

Margaret McGovern-Potié

Executive Assistant to the Executive Director / Adjointe exécutive au directeur général

2705, promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa (ON) K2B 8K2

Tel/Tél: 613-820-2270, ext. 199 / Fax/Téléc: 613-820-7244

Web site/site internet: www.caut.ca / email/courriel: [email protected]


May 29, 2012
Salutations,

Please see the attached communique (2012.05.23 CAUT Communique – Quebec) that CAUT issued today regarding the protests in Quebec.

S’il vous plaît voir le communiqué (2012.05.23 ACPPU Communique – Quebec) ci-joint émis par l’ACPPU aujourd’hui au sujet des protestations au Québec.

James L. Turk

Executive Director/Directeur général

Canadian Association of University Teachers/

Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université

2705, promenade Queensview Drive

Ottawa (Ontario) K2B 8K2

Tel/Tél: 613-726-5176

Mobile: 613-277-0488

Fax/Téléc: 613-820-7244

Twitter: @jameslturk


May 29, 2012
Greetings,

Attached (Release – Quebec special law violates student rights and civil liberties – May18 2012) is CAUT’s statement on the law introduced in the Quebec National Assembly to stop the student strike.

You will find statements from other organizations at the links below:

Quebec Bar Association

http://www.barreau.qc.ca/fr/actualites-medias/communiques/2012/05/18-etudiants#

(Globe and Mail article in English)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/quebecs-anti-protest-legislation-tramples-basic-rights-legal-experts/article2436933/

Canadian Federation of Students

English

http://cfs-fcee.ca/html/english/media/mediapage.php?release_id=1356

French

http://www.cfs-fcee.ca/html/french/media/index.php

Joint release by: CSN, CSQ et FTQ

http://www.newswire.ca/fr/story/977333/une-loi-qui-porte-atteinte-aux-libertes-civiles-et-qui-menace-notre-democratie

FQPPU

http://www.fqppu.org/assets/files/bibliotheque/prises_de_position/declaration/2012/declaration_crise_etudiante_17_mai_2012.pdf

Regards,

Jim

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk


May 18, 2012

La version française suivra

International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia: CAUT Statement

(May 17, 2012) On the International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia, the Canadian Association of University Teachers recognizes the work of tireless activists working to combat discrimination and violence against gay, lesbian, trans, bisexual, two-spirited, and queer communities. The eradication of homophobia and transphobia is crucial for the realization of an equitable and just society.
While there have been many important advances through legal challenges, education campaigns, and legislative changes, homophobia and transphobia still resonate throughout too many workplaces, schools, and communities.

The social, physical, economic, and psychological harms resulting from these forms of discrimination are stark. Suicide rates among LGBTQ youth remain overwhelmingly high, as do incidences of violence and bullying in our communities and on our campuses. When schools and post-secondary institutions ignore or downplay oppressive and discriminatory incidences instigated by ignorance around gender expression and sexual orientation, access to education is compromised.

At an international scale, nations across the globe permit and even legislate punitive and harmful actions against LGBTQ communities, compromising their civil rights to life, liberty, and security. Thus it is crucial on this day of commemoration that we speak out to end all forms of discrimination against LGBTQ communities, not only among our own campuses and workplaces, but our education and activism needs to resonate all over the world.

CAUT supports the inclusion of “gender identity” and “gender expression” as prohibited grounds of discrimination in the Canadian Human Rights Act, as is expressed in Bill 279 – a federal bill currently being considered by Parliament. We encourage individuals to contact their member of parliament to support this bill.

CAUT supports Gay-Straight Alliances in schools and calls on schools to end bans against such associations aimed to promote diversity and acceptance.

CAUT supports the expansion of positive spaces in workplaces and on campuses, including: expanding gender-neutral washrooms, university policies that support staff and students to self-identify their gender, anti-oppression training available for students and university personnel, and other campus educational campaigns aimed to end all forms of discrimination.

On this important day of global solidarity against homophobia and transphobia, the Canadian Association of University Teachers stands with pride to support and promote sexual diversity.

Déclaration de l’ACPPU sur la Journée internationale de lutte contre l’homophobie et la transphobie

(le 17 mai 2012) En cette Journée internationale de lutte contre l’homophobie et la transphobie, l’Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université (ACPPU) salue le travail des militants infatigables qui luttent contre la discrimination et la violence à l’égard des communautés gaies, lesbiennes, bisexuelles, transgenres, allosexuelles et bi-spirituelles. L’éradication de l’homophobie et de la transphobie est déterminante pour la construction d’une société juste et équitable.

Les contestations judiciaires, les campagnes de sensibilisation et les changements législatifs ont certes permis de réaliser de nombreux progrès importants, mais l’homophobie et la transphobie restent malheureusement d’actualité dans un trop grand nombre de milieux de travail, d’écoles et de communautés.

Les préjudices sociaux, physiques, économiques et psychologiques résultant de ces formes de discrimination sont énormes. Le taux de suicide chez les jeunes GLBTA demeure massivement élevé tout comme les répercussions de la violence et du harcèlement dans nos communautés et sur nos campus. L’accès à l’éducation se trouve sérieusement compromis dès lors que des écoles et des établissements postsecondaires préfèrent masquer ou minimiser les conséquences de l’ignorance autour de l’expression et de l’orientation sexuelles.

À l’échelle internationale, des pays de tous les continents autorisent, voire adoptent par voie législative, des mesures punitives et des actes préjudiciables contre les communautés GLBTA, portant ainsi atteinte à leurs droits civils à la vie, à la liberté et à la sécurité. C’est pourquoi il est capital, en ce jour de commémoration, non seulement que nous appelions haut et fort à mettre fin à toutes les formes de discrimination exercées à l’endroit des communautés GLBTA sur nos campus et nos lieux de travail, mais aussi que nos actions en ce sens et nos démarches de sensibilisation se répercutent dans le monde entier.

L’ACPPU souscrit à l’intégration de l’« identité sexuelle » et de l’« expression sexuelle » à la liste des motifs de distinction illicite définis dans la Loi canadienne sur les droits de la personne, tel que le prévoit le projet de loi fédéral 279 actuellement à l’étude au Parlement. Nous encourageons tous les Canadiens et Canadiennes à demander à leur député d’appuyer ce projet de loi.

L’ACPPU appuie la formation d’alliances entre étudiants gais et hétérosexuels et appelle les établissements scolaires à cesser d’interdire la présence d’associations de ce type qui ont pour but de promouvoir la diversité et la tolérance.

L’ACPPU appuie la création d’un plus grand nombre d’espaces positifs sur les campus et les lieux de travail, l’aménagement de toilettes unisexes, l’adoption de politiques universitaires qui encouragent les membres du personnel et les étudiants à affirmer leur identité sexuelle, l’offre d’une formation anti-oppression aux étudiants et au personnel des établissements, ainsi que l’organisation de campagnes d’information sur les campus destinées à mettre fin à toutes les formes de discrimination.

En cette importante journée de solidarité internationale contre l’homophobie et la transphobie, l’ACPPU est fière d’appuyer et de promouvoir la diversité sexuelle.

Angela Regnier
Communications Officer/
Agente des communications
Canadian Association of University Teachers/
Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université
2705 promenade Queensview Drive
Ottawa, Ontario
CANADA K2B 8K2
tel/tél: +1.613.726.5186
cell/mobile: +1.613.601.6304
fax/téléc: +1.613.820.7244
www.caut.ca
www.facebook.com/CAUT.ACPPU
twitter: @CAUT_ACPPU

www.savelibraryarchives.ca


May 15, 2012

Dear Colleagues;

Today, OCUFA release the first batch of results from our latest Faculty Survey. Attached, please find our press release (OCUFA Faculty Survey – Release Part 1 FINAL) and a copy of the report (2012 OCUFA Faculty Survey Part 1 – Formatted – FINAL) .

This collection of results focuses on faculty perceptions of quality, and their priorities within their careers and institutions. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me directly.

Many thanks,
Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communication and Government Relations Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. ~ Toronto, ON ~ M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 (Office) | 647 280 3175 (Mobile)
[email protected] | www.ocufa.on.ca | www.twitter.com/ocufa

Ontario’s professors and academic librarians warn that university quality is on the decline

Survey of over 2,300 faculty reveals strong commitment to the connection between teaching and research

TORONTO –Professors and academic librarians are concerned about the quality of education at Ontario’s universities, according to a new survey released today. Of those surveyed, 42 per cent believed that quality had declined at their institution.

“Ontario’s universities have welcomed thousands of new students over the past five years, but public funding has just not kept pace with the enrolment increase,” said Constance Adamson, President of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA). “Universities are straining to accommodate the new students with inadequate resources, and the cracks are beginning to show.”

Other worrying survey findings include:

· 63 per cent of faculty believe class sizes have increased over the past five years
· 83 per cent of faculty report budget cuts in their department
· 76 per cent of faculty report an increased use of part-time faculty at their institution
· 73 per cent of faculty report an increase in workload, which for many (41 per cent) means less time to interact with students outside of class

The survey also revealed that Ontario’s professors and academic librarians are deeply committed to the quality of university education and the essential link between teaching and research at the province’s universities. Surveyed faculty value teaching and research equally, although they believe their commitment to teaching is not always shared by their institution.

“Ontario’s professors and academic librarians believe that the connection between teaching and research –what we call ‘scholarship’—is at the heart of the university,” said Adamson. “When we separate teaching from research, we don’t give our students the education they expect.”

The OCUFA faculty survey was commissioned to assess Ontario university professors’ and academic librarians’ opinion on a variety of issues affecting university education. The online survey received over 2,300 responses between March 21 and April 16, 2012.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty and academic librarians in 27 faculty associations across Ontario. The full survey report can be accessed at http://bit.ly/KOqUpE.

Contact:
Graeme Stewart, Communications Manager, 416-979-2117 x232, or [email protected]


April 19, 2012

Dear Colleagues:

As you may be aware, the Ontario Federation of Labour is holding a Day of Action for Budget Fairness and Against the Cuts this Saturday, April 21 from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Queen’s Park in Toronto, followed by a march.

The rally has been endorsed by more than 90 labour and community organization, including OCUFA, and is intended to highlight the needed for a fairer and more balanced approach than that taken by the 2012 Ontario Budget.

For those wishing to attend the Day of Action, buses will be leaving from cities around the province.

More information about the Day of Action can be found on the OFL website at http://www.ofl.ca/

Information about buses can be found by contacting Carrol Anne Sceviour, 416-443-7670; [email protected]

Best regards,

Mark

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Solidarity is Pink

We have all seen the effects of homophobic and transphobic harassment in schools in several high-profile suicides by young people. These tragedies have prompted many to take action and raise awareness of bullying. Homophobic and transphobic harassment is happening in our schools and workplaces, sometimes on a daily basis.

We encourage you to participate in the International Day of Pink, which takes place on April 11, this year. On this day, teachers and education workers will engage with students and colleagues on ways to end homophobia and transphobia. Workers in many other sectors will participate as well, by wearing pink shirts on this day; and by organizing celebrations of diversity and communicating that homophobia and transphobia will not be tolerated.

We encourage you to call on your members to show their solidarity by wearing a pink shirt and organizing Day of Pink events in their workplace, communities and schools. Together, we can put a stop to homophobic and transphobic bullying, discrimination and violence.

Learn more about the Day of Pink by visiting: http://www.dayofpink.org/

————–

La solidarité en rose

Nous avons tous et toutes été témoins des effets du harcèlement homophobe et transphobe dans les écoles qui ont donné lieu à plusieurs cas de suicides commis par les jeunes et ayant retenu l’attention. Ces tragédies ont incité plusieurs personnes à agir et à sensibiliser la population à ces questions. Le harcèlement homophobe et transphobe se fait dans nos écoles et nos lieux de travail, parfois sur une base quotidienne.

Nous vous encourageons à participer à la Journée de la Solidarité en rose qui, cette année, se tiendra le 11 avril. En ce jour, les enseignants et enseignantes et les professionnels et professionnelles de l’éducation trouveront des moyens avec les étudiants et étudiantes et leurs collègues pour mettre fin à l’homophobie et à la transphobie. Les travailleurs et travailleuses de nombreux autres secteurs participeront aussi par le port de chemises roses ce jour-là; en organisant des célébrations de la diversité et en communiquant de façon générale que l’homophobie et la transphobie ne seront pas tolérées.

Nous vous encourageons à faire appel à vos membres afin qu’ils et elles manifestent leur solidarité en portant un t-shirt rose et en organisant une activité de Solidarité en rose dans leurs lieux de travail, leurs communautés et leurs écoles. Ensemble, nous pouvons mettre un terme à l’intimidation, la discrimination et la violence homophobe et transphobe.

Pour en savoir plus sur la Solidarité en rose, veuillez visiter : http://www.dayofpink.org/fr

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

twitter: @jameslturk


March 30, 2012

CAUT Media Release-2012 Budget compromises research, hinders prosperity 03292012

(Ottawa, March 29, 2012) – The organization representing Canada’s university and college educators says today’s federal budget jeopardizes Canada’s long-term development by weakening the country’s research capacity.

“With this budget, the government turns away from the kind of research that leads to new discoveries in favour of a narrow and short-term commercial agenda,” says James L. Turk, executive director of the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT). “By linking research only to business interests, the government will stifle rather than promote growth and scientific advancement.”

The budget supports a major restructuring of the National Research Council, away from its historic focus on basic research in favor of meeting the short-term needs of the business sector. The three federal granting agencies that provide the bulk of Canada’s vital university-based research capacity received no new funding. Instead, $37 million will be reallocated to support industry-academic research partnerships.

“Tying research increasingly to commercial interests, as this budget does, will hinder real innovation,” says Turk. “The government fails to understand that most fundamental advances in knowledge that lead to innovative applications come from basic research guided by scientists, not political or commercial interests.”

Further, the announcement of a $9.6 million funding cut of over three years to Library and Archives Canada will further undermine the institution’s mandate to preserve and make available Canada’s historical, social and cultural heritage.

Turk says CAUT is pleased that the government did not cut education transfer payments to the provinces, but notes that these transfers remain too low to cover inflation and enrolment increases at universities and colleges.

“As recently as 1990, public funding made up 80% of total university operating revenues,” Turk explains. “Today, that has dropped to about 50%, with a greater financial burden shifted onto students and their families.”

“There is nothing in this budget to help students struggling with high fees and debt, to allow universities and colleges to expand student spaces and hire more teachers, or to permit researchers to conduct fundamental and ground-breaking work,” Turk added.

Burdens placed on students, combined with the budget’s announcement of cuts to social programs such as Old Age Security, will only lead to greater intergenerational inequality, says Turk.

The deep cuts to public sector spending threaten to stall the economic recovery and jeopardize future development, Turk warns.

“You can’t cut your way to prosperity.”

The Canadian Association of University Teachers is the national voice of 66,000 academic and general staff at more than 120 universities and colleges across the country.

Contact: Angela Regnier, communications officer, (office) 613-726-5186, (cell) 613-601-6304 Angela Regnier

Communications Officer/

Agente des communications

Canadian Association of University Teachers/

Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université

2705 promenade Queensview Drive

Ottawa, Ontario

CANADA K2B 8K2

tel/tél: +1.613.726.5186

fax/téléc: +1.613.820.7244

www.caut.ca

www.facebook.com/CAUT.ACPPU

twitter: @CAUT_ACPPU

www.savelibraryarchives.ca


March 30, 2012
Dear Colleagues:

Please find attached OCUFA Budget Analysis 2012 released on March 27, 2012.

As you will see, this is an “austerity budget” which will have a profound effect on the university sector as well as many other sectors, and on the province generally.

In light of the minority government situation, the Budget Bill on which the Ontario Budget is based will likely have further changes if it is to get support to pass in the Legislature. Currently, the government and the NDP are in negotiations regarding potential changes to the budget legislation.

There are a number of budget proposals regarding collective bargaining and compensation, pensions, and the intention to use “policy levers” to enhance “efficiencies” in higher education about which OCUFA is seeking more information and clarification. The government has also signalled its intention to consult in each of these areas, We will be meeting with government officials in the near future on all these issues, and will provide you with updates. We are also working with the opposition parties to register our concerns.

Please let me know if you have any questions or require further information.

Best regards,

Mark

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


28/03/2012

University professors and librarians: Ontario budget adds up to less funding and more intervention

TORONTO – Ontario’s professors and academic librarians are disappointed that today’s provincial
budget effectively cuts university resources while signaling increased government intervention in
labour relations.

“If you look behind the numbers in the budget, the government is providing less money to
universities than recommended by Don Drummond,” said Constance Adamson, President of the Ontario
Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA). “University education is one of the best
investments a government can make to promote economic growth. It is too bad that the government has
missed this important fact in their deficit reduction strategy.”

In his report on public sector reform, Don Drummond recommended that university funding increase by
1.5 per cent per year. In the face of rising enrolment and inflation, this would mean an effective
cut to university operating funding. Surprisingly, the 2012 Budget goes even further than Drummond,
limiting yearly increases to an average of one per cent. This leaves universities with $46 million
less funding than Drummond recommended, and far less money than they need to provide high quality
education for every student.

Professors and librarians are also concerned about the apparent willingness of the Government of
Ontario to consider intervention in collective bargaining at Ontario universities. The budget
signals the government’s interest in sector-wide bargaining, top-down pension reform, and steering
compensation settlements. Ontario’s universities and faculty have a long history of responsible
local bargaining sensitive to local needs, the sector’s bottom line, and the interests of Ontario’s
citizens. Many of the government’s proposals could seriously harm this record of success.

“We will hold the government to their promise that they will consult meaningfully on pensions,
compensation, and bargaining,” said Adamson. “If the outcome is predetermined, then there is no
point consulting. But if they really want to work with the sector, professors and academic
librarians are ready as always with ideas and insights that promote fair and responsible collective
bargaining.”

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty and academic librarians in 27 faculty associations
across Ontario. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at http://www.ocufa.on.ca.

Contact: Graeme Stewart – 416 979 2117 x232 (office) or 647 280 3175 (mobile) or
[email protected]


30/11/2011

Greetings,

As promised at CAUT Council, I am sending the first of several PowerPoint presentations that we hope will be helpful in discussions with your members.

The attached presentation presents key concerns with Google contracts to take over the university or college’s email service. The essential elements of all Google contracts are the same, regardless of university or college. This presentation highlights our concerns and why we encourage all associations to do everything in their power  to stop academic staff email from being contract to Google or Microsoft.  Steps include (1) determining if your administration is considering contracting out email services to Google, Microsoft or another cloud provider; (2) if so, insisting that there be a broad consultation with academic staff arranged jointly between the administration and your association, (3) bringing the concerns we discussed at Council to the attention of your membership.   We hope the attached PowerPoint will be useful in #3 and would be pleased to provide more extensive assistance to your association.

2011.11 Google Apps for CAUT Council

Please let me know if you have any questions or if CAUT can help in any way on this matter.

Sincerely,

Jim

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]

http://twitter.com/jameslturk

25/11/2011

Dear OCUFA Board members, Faculty Association Presidents and Executive Assistants,

As you are aware, yesterday Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan delivered his Fall 2011 ON Economic Statement – summary Please find attached a summary of what he said which may bear on financing for post-secondary education in Ontario.

Regards,
Russell

Russell Janzen, Senior Research Analyst
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge St., Suite 300
Toronto, ON M5C 1S8


23/11/2011
Dear colleagues:

A number of faculty associations are hearing from university administrators that the Ontario government is set to embark on a significant “reform” of the higher education sector – therefore institutions need to be pro-active and position themselves to take advantage of anticipated government directions. And it would appear that some administrations are using these assumptions to re-orient their institutions into directions they would like to pursue. While it is assumed that the Ontario government has a fully-developed plan for a “more cost-effective model for delivering university education” ready to be implemented, this is simply not the case.

We do know, from the government’s past initiatives, the Liberal Party election platform, and the November 22, 2011 Throne Speech, that it would like to pursue certain initiatives — greater credit transfer between colleges and universities, more joint programming between colleges and universities, enhancements to online programs, more “accountability”. It has also committed to establishing three new satellite campuses in the Greater Toronto Area, which it would like to see as undergraduate institutions with a focus on teaching (as opposed to research). What this means in practice is still unknown.

The government will also be implementing an annual tuition grant of $1600 for up to 4 years of full-time undergraduate study for students from households earning $160,000 or less. The grant for colleges students will be $730. The cost of this program is estimated at $423 million starting in 2012-13, and rising to $486 million in four years.

In addition, the government has committed funding for 60,000 new spaces at Ontario’s universities and colleges by 2015-16, with $309 million in additional funding committed by 2013-14.
As well, the government states it is committed to following through on the Drummond Commission on the Reform of Ontario’s Public Service, led by former TD Bank economist Don Drummond. The Commission is expected to report in January 2012, and its recommendations incorporated into the 2012 Ontario Budget. The recommendations will have implications for the broader public sector, including universities. To date, the government has stated that ” it will protect health care and education as the most important public services. Reforms will not compromise quality”. Of course what this means in practice is yet to be seen. It has been reported that in light of the government goal of balancing the budget by 2017-18, education funding will only be allowed to increase by 1% a year. Again, the devil will be in the details. What is clear is that funding for the higher education sector will focus on “affordabiliity” (i.e. the tuition grant) and accessibility (i.e. the 60,000 new spaces). There will be little funding available for needed quality improvements.

What is also clear is that various constituencies — for example, the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO), Ian Clark, David Trick and Richard Van Loon in their new book Academic Reform, Colleges Ontario — are lobbying the government to accept and implement their policy prescriptions for the “reform” of the higher education system. Those policy prescriptions are not the same, nor necessarily consistent with one another.

One policy prescription advocated particularly by HEQCO and in Academic Reform is the need for more “differentiated” universities — to which some university administrations are also responding. “Differentiation” is an abstract term meaning different things to different people.

There is currently no government policy on “differentiation”, and university administrators, although sometimes jumping on the bandwagon, have different ideas of what this ill-defined term means and how “differentiation” would be implemented. To date, no policy work has been done on encouraging “areas of strength” for universities on a system-wide basis, nor detailing what new accountability agreements will look like. In fact, when we speak to policy staff in the Ministry (i.e. not in the Minister’s office, where staff have just been hired) they have no clear idea where the government will be going in these areas, especially regarding the issue of university missions and “areas of strength”. Furthermore, there has been no policy work done on changing the funding formula to encourage “differentiation”.

Will the government undertake a fully-fledged restructuring of the higher education system? It is hard to crystal-ball gaze but it should be remembered that we are currently in a minority government, and it is more likely the attention of the government will be focussed on the health-care system. System-wide “reforms” can be hugely disruptive and politically perilous, especially in a minority-government situation. Where change does occur, it is safer for a government to do it incrementally.

Faculty associations will no doubt hear more about the need for greater “differentiation”, for faculty to do more teaching and for teaching-focussed institutions. OCUFA has responded, and will continue to respond, to those proposed policy “solutions” and will be running a campaign in the winter/spring on faculty concerns — which was noted at the October Board meeting, and will be discussed again at the February 2012 Board meeting. We are (and also will be) meeting regularly with government and the opposition parties to highlight our concerns, and will keep you informed about those discussions.

As well, at the December 2, 2011 OCUFA Collective Bargaining Committee meeting, David Trick will be making a presentation based on the book, Academic Reform which argues for more “teaching-focussed” undergraduate institutions, and for faculty to do more teaching. We will be providing a critique of that argument for those at the meeting. Their previous book, Academic Transformations by Ian Clark, Greg Moran, Michael Skolnik and David Trick, (2009) also argued for the creation of “teaching-only” universities in Ontario and “more learning per dollar”, as a form of differentiation, and the resulting cost savings, which we have also critiqued.

And as you may be aware, HEQCO put out a report on differentiation which OCUFA vigorously critiqued.

For the HEQCO paper:

http://www.heqco.ca/SiteCollectionDocuments/DifferentiationENG.pdf

For OCUFA’s response (and other critiques of relevance):

OCUFA Response to the HEQCO Differentiation Report (26 October 2010)

For a critique of Academic Transformations, please see the article by Ken Snowdon in Academic Matters:

http://www.academicmatters.ca/2010/10/is-the-teacher-researcher-faculty-model-just-too-expensive/

OCUFA will continue to update you about Ontario government directions for higher education.

Best regards,

Mark

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.ocufa.on.ca
www.academicmatters.ca


18/11/2011

Greetings All:

Our campaign to stop Bill 18 has received tremendous support over the last two days.  By 10:00 am today our Facebook campaign has sent over 1,000 letters to Minister Yamamoto urging her not to pass the offensive legislation that her government has tabled.  Bill 18 will restrict the rights of local faculty association reps to stand for elected faculty positions on university and college Boards.  This is an impressive level of support and one that FPSE is extremely grateful to all CAUT affiliates for showing their support.  I have been contacted by many faculty association representatives from across Canada expressing their solidarity for our campaign, a message that I find extremely heartening to hear from so many of you.  We know that despite plans to have the Bill go forward to 2nd reading yesterday, that never happened.  As well, we know plans to have it discussed today have also been shelved.  Those delays no doubt reflect the level of support generated by this campaign and I’m appealing to all CAUT affiliates to continue their individual efforts to spread the word about our campaign to their members.  I have included the link to the Facebook campaign in this alert and urge you to once again rally your members to send a message to Minister Yamamoto.

Cindy

https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Stop-Bill-18/187806901302857

Cindy Oliver, President

Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of BC

400- 550 West 6th Avenue

Vancouver, BC  V5Z 1A1

604-873-8988


15/11/2011

Dear Colleagues;

Constance Adamson, OCUFA President, has an Op-Ed in today’s Toronto Star, both print and online. The article takes issue with recent comments that the decline in teaching quality is the fault of professors. The full text is attached below, and the original can be viewed at: http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorialopinion/article/1086896–no-quick-fix-for-universities

Please distribute to anyone who may be interested.

Best Regards,
Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communication and Government Relations Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. ~ Toronto, ON ~ M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 (Office) | 647 280 3175 (Mobile)

[email protected] | www.ocufa.on.ca | www.twitter.com/ocufa

Back to No quick fix for universities
No quick fix for universities

November 14, 2011

Constance Adamson

Among Ontario’s thousands of professors and academic librarians, there are scholars who specialize in irony.

We are grateful for their expertise; at times like these, their guidance is sorely needed. For it is certainly a sublime irony that, after decades of sounding the alarm bell over declining quality at our universities, university faculty are now being singled out as the cause of this decline.

A small coterie of columnists and pundits are convinced that professors are to blame for a disappointing undergraduate experience. They claim we spend too little time teaching. We focus too much on research, they say. As a result, class sizes are getting bigger, universities are turning to part-time faculty to teach, and students can’t engage with their instructors.

The critics are right about the consequences, but wrong about the cause. We need to get serious about the reasons why quality is threatened at our universities. Like most things, it comes down to money. The amount of per-student funding provided to universities by the government of Ontario has declined by 25 per cent since 1990, adjusted for inflation. Since 2001, enrolment has increased by 60 per cent. Think about what that means: universities are trying to accommodate significantly more students while receiving significantly less funding for each of those students. It doesn’t take a mathematician to realize this is a bad equation for the quality of higher education in Ontario.

The decline in per-student funding has had a variety of negative effects. Universities have simply been unable to hire enough full-time professors to meet the rise in student demand. Our student-to-faculty ratio is now 27-to-1, the worst in Canada. In 1990, it was 18-to-1. So let’s be clear: the problem is not that faculty are not teaching enough. It’s that they cannot possibly teach enough to compensate for the acute shortage of faculty in the university system. We simply need more professors.

True, research does take up a lot of time for most full-time faculty in the university system. But this is a matter of survival. Ontario’s underfunded universities have become exceptionally good at chasing dollars. It just so happens that a lot of new dollars – particularly those from the federal government – are for research. The government of Ontario has also emphasized research and commercialization through their funding policies. No surprise then that the entire reward and career advancement structure at our universities has become research focused. Many professors would like to spend more time teaching, but find the current system filled with too many disincentives.

To address this problem, critics offer the bromide of “teaching-only” professors or “teaching only” institutions. This, they claim, will allow us to teach more students without making additional public investments. Giving faculty the option to focus on teaching is not necessarily a bad idea. But let’s be clear: teaching-focused professors should not be seen as a way to deliver university education on the cheap. To be successful, our universities must always be adequately funded. And we have to recognize that scholarship is an important part of being a professor, and an important part of a university education.

Scholarship – which I define as the creation of new knowledge, the critical analysis of existing knowledge, and the communication of these insights – is central to the university. The teaching and scholarship equation is not zero-sum. Teaching is scholarship, and the two are inextricably linked. The critics will point to research that says being a good researcher does not make you a good teacher. This misses the point. You simply cannot have university-level teaching without the kind of intellectual inquiry that scholars are trained to do. If you remove scholarship from the professoriate or from our universities, you are no longer giving students the education they expect.

The critics of Ontario’s professors and academic librarians need to get real about what ails our university system. Right now, they’re only advocating for a system that offers more teaching. Meanwhile, faculty are talking about what they have always been talking about: a system that does more and better teaching. Surely our students deserve nothing less.

Constance Adamson is president of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations.


10/11/2011

La version française suit

Please forward widely!

Friends and Colleagues,

Library and Archives Canada (LAC), the federal institution responsible for preserving Canada’s history and cultural heritage, is under threat. Badly conceived restructuring, a redefinition of its mandate, and financial cutbacks are undermining LAC’s ability to acquire, preserve and make publicly available Canada’s full documentary heritage.

Click here to send a letter to the Federal government to Save Library and Archives Canada.

Circulate this email to your networks to help take action to save this vital national institution.

Join our facebook event for updates on the campaign.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Réexpédier ce message au plus grand nombre de personnes possible!

Chers amis et collègues,

Bibliothèque et Archives Canada (BAC), l’institution fédérale responsable de la conservation du patrimoine historique et culturel du Canada, est menacé. Une restructuration mal conçue, la refonte de son mandat et des restrictions budgétaires affaiblissent la possibilité donnée à BAC d’acquérir, de préserver et de mettre à la disposition du public le patrimoine documentaire intégral du Canada.

Cliquez ici pour faire parvenir au gouvernement fédéral une lettre l’incitant à sauver Bibliothèque et Archives Canada.

Faites circuler ce courriel dans vos réseaux : ainsi d’autres personnes agiront sauver cette institution nationale indispensable.

Pour prendre connaissance des dernières nouvelles sur la campagne, consultez la section Événements publics de notre page Facebook.

James L. Turk

Executive Director/Directeur général

Canadian Association of University Teachers/

Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université

2705, promenade Queensview Drive

Ottawa (Ontario) K2B 8K2

Tel/Tél: 613-726-5176

Mobile: 613-277-0488

Fax/Téléc: 613-820-7244

Twitter: http://twitter.com/jameslturk


10/11/2011

The Government of British Columbia has introduced legislation that would prohibit any faculty association executive member from being the elected faculty representative on the board of a university, college or institute. Attached is CAUT to Yamamoto re Bill 18 (2011-11-08) protesting this proposed legislation.

————————

Le gouvernement de la Colombie-Britannique a déposé un projet de loi qui interdirait à tous les membres de la direction des associations de personnel académique de siéger à titre de représentant élu du personnel au conseil d’administration d’une université, d’un collège ou d’un institut. Vous trouverez ci-jointe la lettre que l’ACPPU a adressée à la ministre pour protester contre ce projet de loi.

James L. Turk

Executive Director/Directeur général

Canadian Association of University Teachers/

Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université

2705, promenade Queensview Drive

Ottawa (Ontario) K2B 8K2

Tel/Tél: 613-726-5176

Mobile: 613-277-0488

Fax/Téléc: 613-820-7244

Twitter: http://twitter.com/jameslturk


09/11/2011

CAUT responds to AUCC’s new academic freedom statement

In an open letter) to the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, CAUT raises serious concerns about the organization’s revised statement on academic freedom issued in October 2011 on the of AUCC’s 100th Anniversary.

The 2011 AUCC Statement on Academic Freedom is the first change to its position on academic freedom since 1988. CAUT’s open letter is highly critical noting “There is a certain perverse irony that AUCC chose its 100th Anniversary to attempt to undo many of the advances that have been achieved in the understanding of academic freedom over the past 100 years.”

CAUT to AUCC re Academic Freedom (2011-11-04)

Réponse de l’ACPPU à la nouvelle Déclaration de l’AUCC sur la liberté universitaire

Dans une lettre ouverte destinée à l’Association des universités et collèges du Canada (AUCC), l’Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université (ACPPU) se dit fortement préoccupée par la nouvelle version de la Déclaration sur la liberté universitaire que l’AUCC a rendue publique en octobre 2011 à l’occasion de la commémoration de son centenaire.

Dans ce texte, l’AUCC modifie, pour la première fois depuis 1988, sa position sur cette question. L’ACPPU, quant à elle, se montre très critique dans sa lettre ouverte et y mentionne ce qui suit : « En effet, nous voyons une ironie malsaine dans le fait que votre Association choisisse précisément la commémoration de son centenaire pour aller à l’encontre de nombreux progrès qui ont été réalisés dans l’interprétation de la liberté universitaire au cours des 100 dernières années. »

CAUT to AUCC re Academic Freedom (2011-11-04)- fr

—————————————————————————————————————-

Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université / 2705 promenade Queensview Drive, Ottawa, (Ontario) K2B 8K2

James L. Turk, Executive Director / Directeur Général

tel: (613) 726-5176

fax/téléc: (613) 820-7244

mobile (613) 277-0488

[email protected]


03/11/2011

For immediate release

Canadian Association of University Teachers launches campaign to

Save Library and Archives Canada

(OTTAWA: November 2, 2011) – The Canadian Association of University Teachers today unveiled a national campaign to protect Library and Archives Canada (LAC).

The “Save Library and Archives Canada” is being launched by CAUT in response to funding cuts and internal managerial decisions that are threatening the quality and integrity of Canada’s only national public library and archives.

“Badly conceived restructuring, a narrowing of its mandate, and financial cutbacks are undermining LAC’s ability to acquire, preserve and make publicly available Canada’s full documentary heritage,” James L. Turk, executive director of the Canadian Association of University Teachers said at a news conference in Ottawa today.

These changes, Turk added, have already led to a reduction in the number of specialist archivists and librarians, reduced public access and services, and the loss of rare and important materials.

Liam McGahern, president of the Antiquarian Booksellers of Canada, said a growing number of Canadian materials are not being collected by LAC because of reduced funding and a change in its acquisitions policy.

“Canadians recently lost a unique and irreplaceable set of journals chronicling late 19th Century stories of settlers and First Nations people of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Labrador Coast. This is just one of many examples,” McGahern explained. “Rare military documents, sheet music, and literature that would otherwise have gone to Library and Archives Canada are quietly all slipping away.”

CAUT is calling on the federal government to amend the LAC Act to ensure its mandate includes developing a comprehensive, not selective, collection of Canadian material.

“Our nation’s artistic, historical, and cultural heritage is at stake,” said Turk. “Genealogists, historians, researchers, graduate students, Aboriginal communities, and the general public are all affected by what is happening at LAC.”

The Canadian Association of University Teachers is the national voice of 66,000 academic and general staff at 120 universities and colleges across the country.

More information on the campaign can be found at www.savelibraryarchivescanada.ca.

Contact:

Angela Regnier, Communications Officer, 613-726-5186 (O); 613-601-6304 (cell);

[email protected] (email)

Diffusion immédiate

L’Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université lance une campagne en vue de sauver Bibliothèque et Archives Canada

(OTTAWA, le 2 novembre 2011) – L’Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université a dévoilé aujourd’hui une campagne nationale en vue de protéger Bibliothèque et Archives Canada (BAC).

L’ACPPU lance la campagne « Sauvons Bibliothèque et Archives Canada » en raison des réductions apportées au financement de BAC et des décisions administratives internes prises, qui menacent la qualité et l’intégrité de l’unique bibliothèque et des seules archives publiques du pays.

« Une restructuration mal conçue, le rétrécissement de son mandat et des restrictions budgétaires affaiblissent la possibilité donnée à BAC d’acquérir, de préserver et de mettre à la disposition du public le patrimoine documentaire intégral du Canada », a déclaré James L. Turk, directeur général de l’Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université lors d’une conférence de presse à Ottawa aujourd’hui.

M. Turk a ajouté que ces changements avaient déjà entraîné une réduction du nombre d’archivistes spécialistes et de bibliothécaires, une diminution de l’accès et des services assurés au public et la perte de documents rares et importants.

Liam McGahern, président de l’Association de la librairie ancienne du Canada, a fait valoir qu’un nombre croissant de documents canadiens n’étaient plus collectionnés par BAC en raison des compressions budgétaires et d’un changement apporté à sa politique d’acquisitions.

« Les Canadiennes et Canadiens ont récemment perdu une série unique et irremplaçable de journaux retraçant l’histoire des pionniers et des peuples des Premières nations du golfe du Saint-Laurent et de la côte du Labrador de la fin du XIXe siècle. Ce n’est qu’un exemple parmi de nombreux autres », a expliqué M. McGahern. « Des documents militaires rares, des partitions et des œuvres qui, en d’autres circonstances, auraient été acquis par Bibliothèque et Archives Canada, disparaissent subrepticement ».

L’ACPPU exhorte le gouvernement fédéral à modifier la LBAC pour faire en sorte que BAC ait pour mandat de monter une collection complète et non sélective de documents canadiens.

« C’est le patrimoine artistique, historique et culturel de notre pays qui est en jeu », a repris M. Turk. « Les généalogistes, les historiens, les chercheurs, les étudiants de troisième cycle, les collectivités autochtones et le grand public sont tous touchés par ce qui se produit à BAC ».

L’Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université est le porte-parole national de 66 000 membres du corps professoral et autres répartis dans 120 universités et collèges du Canada.

Pour obtenir de plus amples détails sur cette campagne, veuillez consulter www.sauvonsbibliothèqueetarchivescanada.ca.

Personne-ressource :

Angela Regnier, agente des communications, 613-726-5186 (bureau); 613-601-6304 (tél. cellulaire); [email protected] (courriel)


03/11/2011

Emergency! We need to Save NSCAD!

Howard Windsor, a former Policy Analyst with Labour and Advanced Education for the province of Nova Scotia, has been appointed by the Minister of Advanced Education to examine the future of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University (NSCAD). He has carte blanche to consider any reorganization imaginable, including eliminating programs, the forced merger of programs with other institutions and/or the complete disappearance of NSCAD as an independent university.

NSCAD Faculty and Staff Unions are in the middle of negotiations which have stalled and are fast approaching strike deadlines. Negotiations have been complicated by the instability introduced by the provincial review. Our colleagues in Nova Scotia need us and all of us need an independent NSCAD, the only full-service art and design university east of Ontario.

Please take a moment to sign the petition found here: http://www.change.org/petitions/keep-nscad-university-intact-and-independent

In sol,
Leslie Jermyn, CUPE 3902
University of Toronto


25/10/2011

Good Afternoon,
OCUFA has forwarded the Status of Women Committee Award of Distinction details as attached.  The deadline for nominations is May 25, 2012. Nominators must be members of an OCUFA-affiliated faculty association. For nomination information, please see www.ocufa.on.ca, “Awards” section.
Send nominations to the Chair,
OCUFA Status of Women Committee,
c/o OCUFA, 83 Yonge Street, Suite 300,
Toronto, ON M5C 1S8.

WomenDistinctionAdFINAL

WomenOfDistinctionAd_French


12/10/2011

Good Afternoon;

Please find attached (below) a letter to the editor from OCUFA President Constance Adamson regarding an editorial published in today’s Globe & Mail, “Canadian Universities Must Reform or Perish”. The editorial can be found at:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/editorials/canadian-universities-must-reform-or-perish/article2195025/

This letter has been submitted to the Editors of the Globe as of this afternoon. If you have any comments or questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Best Regards,
Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communication and Government Relations Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. ~ Toronto, ON ~ M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 (Office) | 647 280 3175 (Mobile)
[email protected] | www.ocufa.on.ca | www.twitter.com/ocufa

Constance Adamson
President
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St.
Toronto, ON M5C 1S8

Dear Editor;

Your editorial “Canadian Universities Must Reform or Perish” (October 11, 2011) is correct about one thing: there are serious challenges facing undergraduate education in Ontario and Canada, and these challenges need to be addressed in order to preserve the quality of education at our universities. Huge classes and high student-to-faculty ratios do not make for an excellent student experience.

No question, reform is needed. But we must be very careful about which vision of reform we embrace.

Your editorial suggests that the primary purpose of a university education is job training. This is not a view embraced by Ontario’s professors and academic librarians. Education is, as it has always been, about human development. Universities provide an education; people get jobs. Transposing this relationship distorts the purpose of our institutions, and leads to a variety of incorrect conclusions.

While I do not have the space to enumerate all of the errors and misconceptions in your editorial, I do wish to take issue with one particularly harmful one: the idea that the lack of teaching or over-emphasis on research is somehow the fault of faculty themselves, or odder still, the salary they receive. Ontario’s professors and academic librarians are passionate defenders of the quality of higher education in our province. The Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario – an organization you are fond of quoting – noted in a 2010 report that 96 per cent of Ontario’s faculty view teaching as “important or very important to their professional practice.” The same report found that over three quarters of faculty surveyed were active users of their campus teaching development centre. However, only 46 per cent of faculty felt their university supported their development as teachers. If there is a problem with undergraduate teaching in Ontario, the fault does not lie with the professors themselves.

The simple fact is that, in an under-funded university system faced with perpetual enrolment growth, Ontario’s professors face serious barriers to providing a quality student experience. No matter the technology used or the strategies employed, a student in a 500 person class will not receive the same experience as a student in a class of 30. Until we get serious about hiring more full-time faculty, we won’t be able to improve the student experience.

Finally, I would caution those who are quick to blame faculty but last to ask for their input. Professors and academic librarians make their careers on being thoughtful and well-informed. Strange, then, that the mandarins who rush to press with prescriptions for the university system are so loathe to consult with faculty in the first place. If university administrators and government are serious about reform, then they must make a concerted attempt to engage faculty in the process. They may end up being surprised with the kind of meaningful reform that results.

Yours sincerely,

Constance Adamson
President, OCUFA


06/10/2011

Hello,

Here is a short video CAUT has made on Bill C-11, the Copyright Modernization Act.

Paul Jones
CAUT


23/09/2011

University of Windsor professor honoured for outstanding work on behalf of Ontario’s faculty

TORONTO, Sept. 22, 2011 /CNW/ – Professor Brian E. Brown, president of the Windsor University Faculty Association (WUFA) has been awarded the prestigious Lorimer Award by the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA). This honour recognizes individuals who have worked to protect and promote the interests of Ontario’s academic staff through collective bargaining. Prof. Brown will receive his award at an October 21, 2011 ceremony at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto.

“As President of WUFA, Prof. Brown has been a tireless champion for the rights of academic staff at Windsor,” said Constance Adamson, President of OCUFA. “This, coupled with his many leadership roles within OCUFA has made him an invaluable asset not only to his home institution, but to professors and academic librarians across Ontario.”

The Lorimer Award was established in honour of Doug and Joyce Lorimer, who were instrumental in advancing faculty association collective bargaining in Ontario. Winners of the award all share the Lorimers’ commitment to advancing Ontario’s university system through strong faculty associations.

“OCUFA is extremely proud to recognize the exceptional individuals who safeguard the aspirations of Ontario’s academic staff,” said Adamson. “High-quality education needs high-quality faculty. Through the Lorimer award, we recognize the outstanding work that ensures every faculty member has the rights and resources to be great.”

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty and academic librarians in 27 faculty associations across Ontario. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at http://www.ocufa.on.ca.

For further information:
Contact: Graeme Stewart, Communications Manager  – 416 979 2117 x232 (office) or 647 280 3175 [email protected] or Mark Rosenfeld, Executive Director – 416-979-2117 x229 (office) or 416 270-6859 [email protected]

 

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


21/09/2011

Dear Colleagues;

Attached, please find OCUFA Analysis of Party Platforms – 2011 Ontario Election – FINAL. Please feel free to share this widely through your association. The analysis will also be available online Monday, as part of the re-launch of OCUFA’s website.

We are still waiting for several responses on our political party platform questionnaire. Once we have compiled this data, we will make it available alongside our analysis.

I would also like to remind you to share OCUFA’s election public awareness campaign, Quality Matters, with your members (http://www.quality-matters.ca). This website allows participants to quickly send a letter to their local candidates outlining their support for higher education. If you have not done so already, please take a moment to send an email of your own. Every message helps!

If you have any questions about our platform analysis, or anything else election related, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Best Regards,
Graeme

Graeme Stewart
Communication and Government Relations Manager
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
300-83 Yonge St. ~ Toronto, ON ~ M5C 1S8
416 979 2117 x232 (Office) | 647 280 3175 (Mobile)
[email protected] | www.ocufa.on.ca | www.twitter.com/ocufa


13/09/2011

The following is a media release from the University of Western Ontario Faculty Association regarding the strike of librarians and archivists at Western which began at today. There will be a rally at Western tomorrow – September 9, 2011 – at 12:15 p.m. at the main gates of Richmond Rd.

http://www.uwofa.ca/newsevents/id:213

UWO Librarians & Archivists on Legal Strike
September 7th, 2011

Librarians and Archivists at the University of Western Ontario will be on a legal strike as of 12:01 a.m. September 8.

“It is with great regret that we make this decision,” said Bryce Traister, UWOFA President. “We simply haven’t seen enough movement on the key issues important to our members. We find it disrespectful and I am personally disappointed that administration didn’t see fit to address longstanding challenges.”

Mediated talks between the UWO Faculty Association, which represents the bargaining unit, and the university administration broke off today after extended negotiating sessions with the employer came to a deadlock at 11:00 a.m.

Outstanding issues at the table include: a long-standing pay gap of 20 per cent between Western Librarians and Archivists – most of whom are women – and colleagues at comparative universities in Ontario. Other issues include staff complement and workload.

The 50 unionized librarians and archivists have been without a contract since June 30, 2011.

Pickets will be placed at two locations: the main gates at Richmond Rd and the Alumni Hall entrance off Western Rd. starting at 7:30 a.m.

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


01/09/2011

Please find below and attached the OCUFA media release regarding the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives report on the impact of higher education funding on Ontario families. The report was commissioned by the Ontario University Coalition, consisting of organizations representing students, faculty, academic librarians and staff in the province.

Please also note that OCUFA’s provincial election campaign website — Quality Matters — is now up and running. The website allows you to send a letter to the candidates in your riding about the need to invest in the quality, accessibility and affordability of our university system. The Quality Matters website can be accessed here.

Best regards,

Mark

—————————————-
Ontario professors and academic librarians concerned about the affordability of higher education in Ontario

TORONTO – The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) is
concerned about the findings of a new study released today about the cost of university
education in Ontario. The report, published by the Canadian Centre for Policy
Alternatives (CCPA), indicates that rising tuition fees are putting pressure on families
across Ontario.

“The report shows that Ontario’s high tuition fees are disproportionately affecting lowand
middle-income families,” said Constance Adamson, President of OCUFA. “This
regressive policy is making it harder for young Ontarians to afford a university education
and access the many benefits that higher learning provides.”

The report examines the number of days a family would have to work to pay for a fouryear
university degree, if they were to put all of their after-tax income towards this
purpose. While higher-income families can cover this cost quickly, it takes middle and
lower-income Ontarians many more months – and sometimes years -to pay for their
child’s education. This is up dramatically from the early 1990s, and reflects the huge
increase in tuition fees over the last two decades. Ontario now has the highest tuition
fees in Canada.

The report also demonstrates that, contrary to the opinion of many policymakers, a high
quality and affordable university system can be sustained by public funding. A few
simple policy changes could help freeze or even reduce tuition fees while ensuring
universities have the financial resources they need to provide a world-class learning
experience.

“Ontario’s professors and academic librarians want an equitable, accessible and
excellent university system,” said Adamson. “If you want the same thing, then I
encourage you to visit Quality-Matters.ca and send a message to Ontario’s politicians.
Together, we can make the university system we all deserve.”

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 faculty and academic librarians in 27 faculty
associations across Ontario. The CCPA report can be accessed at
http://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/under-pressure.

More information on the Quality Matters campaign can be found at http://www.quality-matters.ca

——————————————————–
Mark Rosenfeld, Ph.D
Executive Director
Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations
83 Yonge Street, Suite 300
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5C 1S8
Tel: 416-979-2117 x229
Fax: 416-593-5607
E-mail: [email protected]


12/07/2011

Greetings,

CAUT is a member of the Voices-Voix Coalition [http://voices-voix.ca/] which is a  is a non-partisan coalition of Canadian organizations and individuals defending democratic rights to free speech, transparency and equality. There are over 200 member organizations.

One of the Voices-Voix projects is gathering information about organizations, individuals and institutions involved in education and research that have lost funding or other government support after publicly disagreeing with government policies and decisions. The Coalition has assembled this information in the facts section of their web site [http://voices-voix.ca/en/facts].  The examples they have so far are an incomplete list .

They would like to make the list as comprehensive as possible. If you know of examples, please complete the attached form and email it to them at [email protected] Please cc a copy to [email protected] You help would be gratefully appreciated.

Regards,

James L. Turk   James L. Turk // Executive Director / Directeur général // Canadian Association of University Teachers / Association canadienne des professeures et professeurs d’université // 2705 promenade Queensview Drive / Ottawa, (Ontario) / K2B 8K2 // tél  613.726-5176 / téléc  613.820-7244 / mobile  613.277-0488 / [email protected] / http://twitter.com/jameslturk


10/05/2011

There has been a good deal of controversy and conflicting advice
regarding when copyrighted material may be copied without permission
or payment to the copyright owner.

CAUT is concerned that both users and owners of copyrighted material
are treated fairly. To that end, CAUT has prepared the attached
document: Guidelines for the Use of Copyrighted Material.

The document explains the legal foundation of copying rights and
provides direction on its lawful exercise.

Copies of the Guidelines are available online at:

http://www.caut.ca/uploads/Copyright_guidelines.pdf

http://www.caut.ca/uploads/Copyright_guidelines_fr.pdf

If you have any questions about the Guidelines, please feel free to
contact Paul Jones at (613) 820-2270 ext.181 or by email: [email protected].


16/03/2011

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

37th Annual

OCUFA Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards

OCUFA is proud to celebrate outstanding achievement in teaching and academic librarianship at Ontario universities. Anyone within the university community can nominate a faculty member or librarian.

Award recipients are selected by an independent OCUFA committee made up of faculty, librarians,

and student representatives.

Deadline for nominations for 2010-2011 awards:

May 20, 2011.

The original and five copies of the

submission should be sent to:

OCUFA Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards Committee

83 Yonge Street, Suite 300

Toronto, Ontario M5C 1S8

Inquiries to: 416-979-2117

www.ocufa.on.ca

This information can also be found now at http://ocufa.on.ca/Awards.tala.gk

TeachingLibrarianshipAwardsFlyer 2011


21/04/2010 Ontario Budget and Pensions


14/04/2010 OCUFA Letter to the Editor – Globe & Mail


01/04/2010 CAUT Professional Officer Agent(e) professionnel(le) de l’ACPPU


31/03/2010 URGENT Sign the Open Letter to Stephen Harper re First Nations University


31/03/2010 New OCUFA Research Report – The Decline of Quality at Ontario Universities Shortchanging a Generation


30/03/2010 Ontario budget and tuition policy – revenue impact


26/03/2010 OCUFA Budget 2010


26/03/2010 Ontario Budget and Pension Reform


26/03/2010 The Public Sector Compensation Restraint to Protect Public Services Act, 2010


25/03/2010 The Ontario budget and public sector compensation restraint


25/03/2010OCUFA responds to 2010 Ontario Budget


11/03/2010 Lobbying for FNUC


10/03/2010 OCUFA Faculty and Academic Librarian Survey


08/03/2010 OCUFA Press Release – Speech from the Throne


You may wish to visit the CAUT and OCUFA websites at: http://www.caut.ca/ and http://www.ocufa.on.ca/ respectively.


 

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