Dear Colleagues,
At the bargaining table, the situation has become considerably more difficult. Here is an update on the current situation and an overview of the next steps.
Last Thursday, July 23, we were forced to file an unfair labour practice complaint with the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) due to the employer’s blatant bad faith in the conduct of the negotiations.
During the nine (9) negotiation sessions we’ve held to date, we’ve made it clear to the employer time and again that job security is one of our top priorities. As you can see in our proposal booklet (ATPUO’s proposals), we are demanding the conversion of precarious contractual employment relationships into permanent, protected positions, thereby offering our members the opportunity to access full-time teaching positions.
While we have explicitly discussed the importance of creating these teaching-intensive positions and our intention to clarify the specific nature of our bargaining unit accordingly, we discovered that the employer was acting behind our backs. In fact, the employer has formally proposed to the Association of Professors of the University of Ottawa (APUO)— whose collective agreement is also currently up for renewal—that a new category of full-time teaching positions be created within their collective agreement, with no cap on the number of positions. In short, the employer apparently used information gathered at our bargaining table to expedite negotiations with the APUO regarding the creation of full-time teaching positions. Yet, throughout our meetings, the employer deliberately concealed this intention from us. In other words, the employer never even considered our proposal to recognize our Association as the sole representative of faculty members in teaching-intensive positions.
If the employer gets its way, the practical consequences could be devastating for us. Potentially hundreds of teaching contracts will be transferred from our bargaining unit to the APUO. As a result, hiring procedures will no longer be mmsubject to the rules previously recognized by both the employer and our Association.
The fact that the employer concealed this intention from us for several weeks of negotiations constitutes a clear violation of its obligation to negotiate in good faith, fully justifying our complaint to the OLRB. We hope this complaint will shift the dynamics at the bargaining table.
However, we may quickly reach an impasse, in which case we must be prepared to take action. This is not the timeline we had hoped for, but we are still in a strong position to apply pressure. The fact that the APUO is also currently in negotiations could even create a favourable situation if we join forces.
NEXT STEPS
Your bargaining committee will soon meet with the APUO to discuss our respective bargaining objectives and explore ways to support one another in our dealings with the employer. Job security and recognition of the work of our Teaching Professors—whether full-time or contract —remain our top priority.
We will keep you informed of any new developments. In the meantime, as a first precautionary measure, we strongly recommend that you do not upload all of your course materials to Brightspace in advance. Share your materials only one class session at a time. In the event of a labour dispute at the start of the semester, you would lose access to the platform and leave the employer free to use your teaching materials as it sees fit.
If necessary, please feel free to let your students know that their learning conditions depend above all on our working conditions. Their support will be essential over the coming weeks.
In solidarity,
Your Bargaining Committee