In this issue:
1. Links to Reclaim the Promise Final Report, Press Release and AFT Resolution 16 (Ending the Exploitation Of and th Reliance On a Contingent Academic Labor System in Higher Education.
2. Nationwide Exploitation of Part Time Faculty by Morna Flaum
3. John Hoagland’s full discussion of the stalled negotiations for the Part Time Contract:
1. Links to Reclaim the Promise Final Report, Press Release and AFT Resolution 16 (Ending the Exploitation Of and th Reliance On a Contingent Academic Labor System in Higher Education.
To see Our Reclaim the Promise Final Report go here:
Actual Report here: http://vt.aft.org/files/rtp_report_final.pdf
Press Release about it: http://vt.aft.org/new-report-reclaim-promise-affordable-public-higher-education-vermont
Link to AFT’s Resolution 16 Ending The Exploitation Of And The Reliance On A Contingent Academic Labor System In Higher Education: http://www.aft.org/resolution/ending-exploitation-and-reliance-contingent-academic-labor-system-higher
2. Nationwide Exploitation of Part Time Faculty by Morna Flaum
If you look at TABLE A it is clear that utilizing part time professors saves the VSC system an astonishing amount of money (over hiring enough full time professors to teach all classes and providing them with full time benefits according to their contract).
The VSC administration’s unwillingness to negotiate (-even when in mediation!) with Part Time Faculty to forge a contract of minimal benefit or to meet us part way to make any slight improvement in the our tenuous and unpredictable terms of employment adds to our sense of total disenfranchisement, our disillusionment with the purported “ideals” of the VSC as an institution of higher learning, and our frustration with the system overall.
Big Business Blueprint for Part Timers: We need to understand that the issues we part time faculty face at VSC are far larger than VSC. All over America college administrators use part time professors as if they are Walmart employees. Many part time professors are eligible for food stamps! This March I am attending the AFT’s Higher Education Conference. The main issue we will discuss is the Part Time Faculty dilemma, a follow-up to AFT’s Resolution 16 which was passed this summer at AFT’s National Convention in LA. Being part time has many down sides, but because every single college administrator in the country is following the same blueprint we need to react. We are not alone!
Remember Noblesse Oblige: This is a critical time for every type of union (see this issue’s Union-Pocalypse article). During these dire times the underclass has been forced to accept their own plight as part time workers not only in higher education but in every sector of the economy. As educated people we should not only fight for ourselves, we should also help lead a national conversation for every disenfranchised part time worker! Now is the time for part time faculty members to become visible, to join the conversation and to participate in reviving the power only possible in solidarity with each other, through union participation!
3. John Hoagland’s full discussion of the stalled negotiations for the Part Time Contract:
We are sending this out to you to keep you updated on the ongoing contract negotiations between the VSC and the part time professors union (UPV-AFT). And because we do not have an updated part time only email list, we are sending it to all faculty as we feel all the part time professors are included on the master list. We understand the full time unit is going through the same process so it certainly does not hurt to keep you informed of our progress or lack thereof. At this point in time, we are disappointed to say we have reached another “impasse” in our contract negotiations. This time with mediation. We met yesterday at the Chancellors office in Montpelier from 10 until about 6 p.m. While we finally exchanged offers after all our negotiating sessions, we were still nowhere near where we deserve to be. Here is a rundown of what is going on and has gone one.
The negotiating team formed with members from Castleton, Lyndon and Johnson (we requested VTC representation but no one ever stepped up to become part of the team), back in October or 2013. We started with conference calls in 2013 and then had actual meetings beginning in January 2014 (there were 4 face to face meetings). We went through the contract line by line and came up with items we wanted to work on changing through negotiations. Fast forward to the Spring, I met with council for the VSC one on one to try to iron out a contract, offering a very VSC friendly contract, but that failed. At that time in June we requested dates to begin negotiating. Those dates finally came in the fall of 2014. We obtained the services of Terry Coles as our legal counsel for the negotiations. Terry has led us every step of the way in negotiations. This is his expertise and it shows. Any success we have will definitely be because of him fighting for our members. We met 4 times with the VSC and their negotiating team, once in Montpelier and 3 times in Randolph. The last meeting we declared an impasse as both sides remained far apart on the issues. That led us to mediation. Steve Weigand from Federal Mediation & Conciliation Service was our mediator. We went back and forth on Thursday but the gap remained too wide. The union moved a lot and came down on our requests to levels we feel were extremely fair and reasonable, and brings us in line with the other unions in the VSC system. But that was still not enough. Here are what the issues are that have led to the new “impasse”;
1. Salary. We requested different numbers but our last offer to the VSC was to have a 10% pay raise over 4 years, with a minimum of 2% per year. We gave the VSC the option of what to pay when. They wanted to give us 2%,2 ¼%, 2 ¼% and 2 ¼%. Their initial offer Thursday was 2% across the board. We asked for 2%,2%, 3 ¼% and 3 ¼% based on what other unions have already received. I would add that the members of the VSC negotiating team received raises of between 2% all the way up to 19%. 4 members received 2%, 1 member 5% and another member 19% for 2014. This does not take into account any job changes. Our request certainly is more than reasonable.
2. Tuition Reimbursement. This is a major sticking point. We have asked for what other part time employees receive (and were awarded in their contract), which is a % reduction. IF a part time professor teaches 2 classes, that is 50% of what a full time professor teaches. So we would ask for a 50% reduction in tuition for immediate family members, whether full time or part time. Currently the only benefit we get as part time professors is 2 classes per academic year (excludes summer courses), but only if the student is part time. IF you have a student going full time you receive no tuition benefit. We feel this is a small cost. IN 2013 to 2014 academic year 8 people took advantage of this. The total tuition waived was less than $14000. And under our proposal, they would have actually waived less. SO they would have saved money! Our proposal brings us in line with the VSCUP (professionals and administrative staff), using the tuition waiver. Our proposal rewards longevity. And our proposal falls in line with what the fact finder recommended for the administrative union.
3. Overload course pay. Currently we have no payment for courses that are overloaded under the guidelines set forth by the VSC. We asked for a 20% differential and a banking system similar to the full time professors. The VSC came back and offered 10% and no bank. We countered with 15% and a bank. They declined that. The bank allows you to use those students for up to 3 semesters to help fill a course instead of getting paid. For example, if you bank 2 overloaded students in Spring 2015 instead of receiving a small additional stipend, you can use those numbers for up to 3 semesters to fill a class. So if in the fall of 2015, you have a class that only has 5 students and you need 7 to have the class, you can count those students as part of that class which would enable you to meet the minimum student limit. Again we were baffled by the reluctance of this because the “banking” of students has to be approved by a dean and is not an automatic item. This is something they could have controlled internally and said yes to.
4. Graduate course pay increase. We asked for a reopener clause in our contract based on the Full time union negotiations. If a part time professor teaches a graduate course we would want an increase in pay accordingly for that course. Preparing a graduate level course is more work, more intense work, and a higher level than any undergraduate course. In addition the cost to take a graduate course is more than an undergraduate course. So based on the outcome of the full time union negotiations, we would ask for a reopener so we could negotiate an increase. The VSC said no.
5. Retirement. Currently we have retirement available to every part timer. The VSC matches up to 7% of your contribution. Very few members take advantage of this. We asked for an increase from 7% to 12%, which is what every union other than the Part Time professors receive. In addition, our retirement is only a match, whereas the others the college automatically contributes whether the employee contributes or not. We are not asking for an automatic contribution. We are asking for an increase in our match. As part of accepting our other proposals, we agreed to drop this piece and leave it at 7%.
6. Retroactive. All the items need to be retroactive. We are currently working under an expired contract (expired August 31st 2014). This is standard procedure in most expired contract negotiations.
The next step for us is to go to fact finding of our own. Terry Coles will be setting that up. There is no specific timetable for this. However we most likely will not have this process start until sometime in mid to late march.
Some other items you can think about; In the VSC during 2013/2014 academic year(excluding CCV), there were 480 part time professors and 287 full time professors. CCV has 661 part time professors. CSC has 99 ft/161 pt, JSC 46 ft/156 pt, LSC has 55 FT/85 pt, and VTC has 87 ft/88 pt. The national average for college education is 70% part time professors and 30% full time. With our overall numbers in the state we are in line with those numbers. The part time professors receive no health care, have no guarantee of employment, have a tuition reimbursement program that is rarely used and excludes an entire group of potential students, and only have a retirement match and not an automatic contribution on the part of the college. We understand that. With all of that said, we receive the least amount in terms of overall package for what we provide; revenue production for the VSC at a substantial savings for the VSC (when you factor in the above items mentioned). So certainly what we are asking for is more than fair and equiitable to both parties, particularly based on past practice and precedent by the VSC.
If you have any questions or concerns, or just want to lend your support, please feel free to contact any of us; John Hoagland, Mike Bethel or Marna Grove at CSC, Jonathan Kaplan at Lyndon, and Richard Shanley at Johnson. Also if you are concerned and want to be heard, you could certainly contact the chancellor, Mr Spaulding, to express your concerns, and urge him to help get this contract settled! His email is jeb.spaulding@vsc.edu. Thank you for taking the time to read this update. We will keep you posted as we go forward.
The Negotiating Team
John Hoagland, lead negotiator CSC
Jonathan Kaplan, LSC
Richard Shanley, JSC
Mike Bethel, CSC
Marna Grove, CSC
Samantha Montgomery, AFT Vt Rep.