Bargaining update; General meeting 1/12/2021 (Originally emailed to faculty on 12/14/20)
Dear colleagues,
As an unforgettable fall term wraps up, we’re writing with a few key union updates for you.
First, our next general meeting will be 1/12/2021 at 2 pm (Tuesday of Week 2). This meeting will serve as a follow-up to our meeting of 12/4/2020 and will cover updates to bargaining and what next steps will be necessary to win a strong contract. Please plan to attend this meeting if you can. Zoom information will be forthcoming in the new year.
Second, the negotiating teams met on 12/10/2020 and came to Tentative Agreement (TA) on Leaves, which is heartening. Less heartening was the fact that Oregon Tech Admin rejected our Benefits proposal, wherein we propose maintaining the status quo (95/5 split for PEBB contributions), as well as our Donated Leave proposal, as both of these proposals address issues related to health insurance and sick leaves, issues especially relevant during a pandemic.
Oregon Tech Admin did finally counter on Compensation and Workload (linked here), as well as on Outside Activities and Professional Development. Their proposals continue to ignore key issues to our members –e.g., no COLA, no definition of workload units, no post-tenure review raises, no geographic stipends–but do show a small amount of engagement in the process. Our team will, naturally, respond to these articles. We encourage you to read carefully through their proposals on Compensation and Workload.
As of now, the teams are scheduled to meet weekly throughout January.
Your bargaining team has now been in negotiations for over a year, and, while we have reached a few tentative agreements (Leaves, Grievances, Arbitration,etc), we remain far apart on the issues that are top priorities for faculty (Workload, Compensation, etc.). We hope to reach an agreement on our contract in the winter term, but winning a contract that ensures our contributions to the university are recognized will take all of us engaging in the process and supporting our bargaining team.
We wish you peace, joy, and solidarity throughout the holiday season and the new year!
Kari Lundgren, OT–AAUP Secretary
On behalf of the OT–AAUP Executive Committee
Dr. Sean St. Clair, President
Dr. Cristina Negoita, Vice President
Dr. Kari Lundgren, Secretary
Prof. Terri Torres, Treasurer
Prof. Andria Fultz, Portland-Metro At-Large Representative
Dr. Kyle Chapman, Klamath Falls At-Large Representative
Dr. Mark Clark, Immediate Past President
