Contract Vote Starts Monday!

You will be receiving a ballot from Ballotbin by email shortly to vote on the FSU contract.  

 

VOTING BEGINS TODAY AND WILL END WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 12 AT 5PM.  

 

For information on the contract, click here. 

 

WE WILL ANNOUNCE THE OUTCOME OF THIS VOTE ON WEDNESDAY, November 12.  

 

 

Recommend to the members:                                                                                                                8

Don’t recommend to the members:                                                                                                       3

No recommendation to the members:                                                                                                  1

 

THERE HAS BEEN SOME UNCERTAINTY REGARDING THE NTT PROVISIONS, especially regarding the effect on part-time Lecturer 1’s delayed promotions (see below under Lecturer I).  This has led to some Executive Committee members voting no or having no recommendation.  

 

For those of you who need more explanation on the NTT provisions, especially for Lecturer 1’s, the FSU office will field calls/visits today and Wednesday.  

 

In addition, here is further information on some of the NTT issues that we have been asked: 

 

 

While the priority list will disappear it will be replaced by continuing appointments for those Lecturers who are half-time or greater (NTT members who are less than half-time will not be eligible for continuing appointments; however, departments will be required to offer all additional work to current part-timers in the department in order of seniority). That means that you will be hired at your standard percentage of time prospectively. That is, if you have been 0.75 FTE for the last academic year, for example, your percentage of time will continue to be 0.75 going forward. There will not be sudden decreases in percentages of time due to last minute course cancellations or fluctuations in priority list status (i.e. more people added to the list thus decreasing the number of courses available to prioritized lecturers). For those with continuing appointments the administration would need to give those members a year’s notice for lay-off OR reduction in work (lay-off would be the result of lack of work in the department, i.e. drop in total sections). If there are lay-offs or reductions in work, the department would have to use reverse seniority to enact the lay-offs/reductions (i.e. newest hire loses work first). Similarly, if there is additional work then the department is required to offer all additional sections to part-time members of the department according to seniority before offering courses to new lecturers (while this is commonly perceived to be the case with current contract language, there is actually ambiguity as to whether or not departments are required to offer courses to post-probationary lecturers before hiring new lecturers). So the principal of seniority enshrined in the priority list system is maintained in this new language. The difference is that those with continuing appointments will have to be notified a year in advance if they are going to be reduced in time or laid-off (the priority list language did not require this notification period which, frankly, was a big concern to many members who were often worried about sudden losses in percentage of time).

 

 

Lecturer II’s will be converted to Senior Lecturer. The subsequent promotion to Senior Lecturer II for these NTT will occur under the old timetable that previously existed for Senior Lecturer. That is, after 10 years from hire date Lecturer II’s newly converted to Senior Lecturer will be eligible to apply for Senior Lecturer 2 regardless of percentage of time (for Lecturers hired after implementation of this contract or current Lecturer I’s, they will follow the new model). 

 

Lecturer I’s will have the new process and new timetable and convert to the title Lecturer under the new contract. The Lecturer floor will go up to $52,000 (it is currently $48,187),which should compensate for possible increases in subsequent promotional timeframes for part-timers . That floor will be applicable upon conversion. The Lecturer II title will disappear and in its place will be the Senior Lecturer promotion (after 6 FTE years of service). That promotion will come with a $5,500 promotional raise (pro-rated to percentage of time) and will have a floor of $57,500 (the old Lecturer II floor was $56,139). There will be another rank of Senior Lecturer II, which one will be eligible for after 6 years of FTE service as a Senior Lecturer. That will come with a $5,500 promotional raise as well and will have a floor of $63,000; keep in mind that the promotional raises occur regardless of the current salary, even if you are already above the floors, while a salary floor just means that if you are below the floor for a particular rank you will be brought up to the floor but not above it). 

 

According to our calculations, some Lecturer I’s who are half-time and were about to be promoted to Lecturer II’s and who were below the salary floors may have less salary increases under the new contract.  These include people hired in the fall of 2008-2011.  Those who are 75% or 100% time will earn more under the new contract.  All those hired beginning the fall of 2012 will gain from the proposed contract.    If you believe you will earn less under the new contract, or want to know the implications, send us your work history and we can calculate this for you.  

 

 

All current per-course lecturers who are post-probationary will retain their just cause rights and will have rights to course assignments as outlined in the proposed language. However, current probationary per-course lecturers who are less than half-time will not be eligible for continuing appointments though they will be subject to the provisions for course assignments (see above ‘Priority Lists’ and the current proposed language). In addition, all current per-course lecturers who are half-time will be immediately benefits eligible and will no longer have to wait 3 semesters to get benefits.

 

For a full outline of the proposed contract click here.

 

If you have questions please contact the FSU office fsu@umb.edu; 617 287-6295. 

 

Marlene Kim,

FSU President