QUFA's Purpose
What We Do
Purposes and Membership:
QUFA was founded in 1951 and for more than four decades was a non-unionized Faculty Association organized by the professoriate to protect collective and individual rights. In November 1995, became the exclusive bargaining unit for faculty, librarians, and archivists at Queen's University.
The Association’s aims are to promote the interests of academic staff, including faculty, librarians and archivists; to promote equity in recruitment and hiring of academic staff; to promote a positive working environment, free of discrimination, interference, restriction, or coercion; to provide appropriate representation for all QUFA members; and to promote academic interests at Queen’s and in the broader community.
Membership is open to all regular faculty, librarians or archivists (tenured, tenure-track, continuing-track, or continuing appointments), Initial or Renewable Adjuncts, and those who hold Special or Non-renewable Replacement appointments. Membership forms are available from the QUFA office. Only QUFA members in good standing are permitted to vote at meetings or hold a position in or on behalf of QUFA. The Association is distinct from the University Club (formerly known as the Faculty Club), which is a social organization.
Collective Agreements:
The first Collective Agreement between QUFA and Queen's was effective from January 10, 1997, to April 30, 1999. In the spring of 1999, the second three-year Agreement, was effective May 1, 1999, to April 30, 2002 and a third is effective May 11, 2002 to April 30, 2005..
Structure:
Two governing bodies, the Executive Committee and the Council of Representatives, are responsible for QUFA’s policy development and decision-making and meet monthly from September through May. Electoral units representing all Faculties and Schools at Queen’s appoint one or more representatives of their constituency to the Council. In addition, QUFA has five standing committees for Finance, Grievances, Management of the Collective Agreement, Nominating and Elections, Political Action and Communications, and Staff Relations, as well as ad hoc committees and caucuses (for Feminist, Junior Faculty, Adjunct, and Librarian/Archivist issues).
QUFA's purposes, policies, and procedures are specified by the QUFA Constitution and By-Laws and by the Collective Agreement.
Office:
QUFA has three full-time staff members (an Administrative Officer and a Administrative Assistant) who provide information and serve as resources to the Association’s officers, committees, and membership a Grievance Officer to represent members seeking to redress violations of the Collective Agreement. Office hours are normally 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.. The office is located in Room 120 of the Old Medical Building (facing on the quadrangle behind Summerhill).
Activities:
To represent the interests of academic staff in discussions and interpretations of the Collective Agreement, via the Joint Committee to Administer the Collective Agreement (JCAA).
To review and participate in implementation and formation of University policy on issues directly affecting academic staff, including renegotiation of the Collective Agreement.
To advise and assist members who believe that they have been treated unfairly with respect to their employment, via QUFA’s Grievance Committee (a confidential committee of Association members).
To represent the collective view of faculty, librarians, and archivists to the University administration, the Board of Trustees, the Senate and its committees, and other groups who may affect our members’ interests.
To transmit the collective view of our Association to parliamentarians and to appointed bodies concerned with the development of policy on university education.
To participate in the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations and the Canadian Association of University Teachers. (See below.)
To hold at least two general meetings annually to exchange information and views on any of the above activities.
Direct Benefits:
On behalf of all members, QUFA works to improve salaries, benefits, and conditions of employment in the University.
QUFA produces QUFACTS, a regular newsletter which keeps members up to date on issues and developments in the academic community. It also produces bulletins on specific issues as they arise.
Through the Executive and Grievance Committees, QUFA provides information, advice, and support to members who have questions or problems concerning their employment with the University. QUFA provides counseling and assistance in the initiation and pursuit of grievances. Detailed information about these services are available at the QUFA office.
QUFA obtains research reports and publications prepared by other Faculty Associations, and by provincial and national organizations, as well as pertinent government documents and reports. These are also available at the QUFA office.
QUFA members are automatically members of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) and the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT). Both organizations have regular publications that cover national and provincial developments affecting higher education. The CAUT Bulletin provides the only country-wide listing of positions available for all disciplines.
Fees:
Membership fees are set each spring by the Annual General Meeting as a percentage of members’ salaries. For 2000-01 the rate is 0.8%, which includes membership in CAUT and OCUFA. There is a minimum yearly fee of $50.00. Based on the present rate, a member with a gross salary of $50,000 would pay $50,000 X .8 = $400.00, or $33.33 per month. QUFA membership fees are deductible from Total Income on your Income Tax Form ("Annual union, professional or like dues"). Dues paid by monthly salary deduction are reported on your T4 form. Monthly dues are deducted by Queen’s Financial Services for all eligible members of the bargaining unit regardless of whether they choose to join the Association.
Membership:
"Membership is open to all members of the bargaining unit, to clinical faculty in the Faculty of Health Sciences who are eligible for membership in the Clinical Teachers' Association of Queen's University, and to such other groups as the Association may determine" (QUFA Constitution, 3.i). The "bargaining unit" is "defined by the certificate issued by the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) dated November 7, 1995, as may be amended by the OLRB or by the Agreement of the parties" (First Collective Agreement p. 2). It specifically excludes "Management," defined as "some Directors of Schools, Associate Deans, Deans, Vice-Presidents, President, and members of the Board" ("Limitations under the Ontario Labour Relations Act"). QUFA has a bargaining unit of approximately 835 individuals of whom 650 are QUFA members.
If you have any questions or comments, please drop us a line. You can
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Last revised:
September 21, 2004
Maintained by: Queen's University Faculty Association
TEL: (613) 533-2151 E-Mail: qufa2@post.queensu.ca
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