MINUTES FOR THE ACADEMIC YEAR, 2005-2006

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

August 26, 2005

 

 

 

Adoption of the Agenda:  Agenda items were written on the board and adopted.

 

Membership:  S. Dorn announced that he’d received 5 forms from today’s luncheon.  Fifty people have attended these sessions during the week. Greg, Lauren and Sherman attended the new faculty orientation and collected membership forms there as well. There has been an almost 5% increase in membership this week.

 

Consultation:  The meeting was yesterday; UFF met with the Provost and Phil Smith, who did most of the talking.  There is a new chief negotiator, and a new general counsel.  Agenda items from the meeting were discussed. Volunteers need to be trained in the GEMS system so that we might better keep track of personnel changes and salary information.  There was a great deal of discussion on the reclassification of faculty and other in-unit positions out of the bargaining unit that was done by the administration during the time it claimed we had no contract.

 

Contract Distribution:  Discussion on how best to accomplish this included what items to include along with the contract itself.

 

Renu’s Idea:  Renu has asked why is it that more faculty don’t assist the University with getting more funding from the Florida legislature.  She says that enrollment growth is underfunded by more than 75%, and that K-12 teachers work with the school boards on funding issues.  Weatherford mentioned that the chapter might explore this, especially in light of the new governing structure vis-à-vis the BOTs.

 

English Teaching:  Fifty to eighty unfilled sections of ENC 1101-2—no one to teach that many!  High school English teachers were hired instead of GAs; part-timers to fill in these slots.  Same kind of thing goes on in Nursing, Mathematics and other areas as well.

 

Visiting Faculty:  Semi-permanent faculty on visiting lines for years—this is the same issue as mentioned above under English Teaching. The important thing is the differentiation between the definitions:  part-time, adjunct, and visiting.  Part-time and Visiting lines must have the same qualifications as faculty, where adjuncts are “generally” not as qualified as faculty, but have “life experience” that they bring to the academic arena.  It has been reported that there is systematic abuse of all three categories here at USF.

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

September 23, 2005

 

In attendance:  J. Futch Martin, N. J. Tyson, S. Ramírez-Wohlmuth, S. Ariew, H. Blymiller, G. McColm, K. de la Peña McCook, J. D. Noonan, B. Welker, M. Klisch, J. Cebulski, S. Dorn, N. G. Discenza, A. Shapiro, L. Samet, J. Wilkerson, S. Lang, R. Weatherford, B. Frank.

 

Adoption of Agenda:  The agenda was adopted as distributed. 

 

 

Bargaining:  There was some discussion on language to provide a career path (i.e. introduce the concept of a promotion ladder) for lecturers and other employees in-unit but have no other method to climb out of their current rank.

 

Membership:  S. Dorn mentioned that he might need some assistance with stuffing envelopes to go out to everyone in-unit that will contain the CD/ROM of the CBA, as well as a cover letter and other UFF-related materials.

 

Faculty Senate/UFF Solar:  In his continuing effort to put a positive face on the relationship between UFF/USF and the University administration and the BOT, R. Weatherford has proposed to the USF Faculty Senate the creation of a USF Solar Institute.  President Genshaft thanked Dr. Weatherford, and the Faculty Senate seemed to like the idea, according to comments he received.  This will await further developments.  Along the same vein, R. Weatherford reported his attendance at a Chamber of Commerce subcommittee meeting, on Employment, Education, and Economic Development.  He expressed surprise that no one was there representing USF, despite the fact that there were representatives from other institutions of higher education in the area, including Hillsborough Community College, Phoenix University, Troy State, etc.  It would seem that the University would be interested in being involved in this as well.

 

Reports

 

     Treasurer:  S. Dorn reported on the chapter’s money situation (it has money), and it is his feeling that some of it needs to go towards membership activities.

 

   Grievances:  M. Klisch reported that K. Glover has accepted the grievance that was filed covering the mass reclassification of employees that occurred during the University administration’s self-imposed ‘hiatus’ of the CBA.  He also mentioned another grievance filed over evaluation problems.

 

   Newsletter:  G. McColm reported that he is keeping track of the number of hits the UFF/USF website is receiving, by date and time.

Other Business:  Social responsibility and Coca-Cola products--this topic came before the Faculty Senate, but was not really addressed.  K. de la Peña McCook offered to email explanatory materials to the UFF leadership list.

 

Adjournment:  There being no topics for Good of the Order, the meeting was adjourned.

 

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

October 7, 2005

 

In attendance:  J. Futch Martin, S. Ramírez-Wohlmuth, H. Blymiller, G. McColm, J. D. Noonan, C. Steele, B. Welker, S. Singh, S. Dorn, J. Cebulski, S. Dorn, J. Wilkerson, S. Lang, R. Weatherford, B. Frank.

 

Adoption of Agenda:  There was no written agenda; topics agreed to and written on the board were the ULP, Bargaining, Grievances, and Reports. 

 

The Unfair Labor Practice hearing, etc.:  R. Weatherford first gave the group a short history of the ULP.  The hearing was re-scheduled for the Tuesday following this meeting.  Apparently, the USF administration offered a settlement which was less than perfect; the group then discussed the pros and cons of accepting it, changes that should be made, etc.

 

Bargaining:  The teams will meet on Friday, October 14th.  B. Welker mentioned articles the UFF team would be bringing to the table, as well as some that the administration team had brought.  There was some discussion on domestic partner benefits, promotion for non-ranked faculty, and salary articles.

 

Reports

 

   Treasurer:  S. Dorn reported on the chapter’s money situation; there is money in the account.

  

   Newsletter:  G. McColm reported the Bi-Weekly has gone out; he is working on the newsletter.  Please contact him if you’re interested in writing an article as he is still looking for contributions.

 

      Grievances:  M. Klisch did not attend the meeting, therefore there was no report.  There was discussion on including notice in the newsletter of the timeframe for completion of job assignments, as many departments do not follow the dictates of the CBA in this regard.  It would be helpful to let faculty know the deadlines so that they can be aware.

 

Other Business:  B. Welker mentioned that since we bargained for 2 consultation meetings per semester, we should be setting up the second one now.  Please send agenda items to Roy.

 

Adjournment:  There being no topics for Good of the Order, the meeting was adjourned.

 

 

Minutes submitted, October 23, 2005 by J.F. Martin, UFF/USF Secretary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

October 21, 2005

 

In attendance:  H. Blymiller, G. McColm, J.D. Noonan, B. Frank, B. McLay, A. Shapiro, S. Singh, B. Welker, M. Klisch, L. Evans, J. Cebulski, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, K. de la Peña McCook, J. Futch Martin, R. Weatherford

 

Adoption of Agenda:  The agenda was adopted as distributed. 

 

 

Compensation Settlement:  R. Weatherford was in Orlando at a meeting when USF administrators asked him to sign the settlement agreement that was been worked out long distance via the UFF lawyer in Tallahassee and fax it back to them, which he did.  That was last week, and up until today’s meeting he has heard nothing further on it.  No clue as to what the holdup might be, either.  There was some discussion as to what, if anything, to do about this settlement politically, including the fact that it might not be a big deal to the constituency, but it certainly would be to other UFF folks around the state.

 

Consultation Request:  R. Weatherford has submitted a request for consultation, and asked that a suitable date be found.  At that point, agenda items can be brought forth.  There was general discussion about items to bring up at consultation, including things that might keep the positive rapport that may have been established, moving forward.  During this discussion, S. Singh mentioned that it would behoove the chapter well to go on record as supporting and then work to pass legislation that would guarantee a higher percentage of funding for enrollment growth—a topic that is a real sore point with the Provost.  Please think about agenda items and send them to Dr. Weatherford.

 

Bargaining:  B. Welker updated the group on the progress of bargaining.  Several of our proposals were discussed along with their likelihood of success.  The administration’s proposals were also discussed, and it was acknowledged that their big salary package completely leaves out any in-unit employees who do not have teaching as part of their assignment, including counselors and librarians.  Those employees would not receive any pay increase under this proposal.

 

Membership:  S. Dorn was out of town at an academic conference; R. Weatherford reported that the chapter needs to put more money and release-time resources into this area.  We need to think about methods for increasing our membership.  Shall we offer bonuses?  Have a party or two?  What?  G. McColm asked that any ideas for issues that might be of interest to folks to get them to join UFF be sent to him to be added to chapter’s regular publications.

 

 

Reports

 

     Treasurer:  R. Weatherford reported for S. Dorn that the treasury has a fair amount of money and that perhaps the chapter should invest in a computer with a high-speed internet connection.  S. Dorn is concerned about privacy issues with using USF’s servers.  R. Weatherford does not feel it is a problem.  There may be a problem for some individuals, but shouldn’t be for the union itself.

 

   Grievances:  Klisch mentioned that the grievance process has been bogged down by either misfeasance or malfeasance; it’s too tough to call.  The librarians’ grievance about evaluation processes and the reclassification grievance are both in limbo due to the administration’s bungling of things like saying the timeline had expired when it clearly had not.  Since the original thirty day clock has not run out for the librarians’, there is still time to wait before Step II or anything else can be done on it.  There was a long discussion on the fact that one department in Arts and Sciences has changed the FTE for a course from 25% to 20%. A grievance may be filed.  Is this, in essence, a speed-up?  Is it legal?  S. Singh moved that the chapter adopt the following, “A three-hour course is to be considered 25% of the workload, and any changes to this must be bargained.”  After being seconded, the motion was discussed at length.  It passed by a showing of hands after the voice vote was too close to call.  The question was then raised if this should be brought to consultation, and after more discussion, the answer was yes.  One other question was, “What affect does this change have on productivity measures?”  One more grievance issue that was brought up was a department member on sabbatical leave was told that their vote on a candidate for tenure would not be allowed since they were out of town.  This will be grieved.

 

Adjournment:  There being no Other Business or Good of the Order, the meeting was adjourned.

 

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

November 4, 2005

 

In attendance:  G. McColm, J.D. Noonan, B. Frank, S. Singh, B. Welker, M. Klisch, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, K. de la Peña McCook, J. Futch Martin, S. Ariew, S. Permuth, A. Miranda

 

Adoption of Agenda:  There was no written agenda. 

 

Reports: 

 

   Bargaining:  B. Welker explained the latest round of bargaining, including the tentative agreement on the article laying the groundwork for a promotion track for instructors.  There is still plenty more bargaining to be done, with little movement on the salary article.

 

   Grievances:  M. Klisch asked the group for some guidance on what to do about the two grievances that have been held up in administration for some time.  Then, G. McColm moved that the USF/UFF Chapter add to the next consultation agenda the topic of percentage of FTE on assignments for this semester.  Some chairs in CAS are assigning 3-hour courses as 20% of a teaching load (for courses that have been taught in the past and therefore should, they are presuming, take less preparation time) instead of the 25% it has been in the past.  After discussion, the motion passed unanimously.

 

Adjournment:  After an announcement of a speaker in the Tampa Library the following Monday, and there being no other Good of the Order, the meeting adjourned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

November 18, 2005

 

In attendance:  G. McColm, J.D. Noonan, B. Frank, S. Singh, B. Welker, M. Klisch, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, K. de la Peña McCook, J. Futch Martin, S. Dorn, A. Shapiro, F. Ottanelli, L. Alexander, H. Blymiller, T. Buonaquisti, H. Hechiche, N. Tyson, L. Samet, B. Frank.

 

Adoption of Agenda:  There was no written agenda.  M. Klisch chaired the meeting.

 

Bargaining.  B. Welker explained the difficulties the bargaining team has encountered with getting future meeting dates approved by the administration team.  Part of the problem is their chief negotiator feels the entire team has to be present.  There was much discussion about the items that are being discussed at the bargaining table at the current time, especially the administration’s salary package, which would make only 18% of the university’s faculty (and none of the non-teaching faculty) eligible for a raise.

 

Consultation:  It was reiterated that the issue of changing full-time assignment from 25% to 20% is already on the agenda for the upcoming consultation.  It was agreed by those present that the issue of “dilatory treatment of grievances” should be added to that agenda.

 

Committee Reports: 

           

            Treasurer:  Dorn reported that the chapter has jus received the chapter rebate.

           

            Membership:  Dorn reminded all that membership is important and that the issues should be “talked up,” especially since the Academic Bill of Rights will be making a return appearance.  There will be a table at the Ehrenreich talk with membership stuff.  The mailing is almost ready, and many expressed desire to make visits that will coincide with the receipt of the contract disc package.

           

            Grievances:  Klisch reported on the successful outcome of the librarians’ evaluation grievance, and that he’s received many phone calls about the T & P process from areas where there apparently were errors made in the process. This was followed with general discussion on the lack of timely—or any—movement on the chapter grievance on in-unit changes to out-of-unit without notification.  This has been added to the agenda for consultation.

           

            Newsletter/PR:  McColm has completed the intellectual property series in the latest BiWeekly and is working on the next article, on the “shenanigans” in Pennsylvania.  He also reminded those present to be thinking about chapter offices for which folks might want to run, as elections come early in the spring!

 

Adjournment:  There being no announcements or Good of the Order, the meeting was adjourned.                                    

 

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

December 2, 2005

 

In attendance:  G. McColm, J.D. Noonan, B. Frank, B. Welker, M. Klisch, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, J. Futch Martin, S. Dorn, A. Shapiro, F. Ottanelli, H. Hechiche, N. Tyson, L. Samet, M. Kaplan, L. Evans, A. Miranda, S. Permuth, L. Kay, R. Weatherford.

 

Adoption of Agenda:  There was no written agenda.  R. Weatherford wrote the agenda on the board, to which a few items were added:

     Meeting Schedule

     Bargaining

     St. Petersburg Policies Issue

     Ehrenreich Talk

     Compliance Visits from EEO

     Administrative Interference

     Schedule Elections for Spring

      Committee Reports

      Other Business

      Good of the Order

      Adjournment

 

Meeting Schedule:  The members present voted to continue meeting on the same schedule of every other non-payday Friday.  Another vote determined that there would be a meeting on December 16, 2005.

 

Bargaining:  B. Welker gave an update on bargaining, mentioning they were still having difficulties with scheduling sessions.  The administration team gave their salary proposal, which includes just .4% for across-the-board raises, 1% to fund their “Faculty Excellence Program,” which would give monies to less than 18% of all faculty--that would not include any of the non-teaching, non-tenure-earning faculty-- and 1% for other discretionary.  There is need for much improvement on this package!  Compression/inversion funding and other aspects of bargaining were also discussed.

 

Compliance Visits:  This topic was taken up out of order so that those who had to leave early could discuss it.  One of the departments in the College of Education is being visited by three men from EEO to investigate the “climate” of the department.  They will be interviewing doctoral candidates, and others.  There’s a concern due to the vagueness of the “fishing expedition.”  It was agreed that Roy would write a letter to Genshaft.

 

St. Petersburg Policies Issue:  S. Lang had received emails with over 100 new policies, asking for UFF approval.  R. Weatherford informed him that the union has nothing to do with policy matters.  UFF stands on the Collective Bargaining Agreement, no on policies.  There is no need for any immediate concern.

 

Ehrenreich Talk:  This went very well.  Thanks were extended to all who made it possible, including R. Ingalls, G. McColm, F. Ottanelli, L. Samet, and L. Kay.  S. Dorn facilitated drawings for 8 autographed copies of her book.

 

Administrative Interference:  Some students have gone directly to President Genshaft, and in one case to the Provost, to complain about certain faculty members’ politicizing the classroom.  The message has come down to the deans’ offices---therefore bypassing the departmental chairs---saying to “take care of it.”  This is clearly an issue of academic freedom which is spelled out in the CBA.  This will also go on the consultation agenda.

 

Committee Reports: 

     

      Treasurer:  S. Dorn reported that the chapter still has money.  We should be thinking about ways to improve membership using some of these funds.

 

      Grievances:  There have been no new grievances filed since the last meeting.  Follow-up on previous grievances included mention that the academic freedom/Academic Computing policies grievance has had absolutely no movement in months. The librarians who had their grievance upheld were not notified by the administration!  One of the librarians called M. Klisch and he has contacted K. Glover’s office to get the notification out.

 

Other Business: 

     

      Al-Arian: R. Weatherford mentioned that when the Al-Arian verdict comes down, he will be contacted by several reporters for his comment.  The UFF does not have an opinion or position on his guilt or innocence, rather we are concerned with due process and his rights.

 

Adjournment:  There being no more business or Good of the Order, the meeting was adjourned.

 

Committee Reports: Treasurer:  Dorn reported that the chapter has just received the chapter rebate.

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

December 2, 2005

 

In attendance:  G. McColm, J.D. Noonan, B. Frank, B. Welker, M. Klisch, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, K. McCook, J. Martin, S. Dorn, A. Shapiro, B. Ingalls, H. Hechiche, S. Permuth, L. Samet, L. Evans, L. Kay, R. Weatherford.

 

Before the adoption of the agenda, R. Weatherford informed of the presence of an Oracle reporter, Chris Gardner, in the room.  Motion made, seconded and passed unanimously to allow him to stay in the room during the meeting.

 

Adoption of Agenda:  with the addition of two items, the agenda as presented was adopted without objection as amended.

 

Election:  G. McColm said that the newly elected officers and senators would take office effective April 1, 2006, and would then be eligible to attend the UFF statewide senate meeting that same weekend.  The chapter needs an election committee, and one was formed by G. McColm, who will chair, S. Wohlmuth, B. Welker, K. McCook, -- and S. Lang from St. Pete was volunteered. B. Frank, UFF/USF office staff, will assist.  The committee is looking for people to run for office and for senator.  If you are interested, please contact one of the members of the committee or the UFF/USF office.

 

Consultation:  R. Weatherford discussed the meeting with selected members of the administration in the meeting on January 12, 2006.  Among the first items discussed were the meeting dates for consultation and whether or not this meeting was one for last or this semester.  It was agreed that it was the 2nd meeting of the fall semester, and that 2 meetings for spring semester would be scheduled in advance.  With respect to the policy of 25% vs. 20% of assignment for each class, the administration said it was not their policy to assign 20 %, but that the colleges had the right to do so.  It would not be good, however, for there to be less teaching involvement for USF faculty on paper or otherwise.  All in all, the general consensus of the group present was that the meeting ended on a pleasant note, with the discussion of two of UFF/USF’s initiatives for positive cooperation.  Those initiatives are:  Working together on achieving more funding for enrollment growth and the idea making USF a “solar” university.

 

Joint NEA/AFT Higher Education Conference:  R. Weatherford announced that the joint NEA/AFT Higher Education Conference would be in Orlando this year, during the first week in March.  Due to its proximity, there is the possibility that more UFF/USF may be able to attend.  It was moved and seconded that resources to pay for up to three chapter members to attend be provided, to include mileage, hotel, and registration.  This passed unanimously.

 

Bargaining:  Due to the presence of the Oracle reporter, B. Welker was forced to restrain his language while discussing bargaining issues with the group.  However, he mentioned those items for which there are already tentative agreements and memoranda of understanding—and salary is “almost there.”  This leaves the issue of benefits for domestic partners as the lone, real hold-up.  However, once this contract is ratified, the team must turn around immediately to bargain the next one, which must be completed by June 2006, when the bargained now runs out!

 

Membership:  There will be a membership drive/push the week of the MLK holiday, in conjunction with the celebration of King’s birthday.  R. Weatherford mentioned that the Central Labor Council will have a float in the MLK day parade in Tampa and that members were encouraged to join in the march or ride the float.

 

Grievance Training:  M. Klisch reported that Mr. Weinberger of the state office has apologized for taking so long to organize a statewide grievance training session.  Since USF is at the top of the list for training, there will be a special training session just for members of the chapter, at a time and date to be announced.  It is hoped that members outside those in the room at the time could be encouraged to step up and get involved in this particular effort.

 

 

Committee Reports:

 

      Treasurer:  Since the treasurer had to leave early, M. Weatherford announced that the chapter “has money.”

 

      Grievances:  The 3-to-4-month grievance addressing the reclassification problem is moving, albeit still slowly.  K. Glover will be meeting with M. Klisch about this.  The librarians’ evaluation grievance is having some residual effects, but so far, no new grievances have had to be filed.  There is a grievance concerning disciplinary action in process.

 

      Newsletter:  G. McColm issued a reminder that he is still looking for a reaction article to Barbara Ehrenreich’s visit, either to last semester’s talk or towards one of her books.  Let him know if you are interested.  The next UnCommon Sense is in the editing phase and should be published in a week or two.

 

Other Business:   The deadline for assigning release time is coming up in a month or so; please inform R. Weatherford if you are interested in serving.  Keep in mind that we have more slots than usual due to the settlement agreement, and thusly we have the opportunity to do more than in the past.

 

Adjournment:  There being no other business and no Good of the Order, the meeting was adjourned.

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

February 10, 2006

 

In attendance:  G. McColm, J.D. Noonan, B. Frank, B. Welker, M. Klisch, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, K. McCook, J. Martin, S. Dorn, B. Ingalls, H. Hechiche, S. Permuth, S. Singh, L. Evans, M. Paul, S. Lang, J. Wilkerson, A. Miranda, N. Tyson, L. Kay, R. Weatherford.

.

 

Adoption of Agenda:  Without objection, the agenda as presented was adopted.

 

Ratification:  There was discussion about the mechanics involved with ratifying the proposed contract.  S. Lang and J. Wilkerson will cover the St. Petersburg campus; S. Dorn will cover Sarasota.  There will be one member list carried around to each location.  H. Hechiche, N. Tyson, L. Evans, and perhaps J. Martin will cover the Tampa campus with a table set up outside the Library.  There will be a ratification party set for CDB’s Wednesday night, February 23rd, tentatively scheduled for 5:30 to 8 pm or thereabouts.  At a later point in the meeting, a motion was made, seconded, and passed unanimously, “That UFF/USF contact university administration to have them immediately issue a correction to the ambiguity in their email concerning the upcoming ratification.”

 

Parking:  The announcement by Parking Services of the proposed 20% annual increase over the next 5 years has caused an uproar and great concern for USPS employees, and AFSCME has decided that this is an item for bargaining.  According to the bargaining survey, bargaining unit members are very interested in this issue, and it is fungible in ways now that were not possible before the reorganization.  It was pointed out that the increase, after compounding yearly, is effectively a 148% increase. With considerable discussion, a motion was made and seconded, then substituted with the following motion:  “That the UFF/USF President send a letter to USF President Genshaft informing her that the increase in parking fees is to be negotiated as a term and condition of employment.”  The motion passed unanimously.

 

AAUP Letter:  Jordon Kurland, on behalf of AAUP’s Committee A, sent a two-page letter to President Genshaft about the Al-Arian situation and recent comments she has made to the media that Dr. Al-Arian’s employment at the University of South Florida ended 3 years ago.  These comments directly conflict with what wrote to the AAUP at the time, saying that the events would dictate his future. The letter mentioned the committee of peers that should address the issue because he was not convicted. 

 

Election:  G. McColm said ballots are at Pro-Copy now and should be ready for distribution on Monday, February 13th, on schedule. 

 

Consultation:  The next consultation is scheduled for February 28th, which is before the next chapter meeting.  The agenda is due in to administration by Tuesday, February 21, 2006.  Among items mentioned that need to be on that agenda was the need for concrete plans for implementing the contract language calling for the promotion track for instructors.  Other contract language calls for discussions on domestic partner benefits and tuition benefits for family, both of which also need to begin.

 

Committee Reports:

 

      Treasurer:  Since the treasurer had to leave early, M. Weatherford announced that the chapter “has money.”  There is still need for a plan addressing membership growth.

 

      Grievances:  The 3-to-4-month grievance addressing the reclassification problem has had some action: they have admitted that they should have notified us before removing those employees from the bargaining unit.  The employees will go back into the unit and before they are moved back out again, if they are, the chapter will be notified.  Three other cases were discussed by the group.

 

      Newsletter:  There will be a Bi-Weekly extra addressing the upcoming ratification process that will be out soon.  UnCommon Sense should be out in March, in order to warn folks of the possibility of summer assignment problems.

 

      Bargaining:  B. Welker distributed to members present a two-page synopsis of the CBA changes/additions that came about as a result of the most recent round of negotiations. 

 

Good of the Order:  N. Tyson mentioned the interviews for chair of the English department.

 

Adjournment:  There being no other business, the meeting was adjourned.

     

 

 

 

 

 

     

                                                                                                                                                                                       

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

February 24, 2006

 

In attendance:  G. McColm, H. Blymiller, B. Welker, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, K. McCook, J. Martin, S. Dorn, H. Hechiche, S. Singh, N. Stearley, R. Weatherford.

 

Adoption of Agenda:  Without objection, the agenda as presented was adopted.

 

Vote Counting Procedure: Before the agenda items were discussed, there was a question concerning the procedure for counting the contract ratification votes.  There was a motion to admit 2 ballots and one to admit 2 provisional ballots, both of which were seconded and passed unanimously.

 

Ratification:  The CBA would be ratified by the end of the day’s meeting. The BOT will vote at their March 2nd meeting.  The vote count continued throughout the meeting and the results were announced at the end of the meeting.  The CBA was ratified unanimously!

 

Parking:  R. Weatherford sent an email to UFF members.  The response from administration was that there is no history of bargaining parking, and so they’ve “respectfully declined” to take it up now.  It’s been on the chapter bargaining survey as a genuine topic of interest, but no details on the topic are provided via that instrument.  A member from CUTR has found four universities that HAVE bargained parking!

 

AAUP Letter:  There is a response letter from USF general counsel Steven Prevaux to Jordan Kurland; we have the letter of response from Kurland back to Prevaux.  There was general discussion on the letter’s use of the phrase, “applicable rules and procedures.”

 

Consultation:  The agenda for the consultation meeting Tuesday was discussed, including items discussing the joint bargaining topics, the solar energy proposal, the reclassification grievance, and the allocation of summer assignments problems.

 

Election:  The election for chapter officers and senators is in progress.

 

Legislative Initiative:  Discussion ensued on the wording of the chapter’s 2006 initiative, with a motion of one sentence coming forward:  We will work to increase salaries for faculty, graduate assistants, and professional employees and to fully fund enrollment growth in higher education.  This passed unanimously.  It was decided this should be broadcast to all, and mentioned at consultation as well.

 

Committee Reports:

 

      Treasurer:  We have money, apparently a lot.  Roy had wanted to entice more new folks to join in by having the pizza party last Wednesday at CDB’s, but a total of only 8 people showed up.  The chapter is in need of a plan to use some of the money to recruit new members, and to get current members active.  There was much discussion on this topic.

 

      Grievances:  There are a couple in process. The reclassification grievance is very touchy, as they’ve agreed to put the people back into their previous positions, but they’re also threatening to take away their raises -- retroactively!

 

      Newsletter:  The Bi-Weekly went out yesterday.

     

Adjournment:  There being no Good of the Order or other business, the meeting was adjourned.

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

March 10, 2006

 

In attendance:  G. McColm, B. Welker, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, J. Martin, N. J. Tyson, S. Lang, A. Shapiro, R. Evans, J. Wilkerson, J. D. Noonan, L. Kay, N. Gerton, S. Dorn, R. Weatherford.

 

Willis Truitt:  UFF/USF will fund the celebration for Willis Truitt’s life, to be held Saturday evening at the home of his widow.

 

Parking:  This issue is going nowhere fast.  They have admitted that “maybe” they should be talking to people more than they currently are.   But they probably cannot be forced to bargain parking.  The member from CUTR has offered his assistance on this.

 

FAIR System:  Lots of problems have been reported with this system.  Most agreed it is on course to self destruct.  Motion was made, seconded, and passed unanimously, that the “Editor of the Bi-Weekly is directed to send out a special issue warning faculty to watch out for problems with FAIR, and that everyone should carefully review what is in their files, their vitae especially.”

 

Virtual Rally in Tally:  This is a political event that R. Weatherford is trying to develop, where everyone will be encouraged to contact their legislators on the same day, via either phone or email.  The message should say, “Fund faculty raises and fund enrollment growth.”  The chapter does not have a Political Action chair, an office we need filled.  This Rally will happen; more details to follow.

 

Chapter Election:  The election for chapter officers and senators is in progress, and the ballots will be counted on Monday.

 

Committee Reports:

 

      Treasurer:  We have money, and have received the spring rebate check from Tallahassee.

 

      Grievances:  After discussion of the grievances in process, there was a long discussion on the issue of who should pay for those employees who must be fingerprinted.

 

      Newsletter:  The extra on the FAIR problems will come out, plus the publicity for the Rally in Tally.  UnCommon Sense should be out shortly after the break and will have an article about the summer assignment issue.

 

      Membership:  Activities for spring semester are done.  S. Dorn announced that he’s not going to chair membership after this semester.

 

      Bargaining:  Bargaining needs to start soon, as the current, just-ratified contract expires June 30, 2006.

 

Other Business:  The topics for the next consultation came up, including FAIR, payment for fingerprinting, and the discussion groups from previous bargaining sessions.  Also mentioned was the recent unceremonious dismissal of the Director of the Interdisciplinary Center for Hellenistic Studies by the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. 

 

Good of the Order:  A meeting notice for the East Hillsborough Democratic Club was distributed.  Kudos were given to Roy for a job well done on  Channel 13’s It’s Your Turn Tampa Bay program discussing “Colleges: Too Left or Right.”

 

Adjournment:  At this point, the meeting adjourned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

March 24, 2006

 

In attendance:  G. McColm, B. Welker, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, J. Martin, N. J. Tyson, A. Shapiro, L. Evans, J. Wilkerson, J. D. Noonan, S. Dorn, S. Singh, H. Blymiller, M. Klisch, K. McCook, N. Stearly.

 

Since R. Weatherford was not in attendance, M. Klisch presided.  The agenda was written on the board.

 

Consultation Topics:  There was much discussion on the different topics for consideration for the next consultation with administration:

 

  • Summer assignments: even after K. Glover sent memo to deans to clarify, there are still huge discrepancies across departments and campuses.
  • Working groups on contractual issues, such as domestic partner benefits, assignment of tuition to family, etc., and promotion track
  • Topic Number One should be:  Why has there been no action on agreements from previous consultations?
  • Revive the old tradition of alternate meeting venues, from “our place” to “their place,” back and forth.
  • Bulletin Boards in each and every college for UFF use (another ‘old tradition’ that’s no longer being followed) [There was some discussion that we should go ahead and do this anyway, on our own.]
  • The FAIR system, including its multiple problems and the question as to whether or not it’s being updated.  If so, we should be involved in that process.
  • Fingerprinting costs issue
  • Emergency preparedness, what is the university doing in this area, including the issue of alternate email addresses for faculty, of pay for faculty in case the university must close, etc.

During this discussion, motion was made and seconded that the UFF/USF chapter send University administration 3 dates from which to choose to meet for the purpose of discussing these issues from bargaining:  domestic partner benefits, tuition, and promotion track.  The motion passed unanimously.

 

Committee Reports:

 

      Treasurer:  We have money.

 

      Grievances:  S. Dorn announced that Academic Computing has changed the policy for computer use in direct consequence of the grievance.  M. Klisch talked about the status of the ELI ‘firings.’

 

       

 

Other Business:  The Senate meeting in Orlando will be next weekend.  Also, S. Singh mentioned that we should consider having some benefits for members only, such as the ability to find salary information for faculty online.  The treasurer concurred that there was money to pay programmers for this.  S. Dorn suggested that the chapter needs to discuss the topic of benefits for members only in a meeting later in the semester.  One benefit he mentioned was tenure and promotion workshops.

 

Good of the Order:  N. Tyson mentioned that the new chair of English was selected by the Dean against the recommendation of the departmental committee.

 

Adjournment:  At this point, the meeting adjourned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

UFF/USF Chapter Meeting

April 7, 2006

 

In attendance:  G. McColm, B. Welker, S. Ramírez Wohlmuth, J. Martin, L. Evans, J. Wilkerson, S. Singh, H. Blymiller, M. Klisch, K. Nann, C. Churchill, A. Shapiro, S. Permuth, S. Lang, R. Weatherford.

 

Candi Churchill:  Candi is the FEA/UFF staff assigned to the I-4 corridor territory and will help us in our membership campaign. She gave those present her email address and cell phone number.

 

Legislative Initiative:  Kudos for those who participated in the virtual Rally in Tally on Tuesday, April 11th came from Sharon Brownfield, FEA staff. Full funding for enrollment is not a given, and salary is yet to be written into any of the bills yet.  There is serious politicking yet to be done over which amount, if any, will be included for salaries for university employees.

 

“Discussions” with Administration:  There has been a meeting between UFF/USF representatives and administrative representatives to discuss those topics that were agreed to in bargaining: tuition benefits, promotion track for instructors, and domestic partner benefits.  The meeting was far from productive.  It was obvious that the other side had prepared nothing on any of the topics and seemed not to have any interest in them either.  Only the issue of domestic partner benefits had they “explored” with some companies and they’ll “get back” with us.  Ditto for promotion track.  There was no “discussion” at all.  General consensus was that if the next (as yet, unscheduled) meeting is more of the same, publicity over their lack of true participation in these contractually-agreed-upon discussions will be in order.

 

Questions from Grievance Chair:  A couple of issues have been brought to his attention by members on regional campuses.  One is the question of whether or not employees’ emails are being read and intercepted by university administration.  This topic needs to come to consultation.  Members present told of similar circumstances in their own situation. The answer is to encrypt all outgoing email so that it is illegible to anyone unauthorized to read it.  The second question is whether or not administration is changing grades without permission or knowledge of the professor giving them.  Much discussion ensued on this topic as well.  It was noted that some in administration feel that grades are the purview of “the university,” not the faculty. Some felt it was not the purview of UFF; rather it is more an issue the Faculty Senate should investigate.  In any case, it is a violation of Academic Freedom.

 

UFF Senate:  The statewide senate convenes this weekend.  One topic that might be brought up there is the issue of financial support for international students.  Apparently there are moves in the legislature to cut funding for tuition waivers, etc. for these students.  It would be a huge blow for most of the SUS should this happen, and were the senate to address the problem, it might go a long way to earning goodwill of those faculty in  areas most affected by the use of international students.  These areas are those where membership is the lowest.

 

Ken Megill:  Dr. Megill was the president of the struggling UFF in 1976 when the right to bargaining was won; he fought to have community colleges included in the union, and he brought in St. Leo College as the first independent institution.  He will be in town in two weeks to deliver a paper for the philosophy department and will be attending the chapter’s lunch meeting on April 21st.

 

Good of the Order:  M. Klisch mentioned that Phil Smith will be the Step II grievance representative for administration in an upcoming hearing.

 

Adjournment:  At this point, the meeting adjourned.