Headline

On Friday, June 26, from 1-5 pm, the United Academics bargaining team will begin conversations with the administration bargaining team about restoring the FTE of Career faculty scheduled to work reduced FTE next year, fixing our broken system of employing Career faculty, revising our current TTF tenure reduction/retirement program, and determining what a fair and equitable salary cut plan might look like if one is needed. This bargaining session will be on Zoom. Your video and audio will be muted, and the chat feature will be disabled. Neither party has bargained remotely before, so your patience will be appreciated if…

The survey, spearheaded by Professor Melissa Graboyes, has concluded. Dr. Graboyes shares the data and main conclusions in her Executive Summary and Survey Results (including comments). The main takeaways (cribbed directly from https://www.coronaviruschronicles.com/uo-survey) are: 1. There are wide differences in opinion between undergraduates, graduate students, staff, and faculty about whether it is wise to return to in-person instruction in Fall Term, their level of concern about the health risks, and their levels of trust in the University administration to act in their best interest and the best interest of the university community. Overall, undergraduates are more enthusiastic about an in-person Fall Term and less concerned about…

United Academics held a virtual Town Hall on Monday, June 8, 2020. A Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page is posted here on the United Academics webpage. The FAQ responds to the dozens of questions we received during the meeting and over the last several weeks. If you don’t see answers to your questions there, drop us a line at [email protected]. We will continue to update the FAQ as new issues arise or information becomes available.

An urgent request from our friends at the Center for the Study of Women in Society. Our union leadership is talking about the best way to address these crucial issues. Dear Colleagues: We are writing with an urgent request to university leadership, the United Academics, and the UO Senate, deans, and department heads. COVID-19 has uncovered many aspects of our institutional practice that have historically rendered certain labor invisible and left others more vulnerable. Historically, the ivory tower was designed for monastic, solitary contemplation wherein great thoughts were debated and passed down to a few selected students who were fortunate…

Dear Colleague, The murder of George Floyd and the police brutality against those who protest the systems that caused his death are just the latest episodes in the history of American violence against Black people. It must end. We do not know what an America not based on white supremacy looks like, as it has never previously existed, but we do know that all of our institutions will be impacted. Our demands are the first steps in dismantling white supremacy in our university and our union. All who are committed to ending our systems of oppression must act quickly, before…

Dear Colleague, We are writing to encourage you to participate in an anonymous 15-minute survey to gather opinions about the university’s plans to open for in-person, on-campus instruction in fall term. Currently, no one has a good idea of the range of views that exist on campus, and that puts us all in a weaker position in identifying concerns across different groups of people. Collecting this information will allow us to prepare to address the range of opinions and concerns people have and better advocate for safe fall plans. We hope that you will consider joining us in this important…

Professor Kim Sheehan and Professor Deborah Morrison shared their thoughts regarding the current state of Career faculty at the University of Oregon. The text of the letter can be found below and the original PDF here. UA welcomes faculty input, like Dr. Morrison and Dr. Sheehan have provided here, and there are many ways to be involved as we work with the administration in faculty and student best interests. Bargaining around this issue and other topics will be discussed at the United Academics June 8, 2020 Town Hall. Additional details and an opportunity to submit questions will be forthcoming. June…

When United Academics was first formed eight years ago, both the administration and United Academics agreed that Career faculty were valuable members of the campus community. We agreed that our research mission would be nothing without them, and that their teaching forms the backbone of our educational mission. Both parties easily agreed that Career faculty should be able to earn long-term contracts that provided them certainty and stability. Both agreed that if these excellent faculty were willing to commit themselves to the university, the university should commit to them in return. While Career faculty have gone to extraordinary lengths to…

Unbalanced FTE ExplainedAt UO, we typically talk about a faculty member’s FTE in two different ways – FTE per term and annual FTE. For most faculty, these are the same. A faculty member on an annual 1.0 FTE contract will have a 1.0 FTE in each term. Some faculty, however, have less than 1.0 FTE, and this can lead to them working an “unbalanced” schedule, where their term FTE does not match their annual FTE.The most common unbalanced schedule is a faculty member who teaches only in one term. If that faculty member were to teach three classes in CAS…

We have heard from many faculty over the last few weeks who are incredulous at the announcement that the administration wants to open campus in the fall and have in-person teaching. Many, of course, fear for their safety. Some wonder how they will take care of their children if daycares or schools are still closed. Some think the announcement is obviously a ploy, and no one should believe that we’ll actually be on campus. Others see the necessity of opening because we need the money, but also think it can’t possibly work. No one contacting us, though, seems to believe…