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Dear Colleagues and Members of United Academics: I trust that many of you can attest to the mix of challenges and achievements across our campus and our union this last academic year. In state politics, we began the academic year optimistically with the potential to stabilize Oregon’s treasury with a corporate tax. By November, large corporations spent tens of millions of dollars to defeat the corporate tax in Measure 97; the result was a stinging defeat capped by other electoral woes. With one of the lowest corporate tax rates in the country, Oregon faces another state budget shortfall of $1.4…

As the Spring term was coming to a close, I had a conversation with President Schill about the possibility of extending our current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) by a year or two. The central idea was that we would come to an agreement about a new raise package for those years and leave the rest of the CBA in place until we could bargain a full Agreement. I talked this idea over with our Executive Council and we all agreed it made sense to explore this idea with the UO administration. There were several factors that contributed to our thinking,…

The Oregon Senate passed legislation ensuring that all of Oregon’s public university faculty will have the right to join a union, if they so choose. By adopting House Bill 3170 on a 17 to 13 vote, the Senate joins the Oregon House in approving the bipartisan legislation. After a concurrence vote in the House, the bill will move to the Governor’s desk for her signature. While most public university faculty in Oregon have long enjoyed the right to unionize, since the 1990s an amended Public Employee Collective Bargaining Act has prevented faculty with supervisory duties from joining unions. With the…

Due to the dire weather forecast, United Academics leadership has decided to cancel the picnic scheduled for this weekend.  Instead, UA will buy your first round of beers at Falling Sky Deli (8th and Blair) on Saturday. We’ll be there from 3 to 6 pm. We’ll order snacks and appetizers for everyone, too.  Please come on by and salute the end of this academic year!

Last month the Daily Emerald published an article reporting on the non-renewals of non-tenure track (NTT) faculty and staff in the College of Arts and Sciences. It became apparent from the article and the ensuing discussions that the UO administration and Board of Trustees do not have a complete picture of how NTTF provide essential contributions to the successful functioning of the University in fulfilling its teaching and research missions. This apparent lack of understanding inspired many of our University community members to respond. In support of this dialogue, United Academics invited President Schill to a dialogue with a group of…

Stop by our booth at the Street Faire, fill out our diversity survey and grab some UA swag!

A wet, unseasonably chilly day was the perfect setting for tens of thousands of scientists and science enthusiasts to march from the Washington monument to the foot of Capitol Hill.  The raucous marchers chanted and throngs of on-lookers cheered as they passed.  With generous funding from AFT-Oregon I was able to represent United Academics and AFT-OR in Washington for this amazing display of solidarity. Check the photos and videos below for the scope of the event in DC, and thanks to all who marched in Eugene, Portland and other locations around the world. IMG_1413

May Day is celebrated around the world as labor day. Originally in recognition of the US. labor leaders executed by the state of Illinois after the Haymarket Square bombing in 1886, May Day has enjoyed a renewed relevance in the U.S. in recent decades as immigrants from Latin America have used the day to demand immigration reform and assert their dignity and rights as workers. This year we have multiple options if you would like to get out in the streets and celebrate alongside your fellow workers. In Salem CAUSA, the Oregon immigrants’ rights advocacy organization, has a rally at…

United Academics, as an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), enjoys a voice in the deliberations within our national union. AFT-Oregon’s Executive Council and annual conventions are the primary vehicles for this engagement. I am delighted to report that our five elected UA delegates actively participated in this important exercise of union democracy. Last weekend, we joined with AFT-affiliated unions from across the state (including our local cousins at the GTFF) to shuffle through 2+ days of business and decision-making. Dozens of resolutions, elections, and internal policy changes moved our union in fresh and positive directions. I must…