York's Discounted School Year 2008-09

Linda Briskin

I have just learned that TAs and contract faculty will only be getting 90% of their Fall salary. Although it is the case that there are two less weeks in the year (22 rather than 24 weeks), TAs and faculty are facing a lot of extra work to sort out remediation and the winter semester which include revised schedules and assignments, setting up make up exams and deferrals, and dealing with student concerns. If the York President wants to heal the wounds of the strike, as he claims, cutting back the salary of TAs and contract faculty is not the route to go.

I am also concerned as a course director with a seven person CUPE teaching team. I have been assuming that I would still be able to access 270 hours of work from my TAs. I am disturbed that this is not the case. And I am very disturbed that the administration did not even see fit to inform us about this decision.

And I wonder, in despair, about what role YUFA is playing to ensure that YUFA faculty have the necessary access to our teaching teams. Their silence on remediation issues has been deafening. Asking us to report individually about our extra work defeats the entire purpose of a union -- which seeks collective solutions, and negotiates on all our behalf when the workload provisions of our collective agreement have been violated.

From http://cupe3903.tao.ca/?q=node/949

1) For those who have a contract for a Unit 1 contract from Sept to April, you will be paid a total of 90% of the Fall term and 100% for the Winter term.

To illustrate the above, we will use the most common example which is a unit 1 member who holds a full TA through the Fall/Winter. A full TA is worth $12,307 (not including 4% vacation pay) and as a result a member holding a full TA was scheduled to earn $6,153.50 for Fall 2008. A member holding a full TA was paid
just over 50% of the $6181.50 prior to the strike in September, October as well as the small amount paid in November. The balance that will be paid for the remediation period performed in February should be 40% of $6181.50 less the amount paid in November.

2) For those who have a contract for a Unit 2 contract from Sept to April, you will be paid a total of 90% of the Fall term and 100% for the Winter term.

Commenting on this Story is closed.