Update re: Letter to Carleton on CI Cuts


December 20, 2024	View in browser

Update re: Letter to Carleton on CI Reductions

Dear colleagues,

We received a response from Catherine Khordoc to the letter we sent on Monday late yesterday, which we'd like to share with you along with our response (below).

We'd also like to share CUASA's letter of solidarity with you and share our gratitude for their continued support.

We will not sit idly by as our already precarious livelihoods are stripped away.

Expect more updates in the new year.

In solidarity,

Esther Post, Ph.D. (she/her)
President, CUPE 4600
Contract Instructor, Department of English (2003-present)

From Catherine Khordoc:

Dear Esther,

I am writing in response to your letter dated December 16th, regarding the message that Dean Bowker sent last week to FASS Faculty and Contract Instructors. I understand that the Union is concerned with respect to the University’s progress towards its long-term goal of reducing reliance on Contract Instructors. As Dean Bowker acknowledged in her message, the potential staffing adjustments are challenging, but will be navigated thoughtfully.

The University’s financial circumstances have been repeatedly communicated to the broader community and the Union, and will come as no surprise to Contract Instructors. The Union will also recall that this issue was discussed at the November meeting of the Joint Committee for the Administration of the Agreement (JCAA). The University anticipated further discussing this matter at the December JCAA meeting; however, the Union was not available for the dates and times that were proposed by the University. I am advised the parties have confirmed a date for the January JCAA meeting where we can further discuss this matter.

The information you have requested with respect to Contract Instructor staffing is not yet available. Decisions regarding course offerings for the 2025-2026 academic year are only now in the process of being made, and will not be finalized for some time. As Dean Bowker indicated in her message, the pace of change will vary by unit. Staffing adjustments will depend, in part, on faculty and staff retirements. We are not yet in a position to identify the specific adjustments that will be required for 2025-2026, including any adjustments relating to redeployments and shared services. The University will continue to provide the Union with updates at our JCAA meetings.

I suggest that we schedule a meeting in early January to discuss these matters further. I’ll check on my and Amy’s availability and will propose some possible times to you shortly.

Best regards,
Catherine

Our Response:

Dear Catherine Khordoc & Amy Wyse

Thank you for responding to my email. Unfortunately, rather than providing a meaningful response to any of the questions I asked on behalf of our Union, you parroted empty talking points which we’ve already read in the callous email that went out last Friday

The minutes from the November JCAA meeting clearly indicate there was absolutely no discussion about how proposed austerity measures would affect Contract Instructors. As we were offered only two dates to meet in December with just two weeks' notice, we would not have been able to achieve quorum for the December meeting. In any case, the December meeting would have occurred on either Dec. 17 or 19 (per the University’s availability), the week AFTER this public message was sent from the Dean of FASS. There has been zero consultation with the Union about the information shared in that email.

Your claim that you do not have any information available in reply to the questions I raised in my letter is dubious at best, given your position within the university.

The Carleton community learned last week that FASS will be cutting CIs by 50% – are you telling us that you had no knowledge about the proposed percentage of this “longterm goal” before this information was shared publicly? If this is a longterm goal for the University, why has it not been communicated to us directly at any point?

I am, once again, asking you and your colleagues in upper administration to be accountable to the decisions that have been made behind closed doors without consultation with those who will be affected: provide CUPE 4600 with detailed information regarding CI reductions across all Faculties and Departments, including but not limited to, the proposed percentage of reduction and the criteria and factors that will be used to determine which CIs are employed next year. In addition to this, we ask that you provide similar information on any potential or proposed reductions in TA allocations next year.

Perhaps over the holidays, you and your colleagues might reflect on the impacts of these decisions on the hundreds of real human beings who will lose their already precarious livelihoods as a result of Carleton’s longterm goals.

I look forward to a more thoughtful and accountable response from you in the new year.

Sincerely,
Esther Post
President, CUPE 4600

CUPE 4600

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