Librarians and Archivists negotiations update

Librarians and Archivists negotiations update

By Communications Staff
(Western News, University of Western Ontario)

Tuesday, September 29, 2009 Western's Librarians and Archivists (UWOFA-LA) have voted in favour of supporting strike action in the event that conciliation talks scheduled to continue with the university through October fail to produce a renewed collective agreement.

Alan Weedon, Vice-Provost (Academic Planning, Policy and Faculty), says despite Monday's ballot results, the university is optimistic that a fair collective agreement can be reached most effectively at the bargaining table.

“Progress has been made on several issues through our meetings thus far, and we remain committed to continuing our discussions with the aid of a conciliator,” adds Weedon.

The 55 members of the bargaining unit are represented by the University of Western Ontario Faculty Association. The university has been in negotiations with UWOFA-LA since May working to renew the group’s first contract, which ended July 1. One meeting has already been held with a provincially appointed conciliator, and eight more days are scheduled through to October 30. The next meeting is set for October 9.

The conciliation process is mandatory under provincial law before either party is deemed to be in a legal position to engage in a strike or lock-out. If the process fails, the conciliator issues a "no board" report, after which both parties must wait a minimum of 17 days before undertaking any job action.

-SMD

Librarians strike vote at UWO passes‏

(From the Canadian Library Association listserv)

Strike Vote: Librarians and Archivists vote 88% in favor

London (ON) - Unionized librarians and archivists at the University of Western Ontario have voted overwhelmingly to support strike action to back their bargaining goals of fair evaluations, job security and equitable salaries and benefits.
A total of 88% of UWOFA-LA members voted in favour of authorizing their union to call a strike. The ballots were cast over two days, September 25 and 28. Librarians and Archivists have been without a contract since July 1, 2009.

"This vote demonstrates the determination of our members to ensure a fair and equitable settlement," said Regna Darnell, UWOFA president. "The work of librarians and archivists is at the heart of university life, and should be recognized as such."

Conciliation to help advance contract negotiations began Thursday September 24. Further meetings with conciliator John Quinn are scheduled through to the end of October. UWOFA-LA members will not be in a legal strike position until a no-board report has been requested and sixteen days have passed after its receipt by the Minister of Labour.

"Our negotiating team is committed to use the scheduled meetings to achieve a fair deal," said Darnell.

The 55 Librarians and Archivists at Western rank 91st out of 113 research libraries in North America when it comes to salaries and benefits.

-SMD

Oakland Unuiversity Librarians Return to Work

In Rochester, Michigan, librarians, teachers, and students at Oakland University went back to school September 10, ending a week-long faculty strike joined by a dozen tenure-track librarians from the Kresge Library. The administration and the faculty union reached a tentative agreement on the faculty’s 2009–2012 contracts.
--as reported in American Libraries Direct.

Tribute scheduled for labor activist, folklorist Archie Green

Tribute scheduled for labor activist, folklorist Archie Green
By The News-Gazette
Saturday September 12, 2009

CHAMPAIGN – The School of Labor and Employment Relations at the University of Illinois will host a tribute on Monday to Archie Green, a union activist turned folklore icon who died March 22 in San Francisco at age 91.

Green, who taught for more than a decade at the UI, spent a lifetime making sure people remember the past, according to the School of Labor and Employment Relations. He nearly single-handedly pushed a national center devoted to folklore and the creative heritage of America's working class.

"We feel people should know about his work and his contributions," said Ron Peters, a retired labor professor who headed the planning for the event. "We also want to make a statement that the subject matter he championed is very legitimate and has expanded the frontiers of knowledge."

The tribute to Green will feature remarks by David Taylor, the head of research and programs for the American Folklife Center, along with performances by folk music scholar Stephen Wade, and by Jordan Kaye of The Prairie Dogs, a local folk and bluegrass band.

Other speakers will be UI history Professor David Roediger and Mike Munoz, a union activist and friend of Green. An open mike session will follow.

The program will be from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Wagner Education Center at the School of Labor and Employment Relations, 504 E. Armory Ave., C.

Peters said folklore was little regarded in most academic circles when Green, then 40, with years as a shipwright and carpenter under his belt, came to the UI in 1958. After earning a master of library science degree in 1960, Green spent more than a decade as a teacher and librarian at the Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, now the School of Labor and Employment Relations. He later earned a doctorate in folklore from the University of Pennsylvania and taught at the University of Texas and the University of Louisville. In 2007, he received the Living Legend Award from the Library of Congress.

Call for a systemwide walkout of all UC faculty on September 24, 2009

An Open Letter to UC Faculty

August 31, 2009

Dear Colleagues,

We are grateful for Provost Pitts’ letter of 21 August—sent at the opening of a late summer weekend, with unimpeachably cowardly timing—for clarifying certain matters. Foremost among them is the farce of shared governance, in distinction to emergency powers. It is now finally inarguable that the polling of the faculty on significant matters is a fig leaf for the will of the Chancellors and the Office of the President. We stand corrected: shared governance is merely the polite name for emergency powers.
Read More.

The walkout, which has been endorsed by the American Association of University Professors, will coincide with a previously scheduled strike by the local University Professional and Technical Employees union, which represents 12,000 university employees.

Toledo-Lucas County Public Library to Cut 10% of Work Force

Between 30 and 35 workers — up to 10 percent of the work force in the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library system — will be jobless next month, library officials announced September 2, 2009.

Association of Public Library Employees. UAW Local 5242 - Region 2B.
[Communication Workers of America Local 4319, which represents circulation clerks, custodians, maintenance workers, and book processors.]
“Members should know that the economy is tough right now and everybody is suffering,” said Harry Johnston, a representative from Communications Workers of America. His union represents clerks and custodians. “We’re working very hard with the governor’s office to get funding and restore those positions,” he said of the pending layoffs.

In 1984, staff members of the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library felt the need to become an organized bargaining unit. Looking for more say in their jobs, better safety, increased job security and respect, the Association of Public Library Employees was organized. APLE was officially recognized to represent librarians and other professional staff in 1987.APLE in 2003 joined the UAW.