AtoM
Association of University and College Employees (AUCE) fonds
Committees
Association of University and College Employees
File contains a bound 1976-77 strike committee report and other records dated August 13, 1976 to March 7, 1977. Topics discussed include contract negotiations, "absence from work" issue, job evaluation and classification, publicity and communication, interactions with other unions and organizations, preparing for strike, summary of activities, and recommendations. File also contains several brochures, bulletins, flyers, newsletters, an issue of the Ubyssey (UBC student newspaper), and correspondence.
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â¢ j I I' I PRESENT: ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY AND COLLEGE EMPLOYEES MINUTES OF CONTRACT MEETING ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 13, 1976 IN 4TH FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM, IRC BUILDING University: AUCE: R. A. Grant (Chairman) J. Lawrence C. Singer N. Boucher J. E. de Bruijn M. Dionne J. Prenty F. Funston M. Davis p. Gibson P. Irving J. Hoskins L. Legault B. McEachern I . Mackenzie V. Pusey J. Todhunter M. Walley (Chairwoman) 1. Robert Grant agreed to undertake the booking of rooms for negotiations. It was agreed that, where possible, the IRC 4th floor Conference Room would be used, with Cecil Green Park and Scarfe Building Room 2415 as alternate meeting places when IRC was not available. 2. It was agreed to hold negotiation meetings on Tuesdays and Thursdays, starting each day at 9:30 a.m. The University agreed to AUCE's request for two additional hours' absence from work for its committee members in order to meet an hour before negotiations commenced and remain an hour after adjournment. 3. A lengthy discussion followed with regard to paying all the members of AUCE' s Contract Committee while they were in r1egotiations ( t-his included regulars and alternates, totalling 13 committee members, plus a recording secretary). The University stated that in last year's negotiations, only six committee members had been paid, & as this was AUCE's third contract being negotiated, only six should be needed. They pointed out that under B.C. law, they were not obliged to pay any of AUCE's Contract Committee members to negotiate. AUCE protested that if only six members were present, then all divisions within the bargaining unit would not be represented at the bargaining table, and also pointed out that there were 11 members during the 1974 negotiations. AUCE's position was that 11 members would be the minimum acceptable this year. Robert Grant took this 'under advisement' and said he would bring it back to the table at the next meeting. . .. I MINUTES OF CONTRACT COMMITTEE MEETING WITH THE UNIVERSITY, AUGUST 13, 1976 (contd) 4. AUCE also stated their position with regard to allowing any members of the Union to sit in as observers on their own time during negotiations. The University was not very happy with this and stated that they would bring it back to the table at the next meeting. 5. The matter of press releases was discussed. The University suggested that what was discussed at the bargaining table should not be made public. AUCE stated their position that everything that went on at the bargaining table was open to the membership and AUCE had a policy of giving out any press releases they felt necessary, with no restrictions. 6. Coffee breaks and lunch breaks were agreed to. Robert Grant agreed to look into the possibility of having a coffee machine available during meetings. 7. It was agreed that AUCE would send the University letters of agreement on all the points agreed to at the first meeting. 8. Next meeting: Thursday, August 19, 1976, 4th floor Conference Room, IRC Building. 9. The meeting adjourned at 11:50 a.m. vjp 2 .- . - Wha~ fol lows is a resume of the Union's ~t he meeting of t9ag76 to the meeting of the minutes from those meetings which I and the University's presentations, from 2se76ft These are to be supplemented by am in the process of typing. The session on Thursda~, 19ag76, opened with the absence from wor~ issue. Grant initial ty requested that the Union provide arguments for more than 6 positions, that is 6 paid positions. Jean Lawren ce outlined the Union's position mainly on the basis of the Constitution which provides for 9 Division representatives and 2 ex-officio members. One of Grant's many rep I ies was to the effect that "we are doing better than others." He th en expanded upon a 'pet philosophy' - the advant- ages of small groups as opposed to larg er , unwieldy ones. "In the interests of debate, you can get too many people." Ian Mackenzie pointed out that last year the Union actually paid the University as the work of the contract members pi led up unti I their return. Gr ant reject ed this suggestion and r turned to the â¢greate efficiency of the smal I group theme.' J ef f Hoskins took a different tack and ar- gued on the basis of proportional repre entation - at SFU it was l rep per 70, at Cap Coll ege it was I per 17, at UBC it was I per 100. Grant said it was not his intention to change the numbe r of AUCE'S representatives, but that only 6 could be paid. But he did cone de that the issue was not that important and that he couldnsee some movement in this issue." Grant waxed philosophical throughout the session especially in regards to the relationship between AUCE and the University. "We're trying to bui Id a relation- ship with you. I want to get away from the feeling that I've got a big club and and coming in to bang you down." Grant then quickly agreed to having obs ervers from both sides attend sessions. He returned, during a coffee break, to 'phi loso- phy', especially in regards to Connaghan. Grant, and pres4mably Connaghan, felt that it takes years to develop a relationship. The Contract Committee teen proceeded to present the proposals which the member- ship had voted to date. The Union simplypresented its rationale for the contract proposals, while Grant restricted his contributions, at least for the majority of the time, to requesting ctarif Â·ications of the Union positions. Grant indicated frequent!y that tt was his intent "to get clear what's in your mind". A common phrase was: "Let us know what is behind your concern." He was al I sweetness and I ight, interested only in knowing "why these changes have been stimulated." "Let us get some notes on that â¢â¢â¢ it's important that we understand it." At the end of the Contract Committee's presentation, Grant stated: "I'm pleased to tel I you that your presentation was clear, and we have no questions ... 8t least you're giving us some meat to take awa y." The session on Tuesday, 24ag76 again opened with the absence from work issue. Grant raised the spectre of mediation at some time in the future with the remark that his discussions with mediation officers had indicated that large groups tended to be ineffic~ent. But, he admitted that our' large'committee was a reality that the University would have to accept - yet the University was only wi I ling to finance/pay 6. The University would al low as many representatives as the Union wished to have at the table, but any in exce~s of 6 would have to be paid by the Union. Jean Lawrence said that the Union stood by its former position and that the Committ ee w9uld have to go batk to the membership for direction. ' The Contract Committee then presented another batch of membership-approved pro- posals. The procedure fol lowed was the same as ~uring the last session. At one point Grant stated: "I want to · get your point, I don't to debate it." On the issue of vacation entitlement for continuing part-time employees which Jeff Hoskins presented, Grant expanded upon his time/money concept and implied that his Com- mittee had been discussing the .same issue. "We're going to have some difficulty, but this is an example of common concern. 11At the end of the presentation Grant -L.- . â¢ said that he was not opppsed to spelling out things for employees and he . stated lhat he was "happy that you've presented something we could negotiate on." Grant mentioned that he was planning to vacation abroad from 3se76 to 30se76, and proceeded to press for a schedule in regards to the presentation of proposals. "I don't want to walk out of here Friday (3se76) without having everything debated." The only person to replace him would be Wes Clark, and if Clark w re acceptable then he (Grant) "would like to find some vehicle to continue negotiations." But, if Connaghan decided to have Grant forgo his vacation, this would b the case. Grant went on to say that that the University was developing a pol icy to be given to the Union in writing, and that his Committee would have n â¢â¢â¢ a mandate to negotiate from the day we put our proposals on the table." - a mandate from the President's Office The term "President's Office" was to be us d by Grant in ev ry session with rever- ent i a 1 awe â¢ And, i n regards to h av i n g C I a r k ch a i r the Un i v er _s i t y' s Comm i t tee for September, Grant said: "I don't want to throw you into the position of thinking you can't move because of personalities." To this point in the meeting the Contract Committee had not even discussed the ramifications or desirabi I ity of having Clark interjected for a month into negotiations. The Union caucased and discussed the issues of Wes Clark and when the contract proposals presentation would be completed Jean Lawrence informed Grant and his Committeetthat the Union would leave the issue of how to proceed during Grant's absence unti I at least the next meeting. As to a date by when the Union's propos.als would be submitted, that would most I ik:ely be at month's end by the latest. Grant said that he did not want to pressure AUCE. He continued: "Some of the issues you have touche~ upon, we have discussed. There is a need for a good discussion of the issues. You represent the employee's interest. We represent the University's interest, not our particula~ · own." On such a bails negotiations would "proceed in a mature way."/ ' . MiRutes of Contract Meeting on Thursday, September 2, 1976 - 4th Floor Conference Present: AUCE: Fairleigh Funston Maree t' Dionne Barb McEachern Jeff Hoskins Jean Lawrence (Chairwoman) Wendy Bice Margie Wa I I y Tracy Mi tche I I Ian Mackenzie t.i I Legau It Pat Gibson Ray Galbraith · University: Room - RC Building 9: 3 0 am. Robert Grant (Chairman) Carol Singer Er i k de Br u i j n June Prenty . I. Before AUCE presented the remaining few proposals and ho~s keeping Jean Lawrence stressed~the continuing difficulties that members of the Contract Committee w~re having In getting away. Grant admitted that he sti I I had "a little bit of static" with ce rtain offices, but that these should soon be overcome. Grant indicated that he Â·had be en called into th Pre ident's Office and that the conversation center ed around ne goti t~ons with AUCE. Negotiations, Gra~t stated, w re to get "moving â¢â¢â¢ reg ardl ss of whom is ~itting in this ch ir." Furthermore, he was to meet with th e Pr sid ent at 2:30 pm. to discuss the Uni- versity's proposals. He s ugges t d that we r econv neat around 4:00 pm., and at that · time the Uniue r s lty would pr s nt its proposals "formally". Then, "at the next meeting, we would st art to negotiate on the basis of the two docu- ments." But, Grant expr es s ed a desire for both sid s to discuss the job eval Â·- uation/classification que stion during the morning session. He said that he was going ahead with his vacation for the month of September and that he did not expect any problems. But, "if we do run into problems, I am prepared to take a plane back." Je an said that AUCE didn't thin~ it would be a problem. . . 2. Jean Lawrence presented the material submitted by the Contract Committee "Further Errata"{p. 24-25 of the Union's contract proposal cumulation). After the short presentation, during which Grant r equested his customary clarifi- cations in regards to the Union's intent, there was a caucus for coffee and discussion. Grant requ es t ed an answer from the Union on the issue of recon- vening in the afternoon in ord e r to recâ¢t~e the Uni~ersity's proposals. "Re- gard .less of your answer, I'm pr e pare~ to give you, in writing, our proposals today." During the caucss the Contract Committee decided to reconvene that afternoon. 3. After the break, Grant returned to speak to the job evaluation/c -lassification issue. Grant felt that this was " â¢â¢â¢ one Â·of the more troublesome issues", and that it would " â¢â¢â¢ serve some usefu -1 purpose to find out what the Union is looKing for." Grant proc eded to throw out a series of idea for the Contract Committee's consumption. He asked: nAre you concerned ov r the evaluation technique?n (le., the point t echnique). "Is th re a conflict between the def- intions of . the jobs?" "Is th e re conflict -re: job standards (reclassification) and job duties (job specific tlon)?" Grant ' indicated that he would like to come ~o grips with the job clas lflcation proc edur as it was "a source of con- - flict" 'Â· He remarked that no progres had been made with the Job Evaluation Committee, and said that he " â¢â¢â¢ would like to set up some approach to getting . . . a d i s cuss i on go i n g and re s o I v I n g th i s · i s sue â¢ " . ' -,- . l Marcel Dionne indlcateq that one f the biggest problems was with the listing of the job duties, especially in the . Library - job specifications were not in accordanc with the Job Descriptions. Fairleigh Funstion added that past prob- blems arose over the Job spec/Job Description differences. "Different depart- ments cannot decide which supercedes which." Grant re-iterated that he was really trying to come to grips with this and that "this is a very sub!iective area." . Grant stated that th Job Description should identify: (I.) the reason for th job; (2.) it should show its organiz tional rel tionships (3.) the major res- ponsibilities to _meet the specifications of the job (4.) the specification outlining the minimum education, ski tis, experi nee, etc. to do that job. Gran said that nthe job duties arethe thing we do tom et th re ponsibi I ities of that position." Equity should xist betwe n say a Sec I I position in one dept. and a Sec tt in anoth r dept. But Grant saw " â¢.. no point in coming in and throwing down a pcoposal without having seen . your proposals." He added that evaluating jobs was "subjective"and that he favoured adopting a "rational ap- proach" and trying some sort of " â¢â¢â¢ a teial period for say a year." The Uni- versity, he indicat~d, was "eager" to come to some agreement on thsi content- â¢ â¢ 1ous issue. Jean Lawrence said that the Contract Committee would consider his ideas and suggestions and would be prepared to discuss the issue of job evaluation/ctas- sification at the appropriate time. She stated that the Union was wi I ling to reconvene at 3:30 pm. meeting adjourned at 10:40 am. (The next hour in c~ucas featured ari exten- sive discussion of the points raised by Grant. Various members of the Contract Committee . formulated and discussed their pGsitions on the job evaluation/cfass- ification issue. No negotiating strategy was decid d upon.) 4. Wendy Bic was rep lac d by Nei I Bou6her for the afternoon session. The meeting reconvened at 3:30 pm., but Grant did not arr;ve unti I shortly after 4:00 pm; .. Carol Singer was not in attendance for the University. . 5. Grant's first words to the Contract Committee were: "I have never tried this technique before. But, I have tried to express our position ;n the terms of our objectives." He continued with a statement that his Advisory Committee wanted to attempt to bui Id up a "harmonious relationship". With that, he pre- sented two dmcuments: the first entitled "University Proposals for Negotia- tions with AUCE Local #I - Objectives", consisting of I page and presenting the University's nphi losophical approach", the second entitled "Preparations for Negotiations with AUCE Local HI - Draft of University ~roposalsH, consist- ing of 10· pages and presenting the University's pr6posals in regards to the areas of the contract they want d to see changed. Grant read the docum nt out- . lining th object Ives, nd st ted: "We wi I I b n gotiating Tu sday, 9:30 m." And, during his month ab ence _he Id: "We feel we can move during this per- iod." 6. On the issue of absence from work and the number of paid Union negotiators, Grant indicated he had "bad news" - "Tbe Univ rsity decided not to move from this position (ie., a maximum of 6 paid Union negotiators)." Furthermore," â¢.â¢ we are leaving it at 6 and we are leading the pac~. I am bringing the reply , , and you know where I've been." · Jeff Hoskins initiated a discussion in r gards to Grant's claim that the Uni- v rsity was leading the pack, and he provided a series of examples to refute the claim. T~e most Grant said h could do would be to ensure that the elected 1 Union contract representatives could attend every session, but that the Uni- versity's position was to pay only 6. Â·,, ... -. -J- Gr.ant said he was · aware what a·sensitive area this was, and stated that there had beee "a 1-ot of discussion". He concluded with: "At this point in time, I can't say any more." - the issue had beem settled at a higher level and 6 was th~ final n.umber. Jean Lawrence indicated that the Union's position could not be formulated unti I the membership had been consulted. 7. The meeting adjourned at 4:50 pm. "Hopefully, you wi I I have made some good progress by the time I get back." . .These sion on Thur~day 2§ g76 again opened ith the absence from work issue. Jan Lawrence infor med Grant that ome m mb rs of the Contract Committee er sti I I experiencing difficufty in g ttin g away from work. Grant stat ed that Dept. Heads "should know that thy can't put static in front of us." Grant in- dicated that som Dept. H ds er r quest ing that h fund replacements and said that he was "-.â¢â¢ coming with a r que t not to negotiate through Registratio~ we k." He asked : "Why don't e look at our ne eds int rms of th r a l ity we have to face?" Jean brought him back to the question of paid AUCE n gotiators and indicated that the members hi -p was disappoint d with the University's positicn. Marcel Dionne said that to date the Universit y had not compromis d - to which Grant repl ied: "We'd like to compromise on to four." Grant continu d with his large- group-as-in fficient th eory. hat as n ed d is " â¢â¢â¢ smal I group of people to Â·thrash out the issues â¢â¢â¢ with no publicity about the issues." But "because of our philosophical differ nces, we wi I 1 never get don to a smal I group. " The University, accord ing to Grant, as do ing .better than most. The Univ ersit y fett Â·that their offer to fin ance 6 w s re onab le; the Union's position " ... hinder neg otiations." Jean re~iter ted th t the Univ rsity was not paying for replace- ments. Marcel told Gr nt that he spla ying "the number game", and Grant an- swered with: "My answer is too bad. I don't see ny reason for leading the pack an ymore than we are." The discussion dragged on, and Grant said h felt that both sides were" ... getting onto acside game and trying to questjon one another's integrity." Further -more, he stated that th er was " â¢â¢â¢ some difficulty in that we hav e problems in getting across the reasons that e are her ." Grant requ~sted to le ave the issue - nHold on and let nature take its course. No answer is ever final in this busi- ness â¢ . I hope you a~e looking at it the same way." Jean agreed with leaving the issue for the time b ing and getting down to the Contract Committee's proposed mm ndm nts tot collective agreement. The method of pr se ntation was the same as during the previous me tings. Individual members of the Contract Committ e outd present their secticns; Grant would usually proc ee d to read the claus in question out loud, att empt to interpret it, and ask questions. He was for ver searching for "clarity" and for "intent". The issue of employee definitions was apparently of major concern to Grant. "Thi ~ is one major item we should address ourselves to.nThe meeting broke off at I I :30 am. for lunch and resum d at 12:30 pm. The meeting resumed with the in- voluntary transfer claus, and Gr nt asked whether or not the Union had a defi- nlion. He went on to speak about transfer and th assignment of work within a classification. He felt that the Union had pr esented " â¢â¢â¢ some good points", but he said an mployee 's position, cla sification, and job duties were al I mixed up in his mind. He went on to sugg t the possibility of nspecial meetings" on this _ is sue - an issue that was"so fundamental". Grant stated that the Univer- sity could assign work within a cl s ification. At some point in the discussion Jeff Hoskins agreed that involun tary transf r should probably be defined. Fair- leigh Funston provided an xam fpl e of involuntary Job transfer during the Lib- rary's Job freeze. Grant simply sa id: "Fin, I'v e got you." Both sides agreed that a definition was nece s ary . ', r The Unlonfs proposed wording for a new lay-off clause was obviously another sen- sitive area to Grant. "We hould sp nd some time on this." It as an "area for good dialogue.a He continued: " If can und rst nd what you're getting at, then can work through the I nguag .n D tailed discus ion on this issue was to be deferred unti I the actual n gotiations were wnd r ay. On exchange worth noting occurred when Grant question d Jeff Hoskins as to the meaning of the sentence: n.s.al I positions of the ame classification within the bargaining unit shal I -2- . " . . -be considered equal â¢â¢â¢ ". Jeff explained the problems hich AUCE had faced with grant mployees and Â·temp ora r y nploy s. To which Grant add d: "An employ e has a relation with the University n fits into a classification â¢.. regardless of the funding and the duration of the posi ion." The proposals part of the meeting end- ed ith Artie I 34.1 I - Continuing, S ss ional or Probationary Status. Jean requested that the next meeting b scheduled for Monday, 30ag79 pointing out the Article in the contract which stated that al I contract proposals must be on the table one month in advance. Grant r plied: "I'm not trytng to play I gal games with you." He then asked ho we ere going to proc d in his absence. Before re- spondin g, Jean indicated that the Union wanted ton gotiate through Registration week m Grant answered with: "I'm not really hung up about it." He added: "It does- n't appear to be the routine form of amm ndments hich can be settled in 7 to 8 eeks'- as there were "some fund amenta l changes here". The meeting adjoGrned at I : 3 0 pm. During the hour after the meeting the Contract Committee discussed as ries of issues and problems: the Union Organizer's {Fairleigh Funston) position during negotiations, the number of contract repres ntativesL a possible motion to the membership in regards to paying some m mb rs of the contnact Committee if th~y should b docked pay, ands ssional employee status vis-~-vis lay-off. It was de- cided that Fairleigh would move to the Union Office and act as I iaison ith the membership . -The importance of main aining I I representatives at the table was str ssed . The e sion on · AUgust 31, 1976 open d with Jean La renc pre entinq the University with compi lati0n of al I Union propos I â¢ Th Contract Committ e presented the r maining is ues, and Gr nt usu I ly r pond d by in d icating that he und rstood the intent . H comm nted as fol lo : "Th t's cle r." nTh writings ms much clearer to me, in any c se ." On the Uni on d ci ion to d It th Working Conditions Com- mitt e and replace it with ace s to I I information on the subject of orking conditions, Gr nt stated: "W und rst nd ht you re saying. W 'I I talk to it at th prop r time. W 'l I h v om dialogue on that." Margie Walley presented the proposal for time off bet en Boxing DÂ· y and Ne Y r's Day and indicat d that a su vey tak n last yard monstrat d th t 1/3 of th r ponding institutions gave the tim off. Grant's comment was terse: "They must have money to burn." Some discussion did occur on the proposed vacation schedul â¢ Grant sai'd: "QUite frankl y, this languag has b n quit confusing tom a I have no proposal to go b ck on the language." On s parating the time and mon y aspect, specially in relation to part-time employ es, Grant inf~rmed the Contract Committee that he had a proposal that could resolve the situation . He found the suggested wording"quite clear". On the overtime d~finition he stated : "You' I I gt no off nee from me for clarity.n The Job Descriptions claus s produced further debate. The Union out I ined it position and rationale for the changes. Grant us d the occ asion for a little back-patting - "I have a j ob evaluation concept I am trying to sel I on campus. I hop when we come to discussing job valuat ion and Job Descriptions, I hope that am here." Grant said that our in t ot was clear, but that he was havi ng trouble in un erstanding one area, that of job duties and Job Descriptions. Ian Mackenzie explained that job dutie ere to be a" ub- et" to th Job Descript ions. Most of the Un i o n's pr op o s a I s were "q u i t e e I a r" , and Gr an t had n o d i f f i cu 1 t y i n u n de r st an d - ing them. A momentary hassle arose h n Grant l ed himself to b I ieve that the Union was asking that old grievances be proces ed under the conditions of the new contract a Fairleigh Funston pres nted the wage rats articles The presentation para I !el led the rationale that AUCE had developed during the ne gotiations for the first two contracts. Grant listened to the proposal for parity with CUPE I 16, and at the end stated : "The only thing you haven't told me is where the men y wi I I come from.n . .. 3 .... Vairleigh rep I ied : "I hope e are not loo ing at a future time bomb." Grant in turn indicat ed that he had expected the Union's approach fro m private discussions with Union members. On the is sue of chan ging the increments to each employee's amniversar y date of servic, Grant said: "We' I I be able to respond to that one correct ly. We have a proposal before the President's Office. " As on so many other occasi ons this provided grist for Grant's philosophy mill. "I've been looking at issues and cone pts. Obviuo sly, we 1 ve been looking at the same issues .. a"Â· He saic he hoped that he could persuade those ho administer the University~ "it does mear that we have the basis for negotiation", nd then he added," â¢.. in the long t .rm." At the end of the presentation Jean informed Grant that there would be a fe housekeeping measures presented on Thursday.Grat nodded and rep I ied: "We' I I be makin g our compfete presentation on Thursda y." Grant went to say that it was na long painful process" in building trust. "I'm trying not to get into a personality thinge I'm finding out in due cours e" (an obvious reference to ALICE'§ past dea ling s with Wes Clark). "I'm not going to pul I out of bar g a i n i n g w i th you , but I on t b here f u I I - t i me â¢ l ' I I be t e I I i n g you what our .obj ectives are and what our ar as of cone rn are." On Thursday the Uni- versity was to initiate a different kind of pres ntation. "W 've worked hard to provide the wordin g." Grant hop d that th Union would appreciate his kind of di- . alogue . Jean then 'suggest d that both p rties def r the absence from ork discus- sion unti I Thursday. Grant said that as AUCE w nt above him on the is sue he would not answer at this ti me, ev n though h had hi s ans er ready - an ans er decided in discussions with White. H did say th the hop d he was sti I I going on vacatio~ but it depend d upon the timing of CUPE's neg~ti at ions. The session on Thur sda y, 2se76 opened with an aside from Â·Grant to the effect that he had a scheduled met ing ith the Presid nt at 2:30 pm. Je an Lawren ce s ubmitt ed the final batch of Union proposals, entitl d "Further Errata". On the I ist of job dutie clau se, Grant stated: "This is subj ct hich l would I ike to hav a major discussion about â¢â¢ ain or ~ r to evo lv som kind of approach." The propo sal s were few in number and w re quickly d p tched with. Prior to th discussion of the remaining proposals, Jean had pointed out the con- tinuing difficulties with fh AUCE contr ct repr ese ntatives getting away from work. At this point Grant m ntioned that h w s st i I I experi ncing " ... a I ittle bit of staticn. H lso indicated that he had b en cal led into the President's Office. He aid that Wes Cl ark was attempt ing tog t the CUPE things ttled. Grant ~ad been in stru ct ed to "gt n gotiations moving, i rr gardle s of hem is sitting in this chair." He was to meet i th the Pre id tat 2:30 pm. to discuss the Uni- versity's proposals. H as to beg;n his vac tion Friday, 3se76. Grant then sug- g ted that we reconvene later that aft rnoon so that he could present the Uni- v rs ity's proposals "formally". Furthermore, both parties cou Jd "at the next meet- ing, start ton goti te on the basis of the two ocumen ts." Th University had no intention to "stonewal I". And, "if e ~o run into problemst I am prepared to take a plane back." At this point, Jean pr se nted th e "Further trrata". After the above presentation and after caucas, Grant return d to speak to the Job evaluation/class ification issu - " â¢â¢â¢ one of the more troublesome issues." Grant felt that it would "serve ome useful purpo s to find out hat the Union is ook in g for." Grant wax d phi I soph i ca I - what as need d was a " â¢â¢. serious i n-dept 11 d1scussion ~"; the University ould "like to com to grips with it~ ; and Grant ~wantea "to. set up some appro ch tog tti ng a discussion going and resolving this is u ~. This subject appar ntly caus d Gr nt much consternation. "t am really try- ing to come to grips ith this oneR This is a very subjectiv area ." He then pro- ceded to elaborate on what a Job De cript ion should id ntify. But, as yet, Grant admitted he had no proposal. "I s e no point in coming in and thro ing down a pr~posal · i~hout having een your proposal." Although "evaluating Jobe is subjecti , Grant wante~ nto adopt a rational approach2 hich would in vo lve "a triat per- -4- iod for ~ay a year." He re-iter ated that the Univ ers ity was "eager" to come to some agreement on this contenti us i su â¢ Jan then informed Grant that the Union as wi It ing to reconv n t 3:30 pm. Gr nt aitd he · ou Id r turn ith itt n pro- posa Is and said that he i dn 't want i to have- to -1eas I â¢â¢â¢ " i th the Contract Com- mittee. The me ting tempor ri ly jou rn d$ The Contract Committee discus d th job evaluation/classif ic ation issue rais d by Grant, but came to no official posi- tion A Gr ant did not return from his audi nc with the Pr sident unti I shortly after 4:00 pm., although both Committ ees a mt to reconv neat 3:30 pm. The tension was height n d. Grant arr iv 1ith his typical n Pge tic flourishes. He informed the Contract Committee that he ha "nev r tried this technique b fore. I have tried to express our position in the t rms of our objectives. Our Advisory Commit- tee ants to attempt to bui Id up a har on ious rel tions hip. " Grant presented two docum nts - one whic h outlined the Univ rslty's · obj ctives in regard to AUCE, the oth r, consisting of 10 pag s, hich out I ined the University's proposals a Grant ad ed : nwe wi I I b n gotiating Tuo da y, 9:30 am. W fe I e can move during thi p riod, If th r is anything that c~n get going I am prepared to structure it ad g t it moving" 1' On the absence from ark lssu, Grant volunteered the fol lowing information. "W I I I'm afraid I've got bad n ws, from your point of vi~,. The Univ ersity did not move from this position. We are leaving it at 6, and re leading the pack. I am bring · ing the reply, and you know wh r l'v been." Jeff Hoskins pres ented a rebuttal to the University-as-leading-the -pack claim, but to no avai I a : Gr ~nt stated that "at this point in time, I can't s y an y more." To hich Jean replied:"We can't formu- late a position without going back to th .memb rchipa" The me ting end d ith comment by Grant: "Hop fully, you wi 1 I have· mad ome good progre s by the time I get back ." It was only at this point that th member of the Contract Committee were abl to stu y Gr ant 's written submission. The initial impression was one of disappointment After al I of the hoopla and philosophy which accompanied the bui Id-up to the pre- sentation of the University's propos· Is, it did not appear that the Univ ersity's unique approach I ive up to its advanc d bi I lings - in fact, on first neading it appea red that the main thru twas n attempt to undermine some of the negotiated rights in past contracts. It was a iaappointm nt. 1976-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT l â¢ 76-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Â·-------- -- --- I. BRIEF SUMMARY OF OUR ACTIVITIES The 76-77 Strike Committee started functioning quite late. It started meeting at the beginning of April, 1977 - eight months after the negotiations for our 76-77 contract had begun. The Committee started with only 5 members and increased its size to 12 by recruiting members who had been working closely with the Committee in publicity work. The Committee maintained permanent communication with the Contract Committee and joint meetings were often held. We functioned as an autonomous committee only dependent upon the union member- ship; had a rotating chair person who took care of the agendas and attended executive meetings; we prepared our own reports and motions for tl1e general membership meetings, etc. Unfortunately, we always had to figl1t for time in the agendas of the general membership meetings and were most of the time reduced to 5 minutes in which to give a ~report and have motions approved. At the time the Committee was formed the University was showing no intentions of settling the contract; the crucial registration period had yet to come (August and September). The involvement of union members in the different committees was very low, and although our noon general meetings had an average attendance of 300 to 400, there was no enthusiasm about going on strike. Our activities as a Committee started with the approval of our motion to hold a strike vote some time in June, as well as a Plan of Action to prepare the strike vote* presented by our Committ~e, at the April 14th. 1977 noon-hour general membership meeting. We concentrated our work in the following areas: 1) Publicity work. I 2) Establishment of links with other unions and organizations. 3) Permanent communication with all members of the union. Some o~ganizational efforts. . ,, 4) Preparation of a possible strike. f See the April 7/~7 issue of Across Campus. 7 Â·-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 2 --------------------------------------------------- .----------------------------------- 1) PUBLICITY WORK. Our publicity campaign played a very important role in putting pressure on the University Administration to reach a settlement for our 76-77 contract. It aimed to attain the following major goals: - let the public know of our situation and the attitude of the University Administration; - seek support and explore the possibilities of joint actions with other unions; and - involve as many of our members as possible in the fight for our contract. The publicity campaign started as soon as the Committee was formed: We drafted a leaflet which we got approved by an all-committees meeting, as well as two posters): which denounced the gap between faculty and staff salaries and the cutbacks on education. As well, we sent qu~stionnaires to everyone of our members to find out what arec'.ls (leafletting, postering, sale of buttons, etc.) they were willing to help in. Once we received a considerable number of answers to our questionnaires (around 200 in total), we held a meeting with those who had positively answered the questionnaires to discuss the aims of our publicity work. About 25 of these members came and most of them signed up for coordination of the different areas of publicity. We postered on several occasions and lcafletted at the conventions which took place on campus. As things worked out, we did not have time to expand our publicity off campus. The conventions covered were: - The New Democratic Party Convention which had an attendance of approx. 1,000 delegates from different parts of the province. - The Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Conference which had an attendance of approx. 500 people. The Graduation ceremonies during which around 700 leaflets were distributed. - The Estonian Convention attended by about 200 people. - The P.C. Youth Convention attended by 50 peopl~. At all of these events, the response that people gave us was most encouraging. Many of them had not heard about AUCE before, least of all of the AIB rollback, the two- 1~ Please refer to the Strike Committee's files for copi~s of the material we published. 7o-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 3 year offer, the attacks on our job security, our grievance procedure, maternity bencfi.ts, transfers, promotions, reclassifications, etc. People asked questions, showed their approval of our aims, made comments and wondered why the press does not talk abouL thi.ngs like these more often. 2) Establishment of links with other unions and organizations. In early June we were able to hold a meeting with CUPE representatives, representatives of the Health Sciences Association and a representative of the Simon Fraser local. These meetings were arranged through letters we sent to all unions on campus. At these meetings, we exchanged information on contract negotiations and proposed sending delegates to speak at mernbersl1ip meetings, issuing joint press communiques 0r leaflets, and the possibility of them joining us in tl1e organization of joint actions. The representatives said they would get back to tis on the proposals after having discussed them with their executives and memberships. By the time we were ready to arrange a second meeting, we had sett1ed our contract. 3) Permanent communication with all members of the union. efforts. Our organizational efforts consisted of a series of division meetings to encourage the election of representatives to the Committee and to call on our members' attendance to important membership meetings. Through reports at every general membership meeting and through articles in the newsletter we kept our members informed on what the Committee was doing. Aside from tl1at, two internal information sheets were sent to every union member. The first one compared our wage demand with what other unions were already earning, and the second one compared our benefit demands with what other unions already had. These sheets played an important role in developing our members' awareness of the importance of the issues we were fighting for. We also worked on a blurb for tl1e back of a poster which stated the situation of UBC employees before the union and after it. A couple of very important membership meetings were publicized to 0 maximum by the Committee. The April 14th meeting which approved the holding of the strike vote in June was one of ,them. We publicized it through posters and division meetings. The July 29th membership meeting which discussed the last university's proposal before the strike referendum was the other meeting publicized by the Committee, this time in conjunction with the Contract Committee. 75-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT (The strike vote was taken at the end of July and not in June as planned due to a sudden referendum held on whether the wage increase was to be board or a percentage one, which delayed our strategy.) . an across the At the July 29th meeting, the University's package was rejected, and our Committee put forward the following motions: - A noon-hour mobilization on campus on Wednesday, August the 3rd., which would consist mainly on leafletting while marching towards a rallying point. (Defeated) - The formation of a strike-support committee with the unions on campus and the Student Representative Assembly. (Passed) - To continue with the publicity campaign and to expand it off campus. (Passed) - To mail letters to the B.C. Federation of Labour, Vancouver District Labour Council, and other unions and women's groups, and arranging any possible joint actions with them. (Passed) - Approval of all necessary printing expenses for the continuation of the Plan of Action up to a ceiling of $2,000. (Passed) - To subject the implementation of the benefit to the formation of a subcommittee at the meeting of July 29th itself. (Defeated) After the meeting and while our members were answering the strike-vote ballots, the Strike Committee put up posters calling our members' attention on the need to defend our contract demands with a positiv~ strike vote. The strike vote results were 60% in favour and 40% against the motion of going on strike if necessary. This positive vote even though not very encouraging gave the Contract Committee enough bargaining position to settle most of the outstanding issues for at least what we had in the previous (75-76) contract, to reduce -the duration of the proposed contract from two years to eighteen months, and to improve the wage increase to $54 for the first year and $37 for the following six months. On August 11, when a general membership meeting was held to discuss the settlement the University and our Contract Committee had initialed, the Strike Committee was prepared for the case in which the University's package was again rejected. The motions were: - To give ~trike notice. - To issue a press communique. To hold a next general membership meeting the coming Tuesday August 16. - To initiate rotative strikes if for the August 16 meeting we had not yet reached a settlement. 7~-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 5 - To have a referendum held to authorize the assessment of 3. strike p3.y to be given to the members participating in the rotative strikes. The above-mentioned motions were not presented because the membersl1ip approved the initialed settlement. 4) Preparation of a Possible Strike. Although the possibility of an all-out strike was almost discarded from tl1e beginning, we prepared the draft of a questionnaire to find out the best picketing tin1es for every member. We also investigated on the busiest times of various departments on campus and the legal implications of giving strike notice. We did not send the strike questionnaire before taking the strike vote, and we had to hold it until after the strike vote was over in order to avoid alarming our members while holding the strike referendum. II. RECOMMENDATIONS On the election and composition of the Comm_! ~tee_ 1. Division representatives' election~hould be enc.-9-_uraged as vital so that the Committee may function with all its members from the very beginning. 2. Communication between the Strike and Contract Committees should be m.:iintained. However when getting closer to the definition of the contract negotiations, the Strike Committee should be strengthened with the participation of at least some representa- tives from the Contract and Executive Committees. This becomes especially cruci3l when the Strike Committee actually leads a strike. 3. The Strike Committee should always maintain itself as a Committee which consults with and responds to the union membersh.!E_. It must not be regarded as the appendix or work-party of any other committee. We should bear in mind that organizing actio~ in defense of the union's interests wl1ether this action takes the form of publicity, ;. rallies or an actual strike, is a heavy task which Iequires all the attention and energies of the Committee. The sooner the importance of the Strike Committee is recognized, the more effectively the Union will be able to succeed in the fight for its rights. i6-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 6 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The reports of the Commj ttee an1_~ -h~i sc_u?s Â·.Lor~ __ o_f_Si:_l_me must 11ave p~iori_t;r __ i~1__tl1L' agendas of general membership meetin_&s. The motions presented by the Committee should be as clear and specific as possible to 11elp promote discussion. 4. The holding of all-committees mee!_ing~ for the taking of decisions and discussion of important issues in general has proved to be useful. 5. It would be convenient !_~hange the name of the Committee from "Strike Committee" to "Action Committee", in order to avoid misunderstandings as to the aims of the Committee. On the Functions of the Committee As directed by the membership and trying to involve as many union members as possil1lc, the Strike or Action Committee should give priority to the following are.::is: 1. Preparation of Strike Strategy.- The actual imp1ementation of a strike should he prepared ahead of time. The different aspects of this work suc11 as alternate strike methods, organizational aspects (picket packets, office requirements, scheduling, etc.) and economical, legal, and disciplinary aspects should be distributed among the members of the Committee with plenty of time. The Strike or Action Committee should as early as possible go through past reports and material. The bulk of the work to prepare the strike-strategy logistics should be done before the contract expires. The strike questionnaires should be sent soon after negotiations begin in order to tabulate them without having to rugh, in the case of a strike. 2. Publicity Work.- It should start at the same time the contract expires. He should inform the general public, including students and faculty, on what AUCE is asking for and the response AUCE is getting from the University as well as ask for public support in form of letters, press communiques or other from individuals and organizations. Publicity should be dcve1 oped on 3nd off c.'.lmpus. Among 1)thC'r events, we should make sure to be present at every convention held on campus. To carry out the publicity campaign, the Strike or Action Committee should prepare leaflets and posters. The organization of the leafletting and postering activities should start with the remittance of a publicity questionnaire to evcrvonc of our members as soon as negotiations begin to find out the amount of time tl1ey , . J0-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT can provide and the type of publicity tl1ey prefer to work tabulated in diagrams that facilitate the phoning. . in. Their answers shou1d be Publicity work has proved to be very useful because it makes the University /dministration pay for every day of delay in the settling of ou-r contract. The mc1rc our negotiations are delayed, the more people get informed about the unfairness of our situation Â·and the more pressure the administration has to face. Publicity is the best and only means of avoiding having to on strike. It shows the university what we are able to do well before going on strike, because it involves many of our members and prepares them to participate in further action, and because publicity by itself means pressure on the Administration whicl1 is always interested 1n maintaining a good image in front of the students and tl1e public in general. 3. Es tablishrnen t of links with ot}i_~~Ei?ns and women's organizations. - All unions and academic associations on campus as we11 as selected unions off campus should be kept informed on the state of our negotiations and the actions we are tal·ing in relation with them. Regular letters accompanied by our leaflets and posters sl1ould ask for specific ways of support, such as their sending letters to tl1e newspapers with copy to the Administration, their helping us distribute our literature, tl1eir joining us in the organization of an action, their respecting our picket lines, etc. A strike-support committee should be formed on campus as soon as the date for a strike referendum is set or earlier. The Strike-Support Committee cannot only be useful during the strike but before one, to organize joint publicity or actions of protest. The Strike-Support Committee should include representatives from the Students' Representative Assembly and should plan the ways in which students can support and intervene in a possible strike. 4. Membership Actions should be attempted whenever possible: Noon-hour rallies on campus, benefits, public meetings, demonstrations, etc. 5. Increase of our Strike Fund.- Plan different activities which may result in the collecting of money for the strike fund. 76-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT I. BRIEF SUMMARY OF OUR ACTIVITIES The 76-77 Strike Committee started functioning quite late. It started meeting at the beginning of April, 1977 - eight months after the negotiations for our 76-77 contract had begun. The Committee started with only 5 members and increased its size to 12 by recruiting members who had been working closely with the Committee in publicity work. The Committee maintained permanent communication with the Contract Committee and joint meetings were often held. We functioned as an autonomous committee only dependent upon the union member- ship; had a rotating chair person who took care of the agendas and attended executive meetings; we prepared our own reports and motions for the general membership meetings, etc. Unfortunately, we always had to fight for time in the agendas of the general membership meetings and were most of the time reduced to 5 minutes in which to give a report and have motions approved. At the time the Committee was formed the University was showing no intentions of settling the contract; the crucial registration period had yet to come (August and September). The involvement of union members in the different committees was very low, and although our noon general meetings had an average attendance of 300 to 400, there was no enthusiasm about going on strike. Our activities as a Committee started with the approval of our motion to hold a strike vote some time in June, as well as a Plan of Action to prepare the strike vote* presented by our Committee, at the April 14th. 1977 noon-hour general membership meeting. We concentrated our work in the following areas: * 1) Pubficity work. 2) Establishment of links with other unions and organizations. 3) Permanent communication with all members of the union. Some organizational efforts. 4) Preparation of a possible strike. See the April 7/77 issue of Across Campus. 76-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 2 1) PUBLICITY WORK. Our publicity campaign played a very important role in putting pressure on the University Administration to reach a settlement for our 76-77 contract. It aimed to attain the following major goals: - let the public know of our situation and the attitude of the University Administration; - seek support and explore the possibilities of joint actions with other unions; and - involve as many of our members as possible in the fight for our contract. The publicity campaign started as soon as the Committee was formed: We drafted a leaflet which we got approved by an all-committees meeting, as well as two posters* which denounced the gap between faculty and staff salaries and the cutbacks on education. As well, we sent questionnaires to everyone of our members to find out what areas (leafletting, postering, sale of buttons, etc.) they were willing to help in. Once we received a considerable number of answers to our questionnaires (around 200 in total), we held a meeting with those who had positively answered the questionnaires to discuss the aims of our publicity work. Â·About 25 of these members came and most of them signed up for coordination of the different areas of publicity. We postered on several occasions and leafletted at the conventions which took place on campus. As things worked out, we did not have time to expand our publicity off campus. The conventions covered were: - The New Democratic Party Convention which had an attendance of approx. 1,000 delegates from different parts of the province. - The Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Conference which had an attendance of approx. 500 people. The Graduation ceremonies during which around 700 leaflets were distributed. The Estonian Convention attended by about 200 people. - The P.C. Youth Convention attended by 50 people. At all of these events, the response that people gave us was most encouraging. Many of them had not heard about AUCE before, least of all of the AIB rollback, the two- * Please refer to the Strike Committee's files for copies of the material we published. 76-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 3 year offer, the attacks on our job security, our grievance procedure, maternity benefits, transfers, promotions, reclassifications, etc. People asked questions, showed their approval of our aims, made comments and wondered why the press does not talk about things like these more often. 2) Establishment of links with other unions and organizations. In early June we were able to hold a meeting with CUPE representatives, representatives of the Health Sciences Association and a representative of the Simon Fraser local. These meetings were arranged through letters we sent to all unions on campus. At these meetings, we exchanged information on contract negotiations and proposed sending delegates to speak at membership meetings, issuing joint press communiques or leaflets, and the possibility of them joining us in the organization of joint actions. The representatives said they would get back to us on the proposals after having discussed them with their executives and memberships. By the time we were ready to arrange a second meeting, we had settled our contract. 3) Permanent communication with all members of the union. Some organizational efforts. Our organizational efforts consisted of a series of division meetings to encourage the election of representatives to the Committee and to call on our members' attendance to important membership meetings. Through reports at every general membership meeting and through articles in the newsletter we kept our members informed on what the Committee was doing. Aside from that, two internal information sheets were sent to every union member. The first one compared our wage demand with what other unions were already earning, and the second one compared our benefit demands with what other unions already had. These sheets played an important role in developing our members' awareness of the importance of the issues we were fighting for. We also worked on a blurb for the back of a poster which stated the situation of UBC employees before the union and after it. A couple of very important membership meetings were publicized to a maximum by the Committee. The April 14th meeting which approved the holding of the strike vote in June was one of them. We publicized it through posters and division meetings. The July 29th membership meeting which discussed the last university's proposal before the strike referendum was the other meeting publicized by the Committee, this time in conjunction with the Contract Committee. 76-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 4 (The strike vote was taken at the end of July and not in June as planned due to a sudden referendum held on whether the wage increase was to be board or a percentage one, which delayed our strategy.) an across the At the July 29th meeting, the University's package was rejected, and our Committee put forward the following motions: - A noon-hour mobilization on campus on Wednesday, August the 3rd., which would consist mainly on leafletting while marching towards a rallying point. (Defeated) - The formation of a strike-support committee with the unions on campus and the Student Representative Assembly. (Passed) - To continue with the publicity campaign and to expand it off campus. (Passed) - To mail letters to the B.C. Federation of Labour, Vancouver District Labour Council, and other unions and women's groups, and arranging any possible joint actions with them. (Passed) - Approval of all necessary printing expenses for the continuation of the Plan of Action up to a ceiling of $2,000. (Passed) - To subject the implementation of the benefit to the formation of a subcommittee at the meeting of July 29th itself. (Defeated) After the meeting and while our members were answering the strike-vote ballots, the Strike Committee put up posters calling our members' attention on the need to defend our contract demands with a positive strike vote. The strike vote results were 60% in favour and 40% against the motion of going on strike if necessary. This positive vote even though not very encouraging gave the Contract Committee enough bargaining position to settle most of the outstanding issues for at least what we had in the previous (75-76) contract, to reduce the duration of the proposed contract from two years to eighteen months, and to improve the wage increase to $54 for the first year and $37 for the following six months. On August 11, when a general membership meeting was held to discuss the settlement the University and our Contract Committee had initialed, the Strike Committee was prepared for the case in which the University's package was again rejected. The motions were: - To give strike notice. - To issue a press communique. - To hold a next general membership meeting the coming Tuesday August 16. - To initiate rotative strikes if for the August 16 meeting we had not yet reached a settlement. 76-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 5 - To have a referendum held to authorize the assessment of a strike pay to be given to the members participating in the rotative strikes. The above-mentioned motions were not presented because the membership approved the initialed settlement. 4) Preparation of a Possible Strike. Although the possibility of an all-out strike was almost discarded from the beginning, we prepared the draft of a questionnaire to find out the best picketing times for every member. We also investigated on the busiest times of various departments on campus and the legal implications of giving strike notice. We did not send the strike questionnaire before taking the strike vote, and we had to hold it until after the strike vote was over in order to avoid alarming our members while holding the strike referendum. II. RECOMMENDATIONS On the election and composition of the Committee 1. Division representatives' elections should be encouraged as vital so that the Committee may function with all its members from the very beginning. 2. Communication between the Strike and Contract Committees should be maintained. However when getting closer to the definition of the contract negotiations, the Strike Committee should be strengthened with the participation of at least some representa- tives from the Contract and Executive Committees. This becomes especially crucial when the Strike Committee actually leads a strike. 3. The Strike Committee should always maintain itself as a Committee which consults with and responds to the union membership. It must not be regarded as the appendix or work-party of any other committee. We should bear in mind that organizing action in defense of the union's interests whether this action takes the form of publicity, rallies or an actual strike, is a heavy task which requires all the attention and energies of the Committee. The sooner the importance of the Strike Committee is recognized, the more effectively the Union will be able to succeed in the fight for its rights. 76-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 6 The reports of the Committee and the discussion of same must have priority in the agendas of general membership meetings. The motions presented by the Committee should be as clear and specific as possible to help promote discussion. 4. The holding of all-committees meetings for the taking of decisions and discussion of important issues in general has proved to be useful. 5. It would be convenient to change the name of the Committee from "Strike Committee" to "Action Committee", in order to avoid misunderstandings as to the aims of the Committee. On the Functions of the Committee As directed by the membership and trying to involve as many union members as possible, the Strike or Action Committee should give priority to the following areas: 1. Preparation of Strike Strategy.- The actual implementation of a strike should be prepared ahead of time. The different aspects of this work such as alternate strike methods, organizational aspects (picket packets, office requirements, scheduling, etc.) and economical, legal, and disciplinary aspects should be distributed among the members of the Committee with plenty of time. The Strike or Action Committee should as early as possible go through past reports and material. The bulk of the work to prepare the strike-strategy logistics should be done before the contract expires. The strike questionnaires should be sent soon after negotiations begin in -1 order to tabulate them without having to ruth, in the case of a strike. 2. Publicity Work.- It should start at the same time the contract expires. We should inform the general public, including students and faculty, on what AUCE is asking for and the response AUCE is getting from the University as well as ask for public support in form of letters, press communiques or other from individuals and organizations. Publicity should be developed on and off campus. Among o ther events, we should make sure to be present at every convention held on campus. To carry out the publicity campaign, the Strike or Action Committee should prepare leaflets and posters. The organization of the leafletting and postering activities should start with the remittance of a publicity questionnaire to everyone of our members as soon as negotiations begin to find out the amount of time they 76-77 STRIKE COMMITTEE REPORT Page 7 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ can provide and the type of publicity they prefer to work in. Their answers should be tabulated in diagrams that facilitate the phoning. Publicity work has proved to be very useful because it makes the University Administration pay for every day of delay in the settling of our contract. The more our negotiations are delayed, the more people get informed about the unfairness of our situation and the more pressure the administration has to face. Publicity is the best and only means of avoiding having to on strike. It shows the university what we are able to do well before going on strike, because it involves many of our members and prepares them to participate in further action, and because publicity by itself means pressure on the Administration which is always interested in maintaining a good image in front of the students and the public in general. 3. Establishment of links with other unions and women's organizations.- All unions and academic associations on campus as well as selected unions off campus should be kept informed on the state of our negotiations and the actions we are taking in relation with them. Regular letters accompanied by our leaflets and posters should ask for specific ways of support, such as their sending letters to the newspapers with copy to the Administration, their helping us distribute our literature, their joining us in the organization of an action, their respecting our picket lines, etc. A strike-support committee should be formed on campus as soon as the date for a strike referendum is set or earlier. The Strike-Support Committee cannot only be useful during the strike but before one, to organize joint publicity or actions of protest. The Strike-Support Committee should include representatives from the Students' Representative Assembly and should plan the ways in which students can support and intervene in a possible strike. 4. Membership Actions should be attempted whenever possible: Noon-hour rallies on campus, benefits, public meetings, demonstrations, etc. 5. Increase of our Strike Fund.- Plan different activities which may result in the collecting of money for the strike fund. How can YOU AUCE7 â¢ help - Wear Union buttons which say "I SUPPORT AUCE." - Put a bumper sticker on your car which says "SUPPORT AUCE." Send letters to the newspapers & the UBC Employee Relations Office stating your support. Join in other actions which we may take to settle our contract. - Respect our picket lines if we must go on strike. - Help us obtain the support of other unions and organizations. WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT!!! JOIN US!!! Women Work As Hard As Men! End Sex Discrilllination In Wages! AUCE AUCE WITHOUT A ( YOUR CONTRACT SINCE UPPORT SEPT. 76 Who What 1s~ AU CE I s IS OU r are we? What situation? The Association of University and College Employees, Local 1 represents 1300 clerical and library workers at the University of British Columbia. More than 90% of qur members are women. Our Union was certified in April, 1974 and since then we have gained improved benefits through the negotiation reacti .on and c,fo to UBC @f fer contra s ? I s A I B of two collective agreements. We began negotiating our third agreement in August, 1976. After more than eight months, we have yet to reach a settlement. Our maternity benefits, our grievance procedure, our rights relating to transfers, promotions and reclassification and our job security in general are being threatened. We are fighting just to maintain benefits that the University has agreed to in past contracts. ) The University's latest package offer , · /-,o proposes a two year contract, cifQringt;~Ja~v~ increases of $50 per month for the first year and $36per month for the second year! This offer, which represents a mere ~.6% wage increase in the first year and 3.8% in the second, is less than the 8% and 6% AIB guideline figures sanctioned by the Federal Government for the same two year period. r:iJ,1J-7i' A The offe~UBC Faculty has receivedti~ very differ-ent from ours:- 6.25% wage increase retroaetivs to- 1976-plus (and the plus is important) $386 as career adjustment "for each member who has made satisfactory pro- gress," $265,875 in merit awards for approx. 25% of the members, $265,875 in special adjustments to salaries, and $531,750 to be set aside for further consid e rations in salaries. The $6'0 increase that the Univer sit y 9a-s o ff ered would not even compensate ' for the loss we are suffering as a result of the 4% AIB rollback of our 1975-6 wage rates. Due to this recent ruling, our salaries have been reduced by $32 per month. In addition, many members must pay back approximately $454 to the University. When one takes the payback into consideration, one discovers that the University's offer represents an average increase of about 2.7% over 33 months - 1-1:E1dR! 1% per year. Women have traditionally been the lowest paid workers in Canada. While AUCE has certainly felt the effects of wage controls, we have seen little in the way price controls. The 1975-6 increase in cost of living in Vancouver was 11.1%, ICBC rates increased by 200%, sales tax increased 40%, ferry rates were up 200%. The January 76 - Jan. 77 increase in cost of living in Vancouver was 8.7%. It would appear that the AIB exercises its influence arbitrarily and is particularly oppressive with regards to working people. I ,1 What about for work of Vo I ue? equa I equal pay Our efforts to at least partially eliminate the gap existing between female and male worke,s on campus are continually hampered by the University and more recently, the AIB. Women workers on campus are receiving approximately $250 per month less than equally qualified men on campus. After three years of struggle, our wages are stil l far behind those of male workers who are often less qualified . An assistant technic~an in the CUPE bargaining unit on campus, for example earns $1065 per month while a Clerk 1 in AUCE (a position requir - ing similar qualifications) earns $728 per month. The University's current "offer" and the AIB's imposed stringencies succeed in perpetuating the disparity between wages earned by men and women; they also prevent AUCE Local 1 from gaining parity with other AUCE Locals. AUCE is faced with many other problems. We are losing jobs in our bargaining unit through attrition and we are constantly having to argue over contract inte rpretation via our grievance procedu~e - the University is opposing us on all fronts .Association of University an Coll ge ploye The AIB Challenged Melody Rudd - Provincial Sec/Tr as B.C. Teachers Federation have challenged the legality of the AIB rules in B.C. on two grounds - 1) the legislature was improperly denied opportunity to approve adoption of federal AIB rules in B.C. and 2) the agreement was never filed under the B.C. Regulations Act. The provincial minister of finance signed the pending anti-inflation agreement with Ottawa. Another argument presented was that the minister of finance has no power to make the agreement apply retroactively. The hearing took place before the Supreme Court last week and the Chief Justice Nemetz is waiting for a ruling on a similiar case in Manitoba before he rules. If the teachers win their case it will invalidate the roll-back decision we have received. No quick end to controls? Melody Rudd The Vancouver Province reported on February 3rd that Financt:! Lini.ster Donald Macdonald stated that: Wlt_:e and price controls will def ini : .. ly 'OI t nu:. beyon Hthe next month or so 0 ln the ocUne. arti.cle it was reportec hat P em .er Bill B(:;_nnf..~tt indicated B.C. might keep some: form of co trols o·,~r tl e public ect r to "u ake surt:~- th.e pt1bl:tc sec tor doeHn t t lead >:,.1 : p1: :i va te sec tor" It seems the controls are coming off but not off us. The gor~rr~ent h~s made t t 1..ll~Egal for AUCE to wf.n wage parity 1-t.d . th o thet· . '.ni.on1 zed . r Â·Â·kers and plc ns t-o continut?. this ltrH~~ in the future.. Our. prc·Â·r~3t ' .. Â·. 1·JiJ_,~ :1me ::t l. L. 'c/e special significance on ending the controls and on a1y n-w 1,giBlatiot. MottvatJon for not c:otnpl vtng wi. th t'bt.: AI.B roll back: .-.--...... ,;I I strongly urge that AUCE, Local 1 decide coJltctively 1ot tc ~om, ly with ~h AIH ro,llba.ck dee ts ion on ground 9. of pr. ... n(_iple (n t pr ncipal 1 .. I stood i.n thf~ r.~. :f n. last Yl~ar ar-.d WcH1i thr.e,~tent~d , nd i.ns .1 t.ed Â·jy stude t · Â·o supporting a basic human r:lgJ Â·ts principle · f eqt al !--c.Y for equ"' l 'le-J"ot:1 . t Â·.... · t~ AIB that is threaten~ng and insulting me now~ Under no other sydte:m of j u.~1 tlce does on appeal a de eis:lon to the Sr:ime autnr'f r that rendered that decision. It is a flagrant cJnflict of ~nterest. YPt al AIB appeals are decided upon by thP AIBf The AIB further put8 one . :tn jeopardy for: signing (with agreenent oet· een em 1 )., r and employee) a contract in good faith that it is a legal and bind ng Â·ocument-. lam sensitive when humat rights are trampled on. I am an :lmmigrant fr m country that put my father in prison for standing up for h:f.s ug aranteed right H a a citizen. Tha.t country was the Unj.ted. States. In this country tens of thousands of people of my ethnic background were put in detention camps for years during the last war. They are still waiting for reparations for their loss of dignity, livelihoo and property. The same type of legislation that put them in camps gave the AIB it pow r Human rights mean nothing if they can be taken away from you by government whim. Only strong public vigilence and action can keep a headstrong government from such abuse of power. Complying with the AIB means that we are a union of lambs in a nation of sheep. 2162 Western Parkway, Vancouver, B.C. Telephone <604) 224-5613' ! OUR LEGAL POSITION One of the problems in defining our legal position is the sheer ambiguity of the Anti- Inflation Act. Much of it is a hodge-podge thrown together in short order, meaning that it is open to varying interpretation. Also, because it's still relatively new, there is no lengthy and consistent history of precedents to guide one in its implemen- tation. The followi11g is our legal position as far as we have been able to determine it through careful reading of the act, questioning of AIB representatives, and consultation with Iegal opinion. Some of it is uncertain, but in all cases where this is so it is indic .in the text. :F'irst of alli the AIB j_s a consultative body which does Â·not have authority to make h~.nding orders on 1.ts own. Rather, its function is to serve as "wa.tchdog" of the 1. ti-Inflat:f.on Act. !t has the power to demand information from various groups, and t h,.::n to dectde whether or not,, in tts op:tnton â¢ they have violated the guidelines. If .·.f decides they have violated the guiielines, as it did in our case, it then advises thr: .. m of t.h.i.si and tells them they c-hould take steps to bring themselves int li 1e. Thit3 is what the AIB di.d :tn our case. The AIB Hr.uling" i.n itself is not binding on " v~~t what it ~ls i~i a.n opinion that Â·we ha.ve violeted the A11ti-I -1:flattc,n Act. 1flu:~:tef or(! i a decision by u.8 not to comply wi.th the AIB r.ulin is not necessa ily in 11.d of. 1taelf an offe.nst"~f. But violttt:lon. of the Act: · t, an off n .. Even a.t the mom.ent 'Wt~ art~ ther<~fore not i.mmune from. pcissfble prcsecuti .on, 1.t1 o gh this seems an unlikely ptHJ !::! i.b i.l i ty" If we vote not to comply III a }ttemb Â·~rah:tp tuf.!etin.g is sut·e. to be called to determine. our nt"!:K:t step. At th:ts point we would lu.·lVE; two al tq,,~na ttves. (i) Having refused to comply w·i.th the reco mt~nd.'ltion of tht:~ i IB, WE! could t en appe· 1 to AID Administrator Brian 'l'ar1sley. Thi.s would be a legal cour:se of a.ct·ion. We wot d not have tti lmplement any part of the 't.~uling bet Â·ore ha· "ing hi 1 exami.ne our case. He Wt1uld look at th.e. AIB' a recommendation rolling back out.' contra .ct., but he would not b_ bound by i.t:. He would, :tn ftict indept1 .ndently assee.s the f · .s of our ca.se and th _n make .tU1 order. This cn:cder could be tlv.?- same ~s thfi AIB ts previoPs recommendation; J.t could prov.f.de for a larger. s,~ttlemen.t; or it co 1ld provide for a smaller settlement. People should realize that Tansley htJ.s a, history of frcque itly worsening the roll back, often to the guideline .figure of 8%.. Also, i.t i.a likely that h·! would order a payback ( the $422 we all owt!) and this payback would almost certainly go t.he Crown, not to the University_ · If the Administrator ordered s . rollback, we would be legally bound by it. If after his order we refused to comply, the Act provides for fines and possibly jail terms ( 0 possiblyt' because we have been unable to determine whether just the organization, 01· individual members, e.g. Officers, could be penalized). O?r next legal recourse would be an appeal to the Appeals Tribunal. In the interim, it seems we would have to implement the rollback. Also, if the Adminis~rator ruled that we had to give our payback to the Government (most probably), we would have to make this payment, or provide security satisfactory to him guaranteeing its payment, before the appeal could be held. (We don't know exactly what kind of security the Administrator would require). The Anti-Inflation Act provides for a hearing of the appeal which is normally open to the public. We could make it a nationally publicised case over the issue of sex discrimination and equal pay for work of equal value. The Appeal Tribunal (and the Government) might be open to considerable public pressure on the issue. In s~ral cases the Tribunal has shown itself to be more lenient than T~nsley. ~ - -2- Our second alternative if we vote not to comply: (ii) We could simply sit ti~ht, and refuse to cooperate or do anything. The AIB would then refer the matter t~ the Administrator. He in turn ould conduct an inves- tigation into our settlement, ~and then make a ruling., He would not be bound by the AIB's previous recommendatj.onlO He could 1â¬~ ve our original 19% settlement untouched, or he could roll it, back. any amount right down. to t e arithmetical guideline figure of 8%. In other words, he would do the same thing to us as f we actively appealed to himG There could, however lf Jlr"' two d:l .. fference : (a) he might not be so favourably d:Lspose:d toward us he.cause of our, uncoope·rativeness, an· ref1 ect t :la in hi rollback; a:n.d (b) he. might be inclined to i.mpose e. fur _h ... r .. ,enalty "'n us becau e f our obst:1 Thls penalty would be payable to the Crown aud ~ould moun; to 25i; of the payoack we already owe.. This would have to be paid (! t~ assur nc·Â· of payment satisf ctory t(J h1m given) before we could a..ppeHl to the Apr cal.;! 'Ir. b .1nal. As orH? cart. EH:t:: from: the eiibo·v-t~, ;, ma:.}ortt.y vo 1" -~ f:or NO wi: uld lc~ave us with two alter- nat1V(!S.. Oru2 would he to i.tppeLJl *Â· The othE.~Â·r Â·Â·~H.'tul l be .~n refua.t. co 1"'omply r:f.ght oo · i ., ,jl ,· b 1 · f"' r· · . ..,, 1 "I 1""<1.._ J," i J f tt11e ..L:t..ne an.d fJ. pre:~pa1·ec to rau .:ce.r tht~ . ega..i.. (!c,,ns .. ~que 1cA~8. .rue ,: · rsr.. a tern.at · e would. obvtout~ ly be-: far mot:<:'! prudent~ ::3.l tJ:1cn1t;h the second wo Jl.1: gj tu m.o e public· ty ! ; This second alternati1e would subject us to consid~rab l e legal ria.t, 3nd t~e nd resu l · in terns of our lvages c~ould be ~t(H'.'B'~: thaH .d: We~ t,itinpl y a ,,.ea.J eo e Bu . th:) f:trst al - Coâ¢,r:..'11â¢â¢Â·n--1,':i"Â· i11;r"l! ;;-1.1."fit· 4.:::; "'Â·p Â·nnt~'11.J'l,"Cf· {c:. Â·11ct .'11-rt"';, ... ,p~- l~t~'C! 'ff'l,·tt·Â·l!~-J1o Â·~ â¢:1 Â·'l.'1'.')J1'' di.v.:: Â·:o th"'~-... ,r.;;.,i, .. a:;1.ll.,rvt!:11 1J..1.i:c~~ J.olll 1i.;t,'.l"t":~:Q:,...J .. Li.11.i::Jâ¢' .,,.o .1·.J ,J,1 . .,, ... Lii."-1 ... 1~ â¢ â¢ . 1,~â¢-f lt"' â¢t .... J.a .. __ .... c: ... Vtr,;; â¢â¢ .. .. Achn.in.ietratt)rt:3 notot·iety for '.toll:tng c~it..trac:ts: hac.l. even [~urther~ An· {~he.re is th;J, poss 1b t 1 l t:Jt (a. lJ..kely one) ('}f 'havin,~ to :tmpl~;;mr:n 4 . our p ,::. ybacl: r or, :f..n 1:1.eu, provid · .!;;,', !P_.,', â¢'.·~ ri.~Â· i ~.-~.y. )· b J!:~. +.~ .â¢ 0 ., .... · ,-.:... 1tâ¢ ll':I â¢â¢ .t_ â¢r,_Â·i. ~-Â·:·â¢ ~::1a 'h Â·o '"' ,,. 0 ,r-, f'1i ,,,. t:'â¢ , . .,_ i f·Â· ft· 'ii 1 e t·1·11 ~,,, .i' Â·,""-l 'II â¢"l! ,,1. '1 .,, .. ~-u,. , ,;,<1..J, L U~â¢...:;Ji.JH,~.,· <,;;1,~,.11J.,e;;: L d 1 ... !7r·c;o,-t . .,_.,,11 ,jj,,1... . 11..fi.t., i, .. ,,,,;a,j . " But appealing wo,uld be n trem£ .. n.d.ous opoor.tun .:tty for publ:i.c:tzi.ng the issue of equal pay fo,J:-work of equal Vttlt.H.:.: on ,1 national scale.. li.h:d t'1e pub .ic pressure accompanying thts publiclt.y Sl especially ln the cor1tex.t of an unpop 1la.r· government and anti-:tnflation programme., could help UH win .our ,:;nae. It is for this reason that I intend to vote NO. At the same tlme 1 realize the risks involved, and want every other member to realize those risks as.well. I want to fight against this injusti.ce, and feel etron.gly enough about it to risk even greater hard- ship. At the same time. I realize that there are members who feel they just can't take those risks, and. I don't blame them a bit for voting YES. This is perhaps the --=- mo.s-t - a:go1rlzing dec±ai-on - <n1r Union ~ae e er had to make. I urge pe ple to vote n.ly a_:fter the most careful cons:tderat1on of all the pros and cons. -Ian Mackenzie Â·---~-..-------- ------------ 'IBIS EALWr IS IN TKO PARIS. F.Aal !,DEER SflXI!.D VOIB CN . XJlH StX:1'!00$. 1'.0TION #1 - '1lIAT 'lHE OF AtXE UX'AL 1 idUSE 'ID crt-2?L¥ Wl'IH '!HE AlB RJLJ.m. (CALIED P~J.T E AT 'IflE ~ifl.m.MIG.) F-egar,... ess of how' you voted en the above m:>tion p.1.ec 3d vote on the following. 'lbe three plans b?..l.ow are p!:t-.ipc>sals which o:rrply with the AIB ruling. Each necber is to vote oo. a preferential basis. You indica your first choie-~ by placing u nuneral "1" by the awropriate plan. Your seoor.1 c.hoioo is indicated by placing a nmeral 0 2" bes:i.d2 tr.at plan; & using (;. n :m~al t!3n indimte your last cooice of pl&,s. --------------------------Â·-- ----- Pk"'I~ A - Beloo ycu will find a copy of the pa~t u::al~ illtlcll OC>lld result rry inplimenting PIAN A. 1his plan ,as arrived a'Eby reducing all pay se:u.es by awroximately 3.5~. 'll -~'> pla'l is a"l across ti-e roam ~ta5l:: re:luction in pay. P-.COI:X)sed age scale: I 733 753 772 791 810 830 I-L t:er 772 791 310 830 849 868 II 810 830 849 868 808 907 II--inter 849 868 888 907 926 946 III 907 926 946 965 984 1004 III-inter 946 965 984 1004 1023 1042 N . 1004 1023 1042 1061 1083 1104 V 1083 1104 1125 1146 1168 1189 VI 1168 1189 1210 1231 1253 1274 VII 1253 1274 1295. 1316 1338 1359 --Â·-------------------------------------------------1 P~l B - Below you will find a copy of tm pay scale which \OU.ld result by iicpl:hnenting PLAN Be 'Ihis plan was a.rri'ved at by reducirig all pay sr~es by exactly $32.00. This plan is an across the ma.rd dollar"reduction in pay .. Proposed Wage scale: I 728 748 768 788 808 828 I-inter 768 .788 808 828 848 868 II 808 828 848 868 888 908 II-inter 848 868 888 908 928 948 III 908 928 948 968 988 1008 III-inter 948 968 988 1008 1028 1048 IV 1008 1028 1048 1068 1089 1111 V 1089 1111 1132 1154 1175 1196 VI 1175 1196 · 1218 1239 1261 1282 - VII 1261 1282 1303 1325 1346 1368 .._._.._ _____________________________________ , -Â· ;, ... ~"Wl. .. ,_~~~- ... -...... ,z,.__.,,.__......,.lt- ~,.,...,..~.m.--=-~~~ â¢ ....-.., PIAN D - BelCFN you will firrl a copy of the pay scale which ~d result by inplinent.i.ng PIAN D~ 'Ihi.s plan was ax:ri-"ed at by reducing all p:iy scales by a CXI1"bination of 1. 7% + $16. 00. '!his plan is a cuubination or· PLANS A & B<7 Proposed wage Scale: I 731 :::.-.inter 770 -r · 809 ~c -inte.r 84 9 rI 750 790 829 868 927 770 809 849 888 947 790 829 868 908 or-, ~'",:)., 809 849 888 827 OQ6 ..,. .... 829 868 908 0. -4 7 ..I¾: 1006 III-inter 947 IV 1006 V · 1086 VI 1173 VII 1259 - .... _ â¢ .,_.-r.- Â·- ._.,. .,â¢â¢~Â·â¢-- o._,...,, ___ _,,. _.__ '> .... ~Â·Â· 967 1025 1108 119,F' -- J 1281 986 1045 1130 121G 1006 1065 1238 1025 1086 ]173 1045 1108 1195 1 ?8·) ...!:,. â¢ ....., 1 36' .l .·Â·, 0. . . Al L Au.,l,'r Mr.Mg.::r1 , - - , ~L. . _ r, .J RE: EVENTS ON THURSDf,Y, OCTOBER l ti r-~i='i-Y'nAN I tt ,4 .,_ , Â·JT. :.J-.J{ I / I I ) I r'RM I" r . l,, .â¢ I l nC'f L · "'E -- , t :.! . At our membersh·ip mef-~ting of Octo ber l r; ovf llni on passe d t he fo l1 owinq t h,o motiions: 1 i I / l r. lhJhereas rJ .., fe~:'! t he.t the ilJ [' 1s used to d·i r:i1rdsk: th ,:2 effe c t i Â·.;eness of union~ ~ 9nd whereas the P~IB Â·is not an equita b1~ ;ay t o de2) vvit h the pr obl :~m of inf Â·lation9 we therefore SL~ppc r t in principle the/ CLC pat i ona Â·1 dcty cf protest on October 14 Â·! 976 c j '. 2t The Union w·i11 support th1Jse riern{?ers who choose to wit hdra w t rv~ir services from t hE Univers·ity and ,_;ho Â·;hoose t<~ parti c ipate in t l.e pr'(JpQsed. October 14 activ1 t-f~!-.o ; I ' I ~embers are ther efor e encotir aged t b pa~ticipate i ~ th e prote st ~ bJt their decision is one of personal shoi ce , ;!' · ( I ' f I CUPE 116 nas passed a motion s·:milar to ours~ ss rrii.tny 0f thei r members dil l also be absent c Memhe~s of other c~rnpµi un1ons wi ll a.SJ he partic 1pati~igi includinq one ~,1 h i ch i s pl an rri ,·. g to p i c ! Â·et at 1 east one g a t e , i I ,., 11 J. .i ~; a cour.,. pc:.v I .. ... â¢ 1 r L, - -Â· J ' we hanrl-de! ivered a Â·iett er t0 t he adm1nistrati on ad 1ising them of p1ss2d r i::. net. 4' ond of t he fac t -~hct many of our rncmbers v-1ill ~~1° hav2 rec e ived no'Â·fpedback ~r on the 1il, e it her r:Agative or positive. . ' t . 't {1e mu 1 c,ns we t-,e ~b,e Â·...,+ !-..., a â¢J f , t.,l Unions and ot her cornmi.~nity group~. ar e: go·~i~,g t G be·_ a .:,s2~?Â·1 Â·1~~t dt. , .~east 9 poin! -~ _ thro uohout the c it v, Some or these ar e r Â·Â·1s,.2rmnn' s ~la1i g 1.1r c1 n·111le Square~ Llty r13 11 !j ..., V i Ct O r_y sq u are 'I h l b Cr n i a n'd J pr j 1 ':; J fir J ri V 7 1 .. ! E: Er i d g e s m . t i1 a n d Ta. i 1 0 r , 6th and Burrard ~ PeorJl e wi'1°l ~s·r)emble at 8; 1~0 a .m .. arid the n para de dov1ntov.tn to Pac.if Â·i c Centre, '~-vhr=:v-e t he,1 vf1: 1 cor:c:ent r a tP ai the Va.nco JVC:r- office s of the ,, 7' B 1·Â·Â· h d + t O â¢ â¢ â¢ â¢ â¢ â¢ 1 â¢ , â¢ 0 Â·1 ... â¢ "' t h n J-1 ,, e cmons ta 10n .,n l i not' s-cop neri:; i-Â·;o~--:~ i10.r~ (L:T : v,r 1 oro c-::ed t..O · e 1 ueen t -~ i z abet h 1 Â·:Lr a f r 71 r a l 1 i t. Â·1· t· 1 2 v . a Â·1 ~; o ca kc· e:r~ :_~ " r~ 1· ! e f f or l, s a r e be i no ma de to .. ._.I V'.. I I .... ensure that it i s a pcacea.b Â·le 1r,.1 CH'clor Â·iy dcmcnst ratio n., YOU ARE ENCOURAGED Try to arrange a car pool, (~er haµs of peop1e i n vour office?) as par·ki ng space will be at a premiumo ~lso, don ' t count on beir1g dble t o Lake the bus on t he 14th: ther e v.Ji 11 be considerable disrupt'fo ri of '.~crv i ce a.s a result of tr· Â·ffic jams and possible picketing~-Â· - . .,,,- ,/ / ; The following information --is.he-1.ng-di strihu.ted Jn order to clarify to the University community AUCF Local l's negoti~t.inp;--pos:ition.. Jhis - community must - realize that the issue of contention is HOT money, it is jus~ic..e,. -- it is not 19% or 2li~ pay increases, it is equal pay for work of eq_ua_l -yalue. â¢ I He have returned to work after a p-ne week strike, ,.·;rithout a contract. Fe came to the realization that a settlement was not int!ninent and it ,:,7as time to change our tactics. He are still fighting. Fe are still negotiatin?;. ' I AUCE Local 1, after striking £or one Â·week, has won a number of important issues. How·ever, the most important one -- the restructured Hage scale, which is designed on the philosophy that work of equal value deserves equal pay -- still remains outstanding. The reason the University has riven AUCE for not accepting AUCE's restructured wage scale is its nfiscal responsibility." [Ure n.eEorts, Vol. 21, No. 17, December 10, 1975, page 4] On Sunday, the fifth day of our strike, in view of the argument that the University had been broadcasting, our Contract Committee thought.:that we v1ould be offered a restructured ,-1age scale at the negotiating table. The University prepared their proposal. but the Union felt that the University's so-called compromise in the direction of restructuring was not only more unjust than their former offer of 19% but was even more inequitable than the wage structure under which we are presently working. Fe then asked to discuss the University's previous and long-standing offer of 19% -- but the University said no. It therefore became abundantly clear that the University simply did not i:vant to settle; especially in view of the following from the UBC Reports, Vol. 21, :t-10. 16, of December 8, 1975, front page: "Hr. Connaghan said that in a number of instances, the difference between UBC's offer and the union's demand is only $174 over the entire 12-month life of the contract. Pe said some of those on strike have already lost this much or more since they went off the payroll at midnieht last Tuesday." FEDKRAL GUIDELINES It is indeed difficult to accept the University's concern for the Federal Guidelines in view of the following expressed opinion of Er .. Connaghan as quoted in UBC Reports Vol. 21, no. 16, December 8, 1975, page !:"'Although our offer is considerably above the ceiling imposed by the ,:,rage ruidelines introduced by the federal 80Vernment in October, Ne have taken the stand that the offer was on the table before the guidelines were announced and that ve made the offer in good faith.'" We are even further confused by the followin8 list of affordables as itemized in the current University budget, as authorized and approved by UPC's Board of Governors. These figures were presented to AUCE Local 1 at our general me~bership meeting of Sunday, December 7, 1975 by Svend r.obinson, former Student Representative to and Eember of the UE.C Foard of Governors, who recently resigned from his position as Student P.epresentative to protest ~-:rhat he has called his extreme dissatisfaction with the UBC negotiatinr, team. - Average salary increases of $3,400 per year for Faculty - $250,000 for "merit increases" for Faculty - $123,000 for "salary inequities and anomalies" for Faculty - $25,000 for Faculty and President's Office "entertainment" - $100,000 to r·eplace present side-Â·pays si 0ns on campus - $120,000 for "travel to learned societies" for the Faculty of Arts alone - $220,00C for four Vice-Presidents - $5, 750 for "domestic servant and garden maintenanceu for the Prssident . - $15,000 for Paculty Club and University Social Centre - Sabbaticals at 60% of salary for Paculty The Unicn is ~reparing a tabloid to be distributed to the University connnunity to ensure that our position, both historically and presently, is fully ex~lained. llotices of information meetings between members of AUCI'. Local 1 and other workers, facul -ty, students will be posted shortly. For more information or clarification of the progress of negotiations asl : an AUCE member or0phone~the Union office - 224-5613.Association of University and College Employees LOCAL No. 1 (U.8.C.) TO : A 11 r11embe rs PROPOSALS CHANGED ORWITHDRAWN July 18, 1977 FROM: Your Contract Committee. Continuing the effort to speed the settlement of a new contract, the general membership::meeti.ng of last Thursday, July 14, agreed to reduce the number ~f outstanding issues in negotiations by making the following changes in the Unionâ¢s position: 7 .05 C.9.ll~ctive -~~!9~.1·njJ19 - proposal reduced from unlimited number of members of the Contract Committee to· 10 - one for each of 9 divisions p 1 us the president. 21. 04 . Co.u.rses. Dµri ng Working .Hoµrs - proposa 1 withdrawn 21.06 Graduate Studie~ - proposal to delete withdrawn 27 .OU££.~MJ .. ation__~~ .. arry:Q.~.er _ of Vacation ... proposal for extended banking of vacation entitlement withdrawn ~8~.o~ Wo_rk Da.Y. and. ~q_r_k Wee~~ - proposa 1 withdrawn Â·. 28.03 Relief Periods (Coffee Breaks) - proposal withdrawn ~!1_.05 ShiJ_t, Wfil - proposal for a weekend shift withdrawn; shift d1fferential proposal reduced. to 75 cents . · ~o;oJ Leave of Absence Without pay - proposal withdrawn . 30.0f ComE.!issio~~te .L~ave. - proposal for increased leave withdrawn; proposal to define 1'1mmediate family" to include unspecified relations when appropriate and to include close friends to stand. 30.05 Medical and Dental Plan- · proposal to include a11 part-time employees wi thdrawri' â¢ rt l NEXT STEP TO SPEED A SETTLEMENT · A year and a half is a long time without a raise, even without the roll- back and pay-back decreases, and ten months is a long time to work without a contract. . . â¢ The Contract Committee has made some compromise agreements with the Univ- ersity and has recommended the changes.in position outlined above which were adopted by the Union. This initiative should help speed the resolution of negotiations, but more action is necessary to encourage the University to negotiate seriously toward a satisfactory settlement* The Contract Corrmittee now, more than ever, needs the support of a 11 Uni O.n members. In the past we have found that the University has not been wilting to make an acceptable offer without the threat of job action. In 1974 it took a study session and a strike vote; in 1975 it took a strike vote and an actual strike to get a contract. The experience of this year's seemingly endless negotiations would seem to continue the pattern. We cannot wait on the Univ- ersity forever; we must act ourse 1 ves Â·. 2162 Western Parkway, Vancouver, B.C. Telephone (604) 224-5613 â¢ . 1 I' . ' .. ' -~ ' -2- With this fri mfnd, the the executive, at the request of the Contract Cormnittee, has cal led .a special membership meeting for July 28. This meeting will: (1) consider the University's offer as represented by their position in . · negotiations at that time. If this offer 1s acceptable, we have a contract and n~gotiations are over; if not the meeting will proceed to: (2) consider changes_ in the Union Â·positions, including: {a) reduction of wage demand,,.-(b}; change in Sick Leave proposal, (c) change or withdrawal · of Second Calendar Vear vacation proposal. . . . . (3) discuss the Strike Vote which was authorized by previous membership meetings. _If the Universttyts position is rejected, strike vote ballots will be mailed July 29 to be returned by August 9. (4) hear a report from the Strike Comnittee incl uding suggestions for other means of supporting contract negoit1ations . . Befo·re this meeting there will be a special edition of the newsletter including: (l~ some details of the issues in negotiations and {2) information on Â·a Strike .Vote .... what it means, why itâ¢ s necessary. · Read the newsletter and, -bring it to the meeting: ., SPECIAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING TO DISCUSS UNIVERSITY OFFER AND STRIKE VOTEÂ· THURSDAY, JULY 28 12:30 - 2:30 HEBB THEATRE P .. S .. Jeff Hoskins of the Contract Committee is now in the Union Office when not in negotiations or other meetings. He is available to give information and answer questions on negotiations etcc at 224-5613.AUCE LOCAL 1 JULY 25, 1977 N0.9 SPECIAL ISSUE: â¢ SUPPORT. FOR. FAST~ FAIR SETTLEMENT ...... LIT~S ALL ATTDD THI JULYl28th CINUAL MEMBEISBIP MBITING . Aa ve up~ Â·111 "our aec~ ~- information aheet, 01l July 28 a apecial nOOD1-bour general -lNlllberahip ueting will tab place to acc-,t:or reject the Univeraity'â¢ package. prior to the delivery of the â¢trikeâ¢vote ballots â¢. ~t that meetina. will·Â·be . able t~ . d:lâ¢cuaâ¢ and detemilia what the union , will be doing for . the next while. If the.package ia rejected,. thâ¢ strike vote ballotâ¢ will be delivered the next .day,_ July 29. We need Â·thâ¢ atr:1.ke vote to be. poaitive~Â·Â· a atrike vote that'reflecta the uncon- ditional aupport of the unionâ¢â¢ a whole towardâ¢ the demanda that the Contract Collllittee 1a ne1otiating, a strike vote that tella .the Univ,raity that 1,200 eaployeu at tt.B.C. vill 10 on 1tr:lka if neceaaary to defend their r:lahta. ' Since the aotion to hold a â¢trike vote waa paaaed three monthâ¢ ago, the Strike Comittee baa been co--erâ¢iaatina the preparation of this strike vote. We have and we. are informing the public about our eitua- tion, diatribut:l.ng leafletâ¢ at every convention on campue; we have eata- · bliahed contact with other uniona on and off ' campua; â¢â¢ have reached our moat active eembâ¢râ¢ and have â¢tarted work:lna with thâ¢ on publicity; and in a continuing way have tried to keep our memberâ¢ informed through Div,ieion meetingâ¢, internal inform- . tion sheeta, and poatara. We feel, that our poeterâ¢ on campue have ful- filled the role of reminding uâ¢ of what the union 1â¢ cioina, and we are trying to keep thia up. · â¢ There ia â¢till much mre to be done, and we will all have to double our effortâ¢ after a poâ¢1tive strike .n~MI ::, _but we would. like ue all to feel · · . -~ .. ._.. accepting or rej ac tin1 the ,._.-Â·Â·'. -- ,, packaae. A poaitive â¢ not be a aurpriae for. tba public who baa·alrudy atarted to learn about what'â¢ really happening at u.1.c. We have Â·the neceanry â¢â¢â¢nâ¢ ~nd the .people to: carry out jo~c actiona with other uniou. like Â·t~e approved benefit; further expand our publicity campaign; and organise ouraalvea for possible picbtina in the cue of a etrike. Once more, the positive atrike vote will not mean we would go on atrike thâ¢ uext day. Our actual going ~n atrike would be decided at the Â·followi ng · aâ¢neral 1Nlllberahip meeting (August 11) duriq which the Strike COIIIDittee will offer â¢lternate waya. Qf striking along with a reconaendation Â·on how to atrike. Get involYed! Come to the meeting! You are the union! Thâ¢ Strike Coaaittee. Strike Coaaittâ¢â¢'â¢ New Membera: At .the laet aeneral 1Nllberah1p meeting the following people were elected members of the Strike C011Dittee by accla1111tio11: Paula Brown, Suean Callaghan, Jane Latter. Vandy Lymer, Margaret Nicholaon â¢ THAR YOU VERY KUCH FOil THE llESPONSE! We atill need one more member elected at larae and repreaentatives from all Diviaionts except Diviaion A. The number of members the Comittee has at present is 9. ' ' ;[ }. · .... · . '--te . and even a strike would ' .. . Â·> -::.:}. i'Â· " I .,.,.,. . - . ... .. . . â¢ â¢' I â¢.>= ., â¢ , â¢. "Â·Â·. : .... . J'- .~ ,.: (,J..P.-r· ~- .â¢ -~ .... :_'-J ... :,._-:, â¢â¢ .·; :.. ;· ... . ... ,.:, Dear Sir; LOCAL No. 1 (U.B.C.) Re: University of British Columbia submission of March 7, 1977 outlining the proposed payback scheme for compliance with AIB ruling covering AUCE Local 1 Of late, we have received word from the University of British Columbia that the Anti-Inflation Board ha 9 found aspects of our compliance plan for payback unexceptable. We have yet t? receive any official correspondence from your office to confirm th·~ . It is our hope that such written confirmation will be forthcoming. From the information that we have received from the University it appears that the board's major objection to our plan centres around the length of the proposed recovery period. During our negotiations with the University regarding this matter, it was mutually agreed upon that all employees would be given a maximum of twenty-four months within which to pay back mone~~ owed. This question was put before and ratified by our membership at a special membership meeting. On March 7, 1977, after weeks of negotiation, the University of British Columbia forwarded our compliance plan to your office and both parties were given the assurance that thei would be Â·.notified within forty-eight hours in the event that the Board found any - portion of· the plan obj ectionabi'e. ' Du'r 'ing the Â·following week neither party received - a response of any kind and it was assumed that our compliance plan met with Board approval. Since that time each affected employee has received a notice from the University stating . . the amount' of money they owe and the options open to them for repayment. Many of these forms have been returned·to the University and preparations have be~n made to implement the agreed upon recovery methods. Aside - from the obvious expense incurred by the University thus far, in preparation for the implementation of the plan, the mere suggestion of a twelve month recovery plan at this late date will undoubtedly cause unrest amongst our membership.· As you may well understand, the issues of rollback and payback are ones which are not easily received. In our estimation, both the University and the Union have been most co-operative with respect to both aspects of the ruling. The negotiations which transpired between our two parties were conducted in good faith and to our knowledge, our objectives were well within the purview of the Anti-Inflation Legislation. During our many telephone consultations with your representative we were at no time informed that the Board had a policy regarding the length of recovery periods and we assumed that as the legislation also lacked reference to this issue we could negotiate a period which suited the needs of the affected employees. It was our intention to negotiate a payback which would meet the aim of the AIB and subsequently slightly alleviate the financial burden created by the large payback amounts owed. . . -: 2 2162 Western Parkway, Vancouver, B.C. Telephone (604) 224-5613 â¢ Notes: The Economic .Council of Canada report on regional economic disparities released April 20, 1977 reflects that BC workers earn the second-highest incomes in Canada but BC prices are so high that the net buying power of that income is below the Canadian average. B.C. has a rating of 97, fourth behind Ontario - 106, Quebec-102 and Alberta-101. Vancouver consumer price index rase 10.9% from Oct. 75 to Mar. 77 while the Canadian Consumer price index only rose 9.9%. From Jan. 76-77 the Vane. consumer pri.ce index rose 8.7% while the Canadian Consumer Price index ro~e 6.1%. On March 1, 1977 our wages were rolled back $32.00 acr ss the board in compliance with rollback. This reduction represents a decrease of approx. 4% for the total bargaining unit. Our base rate went from 760.00 - 728.00. AIB proposal to reduce payback from 24 to 12 months would mean _a further reduction of $38.00 per month. This would mean that.:people at the base rate would be getting $690.00. . . Taking into 'conside~ation the CPI from Oct. 75 - Mar 31 77 the purchasing power of $690.00 as of April 1, 1977 would be $611.00. This means o~r purchasing power at the base rate would be below our April 1, 1975 level by $22.00 .. .- Vancouver Vancou·;c;r ,Jon Feb I1a r !'<..pr May June July Aug Sept Oct I~ov Dcc Annual 1~v Canada 'J'lBLE I IT 71.l J Â·-.Item'.:; Tnc]c,x 131.9 132.4 132.7 133.9 135.3 l3G.9 139 .1 140 .1 .141. 3 1/J 2. 8 l t1 2 . 8 1 11 7. â¢ 0 .137. 7 'TlBLE J 1'11 . G ]111J. 3 J-17.7 1'19 . G 1rs1 . 0 lSJ.!J 151 . 7 152 . 5 154.t] 1rss.4 lS:;.l Â·1 r r. ') ' ) ) . .. , - â¢. _I(-Â·- -- 151.0 (l07l·c::]()()) (_J â¢ () 1) â¢ 0 l I . ] l l . C) 1 J â¢ 6 10.6 9 . 1 8 . <J 9 . 3 f3. 8 8 . G 8 . () 9.7 Ca n a d c1 A 1 l - r t c rn ; T n cl e x ( l rJ 7 J ,..~ l O O ) --- ---- ---Â· .... --Â·-Â·- ----Â· -- - ____ ,. -~-. - - - Â·- -- 1975 197 G 1 Ch d n <y.: -Â·--Â·-- ----Â·--- - ----. - - - - ----. ---- ,Ja n . 1 32 .'1 ltl S .J . 0 . G Feb 133 . 4 1 45.G 9 . 1 ]',1ar 134 . l 11G . 7. 9 . 0 !'pr 134 . 8 lt1G . 8 n . CJ r-1.a y 135 . 9 1 48 . 0 H . C) June 137.9 1 48 . 7 7 . 8 JÂ·u l y 139 . 8 1 '1 9 . 3 c . n l.ug 141 .2 1 S O . 0 G. 2 Sep t 141 . 5 150.7 6 . S Oct 142.8 l 5 1 . 7 (1 . 2 nov 14 4 . 1 152 . 2 S . G Dec 141. 3 1 52 . 7 r) â¢ n l nual Av 138.5 148.9 7 . 5· ' I â¢ Januar y Febr uary March January Feb ruary March 1976 143.8 144.3 147.7 1976 145.1 145.6 146.2 1977 156.3 157.4 15 8 .4 1977 154.0 155 . 4 157.0 Change% 8.7 % 9.1 % 7.2 % Change% 6.1% 6. 7% 7.4 % .. ,, ' â¢ Vancouver Month 1974 1975 Change% January 116.4 131.9 13.3 February 117.7 132.4 12. 5 March 118.6 132.7 11.9 April 120.0 133.9 11. 6 May . 122.0 135.3 10.9 June 123.8 136.9 10.6 July 124.8 139.1 12.3 August 126.5 140.1 11. 5 September 127.4 141.3 10.9 October 128.5 142.8 11.1 November 129.9 142.8 9.9 December 131.4 142.9 8.8 ., ,; . Annual Average Increase 11. 3%. Canada Month 1974 1975 Chan9 e ( % ) ' J a nuary 118.1 132. 4 12. J Fe bruary 119.3 133.4 11.8 J,iarch 120.5 134.1 11. 3 April 121.4 134.8 11.0 I~ay · 123.4 135.9 10.l Ju ne 125.0 137.9 10.3 J uly 125.9 139.B 1 J â¢ 0 August 127.1 141.2 11.1 Sep t ember 127.9 141.5 10.6 October 129.l 142.8 JO. 6 Nov ember 130.5 144.1 10.4 Pe c er.1ber 131 '. 8 144.3 9.5 Annual Aver a ge 125.0 138.5 10.8 , ---tâ¢ A. U. C. E. LO CA L N 0, 1 SUPPORT THE MARCH 1 AND MARCH 10 RALLIES!! S T O P THE CUTBACKS t ' ' â¢ â¢ â¢ We support the fight of students at UBC and other universities against tuition fee increases because we believe that education should be everybody's right and not the privilege of a few. With new fee increases, the government would only worsen a situation which is already unjust. Tuition fee increases are only part of the cutbacks in education spending, and of the general governmental policy of making working people and their children pay for the economic downturns of the system: The 74ia,,75 avera Â·ge increase in cost of living in Vancouver was 11.1%. Last year in Â·B.C., ICBC rates increased from 100% to 300%, the sales tax went from 5 to 7% of the cost of the merchandise, the ferry rates up 200%, the medie:B,1.premiums up 50%. However, AIB's wage guidelines were 10% in 1975, 8% in 1976, 6% in 1977, and will be 4% in 1978. Food, energy, housing, interest and land are exempt from the controls!! Let no o~e be misled by the belief that tuition increases ar _e . needed to pay staff salary increa$es. In fact, while students are threatened with tuition increases, staff have received drastic cuts in salary and working conditions: ~, . Effective October/16' our tmion has been forced to pay back 4% of our last contract's increase. For this ye·ar's contract, the offer we have received from the Adminis- tration is 6% of which 4% would cover the payback leaving us only a 2% increase. In addition, the administration intends to sweep away gains of previous contracts, like the paid maternity leave, and job security in general. They want to be able to demote people, employ casual labor, and require temporary employees to work one year (instead of three months as it is now) before becoming permanent. In a country with 750,000 unemployed, the university's present policy is to implement gradual layoffs by attrition. Who are education & social-welfare cutbacks benefiting? The corporations. It won't be the tax-payers' _pockets but the grants, credits, construction & research work for the corporations which will be enhanced. The 1977-78 provincial budget, for example, will grant the few who control the resource industries tax ~uts amounting to almost $77 million; cuts are also being made on gift and succession duties which will signify a loss of income of $28 million. At the same time cutbacks are done on virtually every human need program in health and human resources (funds for construction of homes for the elderly have been cut by $6 million, social aid will receive $20 million less, there is a 55% deduction in funds for the retarded, a 30.2% decrease in funds for emergency day care, and a 40% cut in child counselling service money.) If the present round of cutbacks in education are implemented, not only will tuition fees increase but there will also be no guarantee for workers on campus that " our present contractual rights will be maintained. It is in both students' and workers' interest to defeat education cutbacks and fee hikes. United we can win.
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Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Labor unions--Canada (AUCE)
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[Local 1 Strike committee report and other material]
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