ULFA urges return to bargaining table
By Southern Alberta Newspapers on February 24, 2022.
The University of Lethbridge Faculty Association urged university administration to return to the bargaining table in a statement to the public on Wednesday. ULFA president Dan O’Donnell said the call “aligns with what he has been seeing from students and parents on social media and in last week’s Student & Parent Town Hall hosted by ULFA.” “Nobody is fooled by the Board’s rhetoric,” O’Donnell said in a release to the media. “Everybody in the community can see that this is an institution that has prioritized pleasing the UCP government over the needs of its own students and faculty. Students and parents are calling on the Board to #dotheirjob and bring an end to the disruption at our university.” The ULFA said it was concerned by a Tuesday blog post by University administration, arguing it suggested administration would not return to the table unless the ULFA accepts the board’s positions in advance. Canadian Association of University Teachers president Brenda Austin-Smith said aggressive tactics utilized by the university board will damage the long-term interests of the university. “In the end, universities are about the people that study, teach and do research in them,” said Austin-Smith in a release. “Negotiations with the University of Lethbridge really stand out for both their lack of progress at the table and the scorched-earth approach the university’s management have taken in communicating to faculty and staff. It’s rare to see the management so unwilling to meet at the table – and so willing to attack the integrity of their employees.” In contrast to the assertions of the faculty association, the University of Lethbridge said Wednesday on its bargaining page it is eager to resume collective bargaining. It will be pursuing productive discussions to address concerns brought forward by the ULFA “within a financial and governance framework transparently presented at the collective bargaining table.” “Progress has been impeded by ULFA’s opposition to this framework. This challenge has been unique to the University of Lethbridge collective bargaining process and has not been a hallmark of labour negotiations at other post-secondary institutions,” the U of L statement said. The university also said the ULFA continues to demand salary increases that expand the one per cent gap each side had achieved in January, which forces the U of L into what it calls “an untenable financial position.” The statement said the ULFA is also continuing to demand operational control of the U of L through co-management schemes, which no other post-secondary labour unions have sought. “This would create unacceptable conflicts of interest that run counter to the principles of effective post-secondary governance,” said the university. 13-12
