News

05 Mar Teaching Titles Now Available, Open Potential 3rd Rank

• Teaching Professor Titles: As you may have read in a recent university announcement, UIC can now offer titles with “Teaching” modifiers to NTT faculty–an item we bargained hard for in our last contract, but which was held up pending changes to UI Statutes.
   
• Third Rank: The new titles open opportunities for some NTT faculty with larger teaching responsibilities to earn a third rank, not currently available on the Lecturer track. We encourage members to discuss title conversions via shared governance in their units. 
   
• Fall Plans Refocus on Hy/Flex: In an announcement last week, the Provost’s office walked back reported plans for mandatory in-person classes, though the plan now appears to prioritize (and budget for) a hybrid/flexible delivery model with its own complications.
   
• Bridge-to-Faculty Showcases: UIC is showcasing Bridge-to-Faculty scholars’ research this spring, and we encourage you to attend. The B2F program is intended to create a pipeline to tenure lines at UIC for scholars from underrepresented groups.

Dear Members,

At the very bottom of an email sent on February 22 regarding changes to Promotion and Tenure, new teaching titles for NTT faculty were announced. This is a potential game-changer, with new ranks including Teaching Assistant Professor, Teaching Associate Professor, and Teaching Professor. These ranks could allow faculty with significant teaching responsibilities currently limited to a single rank progression, from Lecturer to Senior Lecturer, the possibility to earn promotion to a third rank. 

An Achievement Years in the Making
This has been a long-sought goal of UICUF, and we pushed hard to include these new ranks in our contract but were ultimately held back by limitations in the U of I statutes at the time. Since then, the UICUF caucus within the Senate worked to make the statutory changes ultimately adopted by the Board of Trustees late last year. Importantly, though, there was no specific process outlined for transitioning teaching faculty into these new titles, seemingly leaving the decisions to be made at the academic unit level. 

This is a meaningful opportunity for many of our NTT colleagues. We highly encourage our union members to bring transition plans up for discussion through shared governance in your unit. We hope this effort will include all faculty, not just those who might directly benefit from the new titles. If you are unsure of how to discuss this and would like some help initiating the conversation, just email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com, and we will offer any support we can.

Fall Planning Still in Flux
As we reported last week, some of our members, especially those in LAS, were given guidelines appearing to mandate in-person classes based on class size. After both the Senate and UICUF forcefully questioned these guidelines, the Provost announced that the only mandate at this time is the need to keep large, 100+ student classes fully remote. The remainder of classes will prioritize in-person attendance at the discretion of the Deans with supposed input from faculty. To support this priority, the email announcement that followed outlined a potentially large outlay of spending to equip classrooms for hybrid/flexible learning, where students may be in-person or remote simultaneously in real time, or may rotate between the two. 

UICUF is, at a minimum, calling on the administration not to repeat the same frustrating process of last year, when decisions were made without input or transparency, only to be walked back at the last minute. We also believe that financial priorities for spending CARES Act and other federal relief funds should not just be used to improve our technology but also classroom ventilation and campus safety. Most importantly, though, we need to make sure this spending doesn’t come at the expense of our members, who are still reporting potential financial contingencies in their units, including job cuts that could severely harm non-tenure-track faculty. 

 Bridge To Faculty Showcases
We here at UICUF want to spotlight work being done by our colleagues in the Bridge-to-Faculty program, a program intended to ultimately improve diversity in the ranks of UIC’s faculty. The university will be hosting a series of presentations this fall for the B2F scholars to share their research (see link above), and we highly encourage our members to drop in and engage with these scholars and the new program. There are currently 10 scholars in the program, but it is set to expand with a new cohort of 20 or more next year.     

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty

***

We hold regular office hours from 12-1pm Wednesday and Thursday each week. Use the following links to add them to your calendar:
Wednesday 12-1pm | Thursday 12-1pm

We issue regular updates via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and on our website. We encourage everyone to like and follow us on social media. If you want to contribute your story, pictures, video, or other content related to the activities of the union, email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com. With your support, we are making UIC an even SAFER place to work and learn!

25 Feb Fall Reopening Plans Dictated, Then Retracted

• Policies Made, Then Retracted: 48 hours ago, UICUF began receiving documents outlining instructional methods (in-person v. remote) for a fall reopening. The Provost has since walked back these plans after being questioned by the Senate and the Union.
• No Consultation: The parameters described would’ve stripped members of instructional autonomy and denied workers and students the chance to choose safety for themselves and loved ones. Neither our union, the Senate, nor Student Government were consulted.
• This Kind of Decision Making Must Change: Though the plans shared with units were seemingly walked back by administration, they’re emblematic of the unaccountable and opaque decision making we’ve been fighting since before the pandemic.

• What We All Deserve: Every person, from students to faculty, deserves the right to choose safety. Moreover, we have the right to be a part of decisions made about our safety, and our working and learning environments.
• What You Can Do: We encourage you to join us for our Representative Assembly Meeting next Wednesday, 3/3/21 from 12pm-1:30, where we’ll discuss these issues in detail. If you are privy to other directives regarding fall reopening, please email us

Dear Members,

Starting about 48 hours ago, we began receiving convincing documentation indicating that plans had already been made to mandate course delivery methods (in-person v. remote) for Fall 2021. These documents came from multiple units, several featuring identical language, which strongly suggested a broad policy had been created. That policy appeared in particular to dictate that all classes, labs, and sections under 50 students would be forced to meet on campus.

After our colleagues in the Senate Executive Committee pushed back yesterday, the Provost seemed to acknowledge that she had made broad policy decisions about reopening the campus this fall without any pretense of shared governance. She asserted, however, that the specifics in the emails shared with faculty were inconsistent with those policy decisions. Today, at a meeting of the Academic Planning Task Force, which UICUF has a seat on, we learned that the plan is to give Deans the authority — and with input from faculty — to determine modality for classes under 100.

As the dust settles, the administration hopefully now recognizes that it must communicate thoroughly–and responsibly. We are seeking some kind of confirmation as to whether any policies have been finalized, and what those policies actually may be.

This Kind of Decision Making Must Stop
Regardless of the outcome, it certainly appears that despite assuring a variety of stakeholders that they would be consulted in the decision-making process, the administration simply decided to make more unilateral decisions and let us know after the fact. These plans and/or policies were made without the input or knowledge of UICUF or the UIC Graduate Employees Organization, even as we are both currently conducting impact bargaining over these exact issues. The decisions were also apparently made without the prior knowledge or consultation of the University Senate, the undergraduate leadership, or even the planning committee formed by the provost herself explicitly to handle these exact questions. At this moment, it’s not entirely clear whether the administration intends to actually engage with these groups, or simply back off to replan again in isolation from the people who are most affected by these decisions, and who also have crucial knowledge and perspectives essential to sound decision making on these issues.

We have, sadly and frequently, been here before. Less than a year ago, union members pushed to have the administration adopt safety benchmarks and assure workers and students of the autonomy to choose methods of instruction based on their personal needs and professional judgments. The administration chose at every phase to resist a transparent and participatory planning process, keeping thousands of workers and students in the dark until just days before the start of the academic year.

Every person in the UIC ecosystem, including students, staff, grad workers, and faculty, deserves the option to choose safety in real time, and an assurance from administration that the right to safety will be upheld. Moreover, we all deserve a say in decisions being made that will affect our health, our work, and our education. We have, and will continue to call on the administration to make any reopening planning transparent and participatory for all stakeholders involved.

What You Can Do
We are continuing to seek more clarity directly from the administration. We are also in discussion with stakeholders from all the aforementioned affected groups. We cannot, however, simply wait until another tone-deaf policy memo appears in our inboxes. So we are asking that you join us at our Representative Assembly Meeting next Wednesday, 3/3/21, from 12-1:30pm, to discuss this issue, and how we can reimagine the decision-making process at UIC that led to this chaotic series of events. All members are welcome, and we will plan further actions around this issue with further input from that meeting.  If you are not able to attend the meeting, we also welcome you sending your thoughts and concerns to UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com.

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty

***

We hold regular office hours from 12-1pm Wednesday and Thursday each week. Use the following links to add them to your calendar:
Wednesday 12-1pm | Thursday 12-1pm

We issue regular updates via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and on our website. We encourage everyone to like and follow us on social media. If you want to contribute your story, pictures, video, or other content related to the activities of the union, email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com. With your support, we are making UIC an even SAFER place to work and learn!

18 Feb Spring Member Meeting & Check-Ins

• Save The Date: Our Spring Membership Meeting will be held via Zoom on Wednesday, March 31st from 3:30-5pm. All members are invited to join us in discussing UIC budgets and faculty retention, as well as planning for Back-to-School in the Fall.
• Bargaining Update: We met with the administration again last week and received some responses to our impact bargaining proposals, though it’s clear there are still wide gaps in expectations, especially around enforceability of agreements.
• Member Check-Ins:.As we register ongoing concerns over department budgets, job retention, and fall reopening plans, UICUF staff and reps will be checking-in with members by phone to learn more about your thoughts, questions, and concerns.
• Health Concerns: We know that many faculty members are currently working on campus, even if they are not teaching. We want to invite members to message us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com if you have any health/safety concerns at this time.

Dear Members,

Our Spring Membership Meeting is now scheduled, from 3:30-5pm on March 31st. The meeting will be held via Zoom, and a link will be sent to each UICUF member closer to the event. All members are welcome and encouraged to attend as we discuss the implications of hinted-at budget and job cuts for 2021-2022, as well as plans for potentially re-opening campuses in the Fall. There will also be bargaining updates, as we continue to work toward contractually enforceable agreements with the administration.

Bargaining Updates
We met again last week to bargain over ongoing COVID-19 policy impacts and were given responses to a number of our proposals. While the administration is at least offering written responses now, it is clear that we still have a ways to go before a mutually agreeable framework can be signed. Perhaps most important of the remaining issues is that of enforceability of the agreement. The administration does not appear to think that our existing grievance and arbitration process, which was negotiated and agreed to by all parties in regular bargaining, is an appropriate venue to enforce agreements in a COVID-19 agreement. This goes back to the core issue in our Unfair Labor Practice filings, now scheduled for hearings this semester: the administration’s broad failure to negotiate enforceable written agreements within the collective bargaining framework. We hope that agreements can be reached in a meaningful timeframe, but are willing to go through the full ULP proceedings if that is what’s required to ensure that this critical function of labor relations is taken seriously by the administration.

Member Check-Ins
As we face ongoing uncertainty around important topics like Fall reopening plans, whether department budgets will be cut, and how that will affect faculty retention, UICUF will be doing a series of member check-ins. You may receive an email or phone call from a union representative, and we hope you’ll take a moment to let us know how you are faring this semester. As ever, anything you share with a union representative will be confidential, and will help us better understand what our members are experiencing, so we can best represent you.

You can, of course, always reach out to us proactively at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com, or via one of your elected college representatives, or by dropping into one of our virtual weekly office hours from 12-1pm, Wednesdays and Thursdays every week (see links at the bottom of this message).

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty

***

We hold regular office hours from 12-1pm Wednesday and Thursday each week. Use the following links to add them to your calendar:
Wednesday 12-1pm | Thursday 12-1pm

We issue regular updates via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and on our website. We encourage everyone to like and follow us on social media. If you want to contribute your story, pictures, video, or other content related to the activities of the union, email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com. With your support, we are making UIC an even SAFER place to work and learn!

12 Feb Remembrance and Recognition

• Remembering Karen Lewis: Former CTU president and titan of the labor movement, Karen Lewis, passed away this weekend. CTU is holding a remembrance event followed by a religious service on zoom from 5-7pm tonight for all who wish to attend.
• CTU Reaches Reopening Agreement: After almost a year of negotiations and tense moments over the past couple of weeks, CTU and CPS have reached and ratified a far-reaching agreement to reopen schools, raising the bar for COVID accommodations.
• Union Accomplishments in the COVID Era: UICUF’s negotiations are progressing, and Unfair Labor Practices filed this summer will be heard in April, but we’ve already won a lot, like PD fund extensions, tenure rollbacks, and $1 million in prep compensation.
• IFT/AFT Scholarships: Every year, our affiliates offer scholarship funds to the children of union members in good standing. IFT’s Porter and Megel scholarship applications are due March 5th. AFT Scholarship applications will open soon.

Dear Members,

It saddens us to bid farewell this week to Karen Lewis, a former President of the Chicago Teachers Union, and an inspirational leader whose impact on labor politics in Chicago and around the country cannot be overstated. The Chicago Teachers Union is holding a virtual Shiva, an event to remember and honor her life and contributions to our shared cause. The event will begin at 5pm with a memorial service and end with a religious service at 6:30pm. All who wish to attend are welcome. Among the many tributes, this one from CTU’s Jackson Potter provides a great history and memory of Karen.

CTU Reaches Reopening Agreement
Many teachers across the country have been forced back into classrooms this season, despite surging COVID cases and questionable or non-existent mitigation measures to protect workers and students. CTU held the line, demanding that the district negotiate a safe return, not just a quick one, even threatening to strike if teachers were disciplined for continuing to work remotely. This week, those efforts prevailed, as both sides compromised to reach an agreement that goes farther than almost any other such deal in the US. The deal was approved this week by the membership of CTU, and includes:

• Phase-in reopening plans tied to vaccine distribution
• School closures if needed for safety, defined by strict health metrics
• Vaccination plans for all district employees
• Remote-work accommodations for all employees with medical risks, frameworks for accommodating those with at-risk household members or childcare needs, and unpaid leave available for any worker not in the above groups, pending vaccination
• Frequent testing to catch cases before they spread
• Strict protections against unsafe conditions, including guaranteed PPE, ventilation, and other standards. Spaces not meeting these standards will not be used, and standards will be enforced by safety committees at each school including union representatives
• Technology support for families that wish to keep their children learning remotely
• Full Reinstatement for all workers previously locked out of classrooms

Many of these agreements are groundbreaking when taken individually, and together they will provide unprecedented safety and peace-of-mind for CPS workers and families.

UICUF Accomplishments in the COVID Era
While certainly modest compared to the exceptional agreement outlined above, UICUF has managed to secure significant accommodations for faculty as well since the pandemic began. These include safety considerations, such as pressuring the administration to confirm anyone wishing for remote teaching accommodations could have them before the start of Fall Semester, holding the line on working conditions, such as enforcing faculty’s academic freedom over classroom formats and recording of lectures, and financial considerations, like the extension of professional development funds, and a $1 million outlay for prep work to move certain classes into remote learning.

These victories are not without their flaws and compromises, not the least of which is the failure of the administration to yet put anything in a written agreement, enforceable under our contract. This is the most fundamental reason impact bargaining has continued: to ensure that concessions made by the administration are not merely lip-service. For the most part, this has not been a problem, but we have kept and will continue to keep them honest in executing COVID-related agreements, especially as we look at Fall semester planning and the deep uncertainty around budgets and in-person reopening schedules.

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty

***

We hold regular office hours from 12-1pm Wednesday and Thursday each week. Use the following links to add them to your calendar:
Wednesday 12-1pm | Thursday 12-1pm

We issue regular updates via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and on our website. We encourage everyone to like and follow us on social media. If you want to contribute your story, pictures, video, or other content related to the activities of the union, email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com. With your support, we are making UIC an even SAFER place to work and learn!

05 Feb Solidarity With Chicago Teachers for Community Safety

• Chicago Teachers Union Fighting for Safety: CTU continues to push for safe reopening plans, and commitments to supporting the 80% of students who plan to remain remote even if schools reopen.
• Strike Possible Next Week: If the city reopens schools without negotiating on key safety parameters like accommodations for those with vulnerable household members, there may be a strike as early as next week. See below for updates and ways to support.
• UIC Budget Cuts Being Discussed: We have received confirmed reports that many units have been asked to plan contingencies for possible budget cuts this year. If you have information on these discussions occurring in your unit, please email us
• New Deal For Higher Ed: AFT, AAUP, and faculty from institutions across the country are beginning a push for A New Deal For Higher Education. Join the kickoff call next Wednesday, Feb 10, 1pm CST!

Dear Members,

Even as a vaccine is being distributed, Chicago public school teachers are being pressured to return to as-yet unsafe school buildings–despite more than 80% of students, including the vast majority of students of color, saying they plan to remain remote. The Chicago Teachers Union is prepared to fight to reopen schools safely, and have put a safety strike on the table if the district locks-out teachers from their remote learning environments. The district and the Mayor have said they will reopen (and presumably lock teachers out if they don’t show in person) next Monday.

Make no mistake, this fight is our fight too. While most faculty have not experienced the same level of pressure to re-enter potentially unsafe in-person working environments, colleagues in some departments are working on campus, and our administration also has shown that they’re perfectly capable of acting on their own whims without waiting for faculty to weigh in. If this situation comes up closer to home, we will fight for our members’ rights to safety, and we hope our fellow unionists around the city and the state will support us. Please extend to our CTU teachers the same consideration you would want if you were in their shoes!

What is CTU Really Asking For?
CTU is asking the district to bargain over a safe return, and specifically have three major parameters that the district has yet to agree on:

• Accommodations for workers with vulnerable household members who may be seriously endangered if they’re forced to return to unsafe conditions
• A plan to vaccinate all workers in the CPS system who want it
• A phase-in approach aligned with vaccinations to ensure re-openings are done safely

They will be trying through the weekend to find a deal, but CPS claims they do not have to bargain on these issues, and has said they’ve made their final offer. If no deal is reached, and teachers are locked out of remote classrooms as a result of continuing remote work for the safety of their families and students, CTU members have authorized a strike action in response.

What You Can Do To Help:

CTU is asking for help on a number of fronts. You can act RIGHT NOW to support them by doing the following:

• Signing a letter to Governor Pritzker asking him to sign a bill restoring CTU’s right to bargain safety conditions. These rights were curtailed by unprecedented action at the state level by a prior legislature, though the bill didn’t touch other public unions.
• Donating to a strike fund supporting workers who have already been locked out and whose pay has not been restored.
• If you’re a CPS parent, share your story on why safety and a robust remote learning focus matters for you and your family.
• Watching for updates on Facebook and Twitter on strike actions if a lockout occurs.

Budget Contingency Plans Underway in Some Units
UICUF has received strong evidence that many units have been asked to prepare contingencies in the event that their budgets were to be cut on the order of 10-15%. Needless to say, this is concerning, and we are keeping our eye on the situation. If you have heard any discussion of possible cuts or plans to accommodate hypothetical cuts, please email us confidentially at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com ASAP so we can develop a clearer picture of the situation.

New Deal For Higher Education
On a brighter note, next week will mark the kickoff event for A New Deal For Higher Education, a campaign led by union activists and university faculty, including our affiliate organizations, AFT and AAUP, who are working to imagine and implement a new vision for higher education in the US at all levels of government and governance. We’re excited to participate, and invite you to join the conversation yourself!

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty

***

We hold regular office hours from 12-1pm Wednesday and Thursday each week. Use the following links to add them to your calendar:

Wednesday 12-1pm | Thursday 12-1pm

We issue regular updates via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and on our website. We encourage everyone to like and follow us on social media. If you want to contribute your story, pictures, video, or other content related to the activities of the union, email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com. With your support, we are making UIC an even SAFER place to work and learn!

29 Jan Answering the Provost’s Question on Post-Pandemic Teaching

• The Conversation is Already Happening: Did you know that the Provost has asked the deans to answer a series of questions about the bounds of pedagogical autonomy (i.e. who decides whether a class, office hour, advising session etc. should be online)?
• Faculty Must Be Included in Decision Making: Your Deans were instructed to include you in the conversation. If they have not already done so, we strongly encourage faculty to be proactive and engage with leadership through shared governance mechanisms.
• 1B Vaccine Priority Petition: Please consider signing IFT’s petition asking the state to include higher ed workers in the 1B vaccine distribution taking place right now.
• Office Hours with Our Treasurer: Our Treasurer, Michael Scott, will join us for office hours Wed, 2/3/21, 12-1pm. Come with your thoughts or questions! Engineering folks are especially welcome to make use of Michael’s experience as the former College Rep.
• A Victory for Our Hospital Workers: Our colleagues at the hospital have confirmed that since the petitions and other actions demanding their back pay, Admin has finally made their plans and timelines available. Thanks to all who signed!

Dear Members,

First, please consider signing IFT’s petition to expedite vaccine priority for higher ed workers (faculty, grad workers, and staff) who are slated to be included in the 1C vaccine distribution, estimated to be 1-2 months away. The petition asks for higher ed workers to join K-12 teachers and other public facing essential employees in the 1B vaccine distribution that is occurring right now. Many staff members and some faculty are even now working on campus and in public-facing capacities, and many more are doing so at other institutions across the state. We are asking that these individuals be prioritized as other essential workers are, in the current round of vaccinations.

Teaching Autonomy is an Academic Freedom Issue
Recently the union learned of a memo, sent by Provost Poser to college deans, asking them to consult with their faculty and report back by February 19th on how the university should think about delivering curriculum post-pandemic. On its face, this is not an unreasonable thing to be thinking about, but the details bear examining.

Several questions revolve around whether an individual faculty member should ever be required to teach or perform other duties online. We have a number of concerns with the framing of this issue, which we will elaborate on in an open letter to be published shortly. However, for now, we’ve seen some evidence of deans bringing these discussions to their faculty – and some evidence quite to the contrary. Deans were instructed to consult you, their faculty, and if they haven’t done so, we strongly encourage members to bring these issues to the fore through your shared governance channels where possible. If you would like help determining the best way of introducing this topic before Feb. 19th, please email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com.

Office Hours with Our College Reps
Next week, we welcome our Treasurer and former College of Engineering Representative, Michael Scott, to our office hour. Michael, is a long-time member and officer of the union, and we look forward to making his experience and expertise available to you. We encourage anyone interested to drop in, especially if you are an Engineering member with questions, concerns, or other ideas. As a reminder, office hours are held every week, Wednesdays and Thursdays, 12-1pm. See links above for the zoom invite, and links at the bottom of this email to add the sessions to your calendar.

Hospital Workers Won Unprecedented Transparency
Over the last several weeks, over 675 faculty and community members signed our petition demanding the administration honor hospital worker contracts and share their plans for executing promised pay increases that have been slow to materialize. This week, admin responded, and our union colleagues confirmed, that the process of distributing raises is now underway, with a detailed outline of their implementation plan. Our allies from SEIU have said that this is a level of transparency that they have never seen before, and they thank all their supporters. So thank you to everyone who signed our petition or took other actions!

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty

***

We hold regular office hours from 12-1pm Wednesday and Thursday each week. Use the following links to add them to your calendar:

Wednesday 12-1pm | Thursday 12-1pm

We issue regular updates via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and on our website. We encourage everyone to like and follow us on social media. If you want to contribute your story, pictures, video, or other content related to the activities of the union, email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com. With your support, we are making UIC an even SAFER place to work and learn!

21 Jan Solidarity Saved My Department

• A Solidarity Story: Last year Admin planned to outsource the vast majority of a key UIC program, the Tutorium for Intensive English. The program’s faculty pushed back, saving their program and their jobs, earning them last year’s UICUF John Shuler Award. In the video above, they share their story, in their own words.
• 2021 Shuler Award: It’s time again for members to nominate their departments for the John Shuler Award, which is given every year, along with $500, to an academic unit that demonstrates excellence in shared governance. Download the application here!
• Office Hours with CADA Rep: One of our Reps for the College of Architecture, Design and the Arts, Karyn Sandlos, will join us for office hours Thurs, 1/28/21, 12-1pm. CADA members are working on a variety of issues and we encourage you to join us
• Supporting Our Health Workers: Our colleagues at the hospital are still fighting to have admin honor their contract commitments. We have supported them with a petition drive and public testimony at the Board of Trustees today. More as the situation evolves.

Dear Members,

At the beginning of 2020, even before the pandemic forced most of the university to shift to remote classes, the UIC administration began making moves to replace much of the Tutorium for Intensive English and its faculty with uncertified tutors provided by a for-profit business. The administration proceeded without any faculty input, and without regard for academic quality or the long-term academic success of our students. That’s when Tutorium faculty contacted UIC United Faculty.

Program faculty saw that individually there was little they could do (many had already made their protestation of the move plain), but with the help of the union, they began working together on a collective strategy to push back. Within a matter of weeks, armed with an enforceable contract and solidarity with their colleagues in a united front, the TIE faculty turned what appeared to be an inevitable defeat into a collective victory, saving their program and their own jobs. You can hear their story in their own words in the video above.

The UICUF John Shuler Award
For their efforts in turning back an outsourcing plan by working together in a way they had not been used to doing before, the UICUF Shared Governance Committee chose to award them  the 2020 John Shuler Award. The John Shuler Award is given each year to an academic unit that makes important strides in, or exceptionally demonstrates the principles of, shared governance. It is now time to begin nominating academic units for consideration of their work this academic year. Any member can nominate your unit by completing the application and mailing it to us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com.

Office Hours with Our College Reps
Next week, we will host our first office hour with one of our college Representatives, Karyn Sandlos, in attendance. Karyn is our Rep for the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts–where our members have, and are, working on a variety of issues from equity pay to setting course-load policies. We encourage anyone interested to drop in, especially if you are a CADA member with questions, concerns, or other ideas. As a reminder, office hours are held every week, Wednesdays and Thursdays, 12-1pm. See links above for the zoom invite, and links at the bottom of this email to add the sessions to your calendar.

Solidarity with Our Hospital Workers
First, thank you to all the faculty who signed our petition in support of UI Hospital employees, who are still fighting for their contract to be upheld! We’ve now submitted the petition with 675 signatories to the Chancellor and the Board of Trustees, and had a member testify alongside SEIU members at this morning’s Trustee meeting. We haven’t yet seen any specific response to our actions, but will monitor the situation and let you all know if further steps are needed to hold the administration accountable to the labor contracts they signed.

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty

***

We hold regular office hours from 12-1pm Wednesday and Thursday each week. Use the following links to add them to your calendar:

Wednesday 12-1pm | Thursday 12-1pm

We issue regular updates via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and on our website. We encourage everyone to like and follow us on social media. If you want to contribute your story, pictures, video, or other content related to the activities of the union, email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com. With your support, we are making UIC an even SAFER place to work and learn!

14 Jan Demand That Admin Honor Their Contractual Commitments

• Welcome Back: 2020 presented a seemingly unending series of challenges, and since we’re eager to move forward with the new year, we plan to hit the ground running in 2021.
• Keep Admin Honest: It’s a busy time, but you can take action right now by signing our petition to keep admin honest about honoring contractually agreed pay raises and hazard pay for our union colleagues at the hospital.
• Office Hours Resume: We will resume holding virtual union office hours this week after having many good conversations at the end of last semester. As a reminder, drop in via zoom any Wednesday or Thursday, 12-1pm, to speak with union staff on any topic!

Dear Faculty,

We hope you’ve enjoyed your winter holidays, and we’re guessing you are as happy to put the last year behind you as we are! And yet, there is still so much work left to do, to protect ourselves and our loved ones amidst an ongoing pandemic, to press forward on critical issues of social and racial justice, and to ensure that “recovery” does not merely mean returning to a broken system that leaves so many of us exposed to unmitigated illness and poverty.

Demand Contract Accountability
We hope you’ll take immediate action by signing our petition demanding accountability from our administration on behalf of our union colleagues at the hospital. Last year, an historic strike of health workers, including nurses and support staff, forced the administration to finally agree to pay raises, hiring up to safe staffing levels, and initiating hazard pay should crisis conditions return. While union workers went back on the job in September, the administration hasn’t completely upheld their side of the bargain. In particular, pay raises remain in limbo, with no clear timeline for implementation, and though the state shifted from Phase 4 back to Phase 3 in response to surging COVID cases, the hospital refuses to implement promised hazard pay for workers — something it did in the Spring when conditions were not as severe.

In collaboration with our partners in SEIU and INA, the unions representing hospital staff and nurses respectively, we are demanding that Chancellor Amiridis honor the contract commitments made by this administration. Please join us in signing and sharing the petition above, to keep UIC accountable to their promises!

Office Hours Resume This Week
As a reminder, we have resumed our virtual union office hours, which proved immediately useful last semester despite rolling out just a couple of weeks before the winter holiday. You can drop in any Wednesday or Thursday from 12-1pm to speak directly with union staff about any topic important to you. Office hours are never recorded, and your confidentiality is our priority, especially if you need to discuss a sensitive or personal issue. You can, of course, always email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com if you wish to speak with a representative outside of office hours, and our staff will make every effort to respond within one working day.

Thank you all for your ongoing support, and for helping us make UIC an even better, even safer, place to work and learn!

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty

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We hold regular office hours from 12-1pm Wednesday and Thursday each week. Use the following links to add them to your calendar:

Wednesday 12-1pm | Thursday 12-1pm

We issue regular updates via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and on our website. We encourage everyone to like and follow us on social media. If you want to contribute your story, pictures, video, or other content related to the activities of the union, email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com. With your support, we are making UIC an even SAFER place to work and learn!

12 Jan Demand That Admin Honor Their Contract Commitments

• Welcome Back: 2020 presented a seemingly unending series of challenges, and since we’re eager to move forward with the new year, we plan to hit the ground running in 2021.
• Keep Admin Honest: It’s a busy time, but you can take action right now by signing our petition to keep admin honest about honoring contractually agreed pay raises and hazard pay for our union colleagues at the hospital.
• Office Hours Resume: We will resume holding virtual union office hours this week after having many good conversations at the end of last semester. As a reminder, drop in via zoom any Wednesday or Thursday, 12-1pm, to speak with union staff on any topic!

Dear Faculty,

We hope you’ve enjoyed your winter holidays, and we’re guessing you are as happy to put the last year behind you as we are! And yet, there is still so much work left to do, to protect ourselves and our loved ones amidst an ongoing pandemic, to press forward on critical issues of social and racial justice, and to ensure that “recovery” does not merely mean returning to a broken system that leaves so many of us exposed to unmitigated illness and poverty.

Demand Contract Accountability
We hope you’ll take immediate action by signing our petition demanding accountability from our administration on behalf of our union colleagues at the hospital. Last year, an historic strike of health workers, including nurses and support staff, forced the administration to finally agree to pay raises, hiring up to safe staffing levels, and initiating hazard pay should crisis conditions return. While union workers went back on the job in September, the administration hasn’t completely upheld their side of the bargain. In particular, pay raises remain in limbo, with no clear timeline for implementation, and though the state shifted from Phase 4 back to Phase 3 in response to surging COVID cases, the hospital refuses to implement promised hazard pay for workers — something it did in the Spring when conditions were not as severe.

In collaboration with our partners in SEIU and INA, the unions representing hospital staff and nurses respectively, we are demanding that Chancellor Amiridis honor the contract commitments made by this administration. Please join us in signing and sharing the petition above, to keep UIC accountable to their promises!

Office Hours Resume This Week
As a reminder, we have resumed our virtual union office hours, which proved immediately useful last semester despite rolling out just a couple of weeks before the winter holiday. You can drop in any Wednesday or Thursday from 12-1pm to speak directly with union staff about any topic important to you. Office hours are never recorded, and your confidentiality is our priority, especially if you need to discuss a sensitive or personal issue. You can, of course, always email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com if you wish to speak with a representative outside of office hours, and our staff will make every effort to respond within one working day.

Thank you all for your ongoing support, and for helping us make UIC an even better, even safer, place to work and learn!

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty

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We hold regular office hours from 12-1pm Wednesday and Thursday each week. Use the following links to add them to your calendar:
Wednesday 12-1pm | Thursday 12-1pm

We issue regular updates via email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and on our website. We encourage everyone to like and follow us on social media. If you want to contribute your story, pictures, video, or other content related to the activities of the union, email us at UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com. With your support, we are making UIC an even SAFER place to work and learn!

03 Dec Announcing Virtual Union Office Hours W-Th 12-1pm

• Virtual Office Hours: Starting next week UICUF staff and/or stewards will be holding virtual office hours via zoom every week, 12-1pm on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
• How They’ll Work: Just as with in-person office hours, union reps will be available for walk-ins. Just join the zoom meeting to ask questions, discuss general issues, or seek help/advice. Meetings in our “office” will never be recorded, and your conversations will be confidential.
• You Can Always Reach a Union Rep: Even if you can’t make our office hours, you can always reach a union rep by emailing UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com, and someone will get back to you within 1 business day.

Dear Faculty,

We hope everyone had a safe and relaxing holiday break this past weekend, even if it was all too brief! As we round the corner on finishing up fall semester, UICUF is continuing to build on our advocacy around COVID-19 and remote work issues, and we will hopefully have more developments to share on that front after our next bargaining session tomorrow. Meanwhile, we are continuing to work hard to support you and keep you engaged in decision-making.

To that end, next week we will begin hosting twice-weekly Virtual Union Office Hours via zoom from 12-1pm every Wednesday and Thursday! UICUF Staff and/or Stewards will be available for walk-ins at these times. All members and potential members of UICUF are welcome to drop into our “office” during these times to ask questions, discuss general issues, or seek personal advice/assistance.

Add Our Office Hours to Your Calendar
Wednesday 12-1pm
Thursday 12-1pm

We will, of course, be prioritizing member safety and confidentiality in our virtual office. Although our virtual office hours are a shared space, we may ask you to wait momentarily in the waiting room if a colleague is already discussing a sensitive topic with us. If you are discussing something sensitive with a representative and others are waiting, we may ask you to join us in a private breakout session, or schedule a follow-up time to accommodate a more involved conversation. Nothing will be recorded during our office hours, and any issue you discuss with a union representative will be kept strictly confidential.

Even if you can’t make our office hours, you can always reach a union rep by emailing UICUnitedFaculty@gmail.com, and someone will get back to you within 1 working day. We encourage all members to come and say “hello” next Wednesday or Thursday!

Solidarity,
UIC United Faculty