Tag: committee

Welcome Back Day 2: Update on Projects and Committee Work

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Here’s an update on some of the work that union members and elected representatives have been working on throughout the summer.

Labor/Management Committees: As a result of the negotiations for adjuncts, representatives from Temple’s administration, faculty and TAUP representatives have been meeting.

  • One committee has been looking at adjunct office space and other resources (secure storages space, office supplies, software licenses, etc.). A survey has been developed that should be sent to all adjunct faculty this semester. The results should help in gaining an understanding of where there are needs to be addressed.  
  • The Job Security Committee has met multiple times and has engaged in productive and sometimes difficult discussions on possible ways to increase job security at Temple and universities where this has been done. We have not come to any agreements, but we have discussed the key role assessment would likely play in any job security proposal, whether  longer-term contracts for adjuncts, preference in course assignments, or paths to full-time employment. Fair assessment, we believe, would require more than Student Feedback Forms, which have been proven repeatedly to be of limited value; but we also acknowledge that peer mentorship and evaluation require significant investments if they are to be done well.  Wherever these discussions may lead, we believe greater job security is essential for adjuncts (and NTTs!), about half of whom have been teaching at Temple for over five years. They need and deserve a more substantial commitment than one semester at a time. Temple’s current policies do, in fact, allow for adjuncts to receive one-year appointments, though to the best of our knowledge it is rarely done. This committee work has given the administration and TAUP a better understanding of what is possible and what we need to work towards together.

Grievances and Faculty Safety: To protect the rights of our members and to defend the contract, TAUP has filed grievances on behalf of tenured, full-time non-tenure track and adjunct faculty over the course of the year and has filed for arbitration in a couple of cases.  We have also been working with the administration to try and solve disputes informally. Having been informed of many cases where faculty have been assaulted or mistreated by students and have not felt sufficiently supported by the administration, we have asked you to tell us of your experiences.   One important element in the contract that members need to keep in mind:  If you believe your rights under the contract have been violated, you need to file a grievance 20 working days after the action you are grieving if you are full-time, 10 days if you are part-time.

Child Care and Tuition Benefits at Other Schools: We have contacted the administration about the proposals we submitted jointly with the Faculty Senate on these two issues and hope to be hearing back this Fall.  We are also planning a Child Care Symposium on October 24th; details to be announced soon!

Data Committee:  We have been looking into the shift over the past few decades from tenure-track to full-time non-tenure track and adjunct work as well as the role of race and gender in hiring, retention, and promotion.   Once we feel confident in our data and analysis, we will be communicating with you about it.

Organizing Committee: Much of the work of this committee was reported on in yesterday’s eBulletin

Bargaining Committee and Negotiating Team Planning:  In Spring 2019 we’ll be back at the table negotiating with the University. The Executive Council has agreed to a process for selecting members of the Negotiating Team (the faculty, librarian and academic professional representatives who are at the negotiation table). Constituency Councils will take the lead in finding and selecting constituent representatives for this role. The Bargaining Committee engages in research and support work related to what is occurring at the table. If you are interested in supporting this work, please let us know.

Academic Freedom and Faculty Governance:  Concerned by many reports of the erosion of faculty governance–exemplified by the scandal at Fox– and academic freedom, we have convened a working group to address these issues and hope to work closely with the Faculty Senate.  We will be sending out a survey shortly as a first step toward gathering faculty, librarians, and academic professionals for discussions and to writing a report on the state of these issues, with recommendations and demands.

Look for our eBulletin tomorrow on the Fast Fund and Art Hochner Travel Fund.

Tuition Benefits at Other Universities:  Moving Forward

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As you may know, the current TAUP contract, which now expires October 15, 2019, includes a side letter which commits Temple’s administration to respond to proposals on tuition benefits at other universities put forth jointly by the Faculty Senate and TAUP.  This benefit would be of great value to our members and to Temple in recruiting and retaining talented faculty, librarians, and academic professionals.  So we are assembling a new committee to continue the work that was done in 2015, which included an inquiry into Tuition Exchange and other potential models and a discussion on how to survey members.  

 If you’re interested in serving on the committee, here’s what to expect:


  • The Committee will meet once a month for 60-90 minutes, perhaps more frequently if necessary; but we are more likely to do our work individually and in small groups.

  • Members will be expected to do research and engage in productive conversations on the particular elements of the proposal that interest them most.

  • The Committee will formulate and distribute a survey by the end of January and analyze the results by the end of February.

  • The Committee will put forth proposals to the Administration by the end of the Spring 2018 semester.

If you are interested in participating and are a dues-paying member of TAUP, please contact Steve Newman, President of TAUP (stevenewman1970@gmail.com); if you are interested but aren’t a dues-paying member, please contact Michael Sachs, President of the Faculty Senate (msachs@temple.edu).

Come Help Us Work for Childcare Benefits for Our Members

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Are you willing to work toward providing access to childcare benefits for ALL Temple University faculty, librarians, and academic professionals?

If so, please join with other interested members of our bargaining unit at 3:00 to 4:30 on Wednesday, Oct 25 in Ritter 477A to plan what Temple can do to support parents who need child care or after school care for their infants, preschoolers, or school-age children.

On campus child care for infants and young children can be an effective tool for recruiting new, young faculty members, retaining existing faculty members, and increasing the availability of faculty members to students on campus.   Child care resources (such as an on-campus facility, a discounted fee for service for child care or after school care) offer a powerful incentive for faculty members and students to spend more time on campus and for faculty and staff to continue their employment at Temple University. As the recruitment and retention of faculty members becomes more difficult due to compressed salaries in the public sector, benefits beyond salary become a critical tool in recruiting and retaining talent.  Finally, an on-campus setting will provide research and teaching opportunities for Temple University faculty, librarians, academic professionals, and students.

At the October 25 meeting, we will:

  1. Briefly review the history of child care at Temple and TAUP attempts to bargain with the University to provide child care or after school care for faculty.
  2. Describe how Temple could support child care and even elder care for families.
  3. Solicit your feedback and additional ideas.
  4. Recruit additional members to serve on the Faculty Senate/TAUP Committee that was authorized by the 2014-2019 TAUP contract to formulate proposals for child care resources.
  5. Develop plans to update the “Proposal to Develop Child Care Benefits for Dependent Children” joint report from the TAUP and Faculty Senate Committee submitted to the University in November 2015.

All members of the bargaining unit are welcome to attend.  Dues-paying members who are interested but are unable to attend should contact Marsha Weinraub, Psychology Department, for more information: Marsha.weinraub@temple.edu.  If you are a member of the bargaining unit but do not pay dues to TAUP and are interested in this effort, please contact Michael Sachs, President of the Faculty Senate:  msachs@temple.edu.

The newly approved plan to move ahead on the Alpha Center at Temple, a new PreK under the aegis of the College of Education is great news!  But this center may not do enough to provide much needed access to affordable, accessible, quality child care at Temple University for faculty and staff. According to sources at the College of Education, access to Temple staff, faculty and students will be limited.  So if you want to work for childcare benefits for ALL Temple University faculty, librarians, and academic professionals, please come to the meeting on the 25th or get in touch with us!