Negotiating Update for Wednesday, August 24 and Thursday, August 25
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met on Wednesday and Thursday, and we were able to make progress on a number of minor issues. We reached tentative agreement on Association Privileges, Personnel Files, Grievance and Arbitration, and Appointments. Most of these involved maintenance of the language in the existing Agreement
None of these agreements changed the administration’s intention to use every weapon at their disposal including attacking our right to collective bargaining in order to extract major economic concessions of over $5 million from us.
These demands include the 4/4 teaching load, the elimination of the tuition subsidy at other institutions, the elimination of the Assistant II rank and the salary increase that comes with that promotion, the elimination of the Athletic III rank for coaches, major increases in the cost of health insurance, the elimination of all benefits for adjunct faculty, lower starting salaries for lecturers, no annual raises and continuation of the reduced contribution to our retirement accounts.
The only way we can resist this massive reduction in our living standards is through united action by all of us. If you have not already done so, click the following link to fill out the Action Survey https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7QSHR3B, be prepared to participate in all of our actions, and sign up for our new social media platform (Raftr).
The future of our union and our careers are at stake, nothing short of militant unity will preserve them.
Negotiating Update for Wednesday, August 24
Colleagues,
The parties met and made progress on important but secondary issues. We will meet again tomorrow morning and will give a full update after tomorrow’s negotiation.
In Solidarity,
AAUP Negotiating Team
Negotiating Update for Wednesday, August 17 and Thursday, August 18
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met on Wednesday and Thursday this week and we were able to achieve a pathway for long term job security, protection of academic freedom and academic ranks for lecturers.
This advance did not come easily or at no cost. The administration was insistent on reductions in secretarial support as part of this package and while we were able to insist on some protections for faculty secretarial support we did agree to weakened language in that area.
But as we negotiated on this the administration was insistent that they intend to use every weapon at their disposal including attacking our right to collective bargaining in order to extract major economic concessions of over $5 million from us.
These demands include the 4/4 teaching load, the elimination of the tuition subsidy at other institutions, the elimination of the Assistant II rank and the salary increase that comes with that promotion, the elimination of the Athletic III rank for coaches, major increases in the cost of health insurance, the elimination of all benefits for adjunct faculty, lower starting salaries for lecturers, no annual raises and continuation of the reduced contribution to our retirement accounts.
The only way we can resist this massive reduction in our living standards is through united action by all of us. If you have not already done so, click the following link to fill out the Action Survey https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7QSHR3B, be prepared to participate in all of our actions, and sign up for our new social media platform (Raftr).
The future of our union and our careers are at stake, nothing short of militant unity will preserve them.
Negotiating Update for Wednesday, August 17
Colleagues,
The parties met and made progress on important but secondary issues. We will meet again tomorrow morning and will give a full update after tomorrow’s negotiation.
In Solidarity,
AAUP Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for Wednesday, August 10
The parties met today and discussed a number of important items and agreed to meet again tomorrow. There will be a complete update on Thursday, August 11
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team,
Negotiation Update for August 3rd
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met and there was some discussion about their proposal on health insurance, but no substantive progress was made. We then put proposals on the table to try to meet some of their concerns about managerial authority. We linked those proposals with their agreeing to accept the bargaining unit as presently constituted. Therefore, removing the threat to remove tenured and tenure track faculty, head coaches and trainers from the bargaining unit. We await their responses, which we should hear next week, and we will be meeting on Wednesday and Thursday.
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for Wednesday, July 27th
Dear Colleagues,
In yesterday’s meeting the administration proposed slashing our benefits by well over $2 million. These proposals are in addition to increasing our teaching workload by two courses per year while implementing a salary freeze.
They propose to:
* Eliminate tuition remission for dependent attendance at institutions other than Rider.
* Continue contributing the least allowable percentage to TIAA during the life of this Agreement (5%).
* Strip eligible adjunct faculty of all medical benefits.
* Eliminate the 100/80 PPO and the HMO plans, leaving only the 90/70 PPO and the high-deductible plan.
* Double the deductible for the 90/70 plan from $500 to $1,000 for single in-network coverage. Presently there is no deductible in the 100/80 plan.
* Increase the maximum out-of-pocket expenses for the 90/70 plan from $9,000 to $15,000 for family out-of-network coverage.
* Increase premiums for single coverage for the 90/70 plan to circa $3,300 for single coverage.
* Eliminate the payment for waiving medical coverage.
* Eliminate the contribution by the University to members' Bene-Save accounts.
We made it clear that we have seen our economic situation deteriorate over the last seven years, and we were not prepared to see it further eroded.
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for Wednesday, July 20th
Colleagues,
The parties met and the university provided us with their proposal on governance and repeated their threat to petition the National Labor Relations Board if we don't agree to their proposal. Their proposal would replace the existing governance structure with a “faculty senate.” The senate could make recommendations to the administration and the administration could ignore those recommendations and implement academic policy on its own.
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for July 13
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met today and worked primarily on Article II, Non-Discrimination and Affirmative Action. Our original proposal sought to create an active, effective committee with the primary authority to recommend to the president improved policies and practices in the area of DEI. However, the administration was opposed to giving that committee a central role. In order to move negotiations forward, we compromised and agreed to their proposal to reduce the committee to a secondary role. A few items in that article remain under discussion.
We had also proposed the inclusion of DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) practices into the appointment and promotion-and-tenure processes. The administration made clear that it is opposed to adding that to the agreement.
We also discussed Article IV - Academic Freedom, Article V - Association Privileges, and Article XXIV - General Working Conditions.
In solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
July 6th Update
Dear Colleagues
We met with the administration today and they again pushed for a quicker pace. We pointed out that it is difficult to make any progress without the information that we requested over a year ago and that the administration has yet to supply in its entirety. We did try to focus on a small number of articles where we thought we might be able to make progress. Among those was our proposal to reconstitute the Affirmative Action Committee as the Non-Discrimination, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee with a broader role. While the administration’s attorney claimed that they agreed that Rider needed to do a better job in this area they could not agree with our proposal to expand the reach and authority of the committee.
Jun 29 Negotiation Update
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met and began to review our proposals. Though the administration’s attorney appeared to understand the goals of our proposals, there was very little engagement with the underlying substantive issues that form their basis. We will meet again next Wednesday.
In solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for Wednesday, June 22nd
The parties met and the administration went over their proposal. They emphasized two major goals. The first, to alter our governance structure at the departmental, program, college, and university level to give complete control to the administration. And secondly, the bargaining unit members must make a significant reduction in compensation and benefits, as well as increase faculty workload to 4/4.
We will meet again next Wednesday and we will continue to update as we go forward.Colleagues,
The parties met and the university provided us with their proposal on governance and repeated their threat to petition the National Labor Relations Board if we don't agree to their proposal. Their proposal would replace the existing governance structure with a “faculty senate.” The senate could make recommendations to the administration and the administration could ignore those recommendations and implement academic policy on its own.
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met on Wednesday and Thursday, and we were able to make progress on a number of minor issues. We reached tentative agreement on Association Privileges, Personnel Files, Grievance and Arbitration, and Appointments. Most of these involved maintenance of the language in the existing Agreement
None of these agreements changed the administration’s intention to use every weapon at their disposal including attacking our right to collective bargaining in order to extract major economic concessions of over $5 million from us.
These demands include the 4/4 teaching load, the elimination of the tuition subsidy at other institutions, the elimination of the Assistant II rank and the salary increase that comes with that promotion, the elimination of the Athletic III rank for coaches, major increases in the cost of health insurance, the elimination of all benefits for adjunct faculty, lower starting salaries for lecturers, no annual raises and continuation of the reduced contribution to our retirement accounts.
The only way we can resist this massive reduction in our living standards is through united action by all of us. If you have not already done so, click the following link to fill out the Action Survey https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7QSHR3B, be prepared to participate in all of our actions, and sign up for our new social media platform (Raftr).
The future of our union and our careers are at stake, nothing short of militant unity will preserve them.
Negotiating Update for Wednesday, August 24
Colleagues,
The parties met and made progress on important but secondary issues. We will meet again tomorrow morning and will give a full update after tomorrow’s negotiation.
In Solidarity,
AAUP Negotiating Team
Negotiating Update for Wednesday, August 17 and Thursday, August 18
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met on Wednesday and Thursday this week and we were able to achieve a pathway for long term job security, protection of academic freedom and academic ranks for lecturers.
This advance did not come easily or at no cost. The administration was insistent on reductions in secretarial support as part of this package and while we were able to insist on some protections for faculty secretarial support we did agree to weakened language in that area.
But as we negotiated on this the administration was insistent that they intend to use every weapon at their disposal including attacking our right to collective bargaining in order to extract major economic concessions of over $5 million from us.
These demands include the 4/4 teaching load, the elimination of the tuition subsidy at other institutions, the elimination of the Assistant II rank and the salary increase that comes with that promotion, the elimination of the Athletic III rank for coaches, major increases in the cost of health insurance, the elimination of all benefits for adjunct faculty, lower starting salaries for lecturers, no annual raises and continuation of the reduced contribution to our retirement accounts.
The only way we can resist this massive reduction in our living standards is through united action by all of us. If you have not already done so, click the following link to fill out the Action Survey https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7QSHR3B, be prepared to participate in all of our actions, and sign up for our new social media platform (Raftr).
The future of our union and our careers are at stake, nothing short of militant unity will preserve them.
Negotiating Update for Wednesday, August 17
Colleagues,
The parties met and made progress on important but secondary issues. We will meet again tomorrow morning and will give a full update after tomorrow’s negotiation.
In Solidarity,
AAUP Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for Wednesday, August 10
The parties met today and discussed a number of important items and agreed to meet again tomorrow. There will be a complete update on Thursday, August 11
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team,
Negotiation Update for August 3rd
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met and there was some discussion about their proposal on health insurance, but no substantive progress was made. We then put proposals on the table to try to meet some of their concerns about managerial authority. We linked those proposals with their agreeing to accept the bargaining unit as presently constituted. Therefore, removing the threat to remove tenured and tenure track faculty, head coaches and trainers from the bargaining unit. We await their responses, which we should hear next week, and we will be meeting on Wednesday and Thursday.
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for Wednesday, July 27th
Dear Colleagues,
In yesterday’s meeting the administration proposed slashing our benefits by well over $2 million. These proposals are in addition to increasing our teaching workload by two courses per year while implementing a salary freeze.
They propose to:
* Eliminate tuition remission for dependent attendance at institutions other than Rider.
* Continue contributing the least allowable percentage to TIAA during the life of this Agreement (5%).
* Strip eligible adjunct faculty of all medical benefits.
* Eliminate the 100/80 PPO and the HMO plans, leaving only the 90/70 PPO and the high-deductible plan.
* Double the deductible for the 90/70 plan from $500 to $1,000 for single in-network coverage. Presently there is no deductible in the 100/80 plan.
* Increase the maximum out-of-pocket expenses for the 90/70 plan from $9,000 to $15,000 for family out-of-network coverage.
* Increase premiums for single coverage for the 90/70 plan to circa $3,300 for single coverage.
* Eliminate the payment for waiving medical coverage.
* Eliminate the contribution by the University to members' Bene-Save accounts.
We made it clear that we have seen our economic situation deteriorate over the last seven years, and we were not prepared to see it further eroded.
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for Wednesday, July 20th
Colleagues,
The parties met and the university provided us with their proposal on governance and repeated their threat to petition the National Labor Relations Board if we don't agree to their proposal. Their proposal would replace the existing governance structure with a “faculty senate.” The senate could make recommendations to the administration and the administration could ignore those recommendations and implement academic policy on its own.
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for July 13
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met today and worked primarily on Article II, Non-Discrimination and Affirmative Action. Our original proposal sought to create an active, effective committee with the primary authority to recommend to the president improved policies and practices in the area of DEI. However, the administration was opposed to giving that committee a central role. In order to move negotiations forward, we compromised and agreed to their proposal to reduce the committee to a secondary role. A few items in that article remain under discussion.
We had also proposed the inclusion of DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) practices into the appointment and promotion-and-tenure processes. The administration made clear that it is opposed to adding that to the agreement.
We also discussed Article IV - Academic Freedom, Article V - Association Privileges, and Article XXIV - General Working Conditions.
In solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
July 6th Update
Dear Colleagues
We met with the administration today and they again pushed for a quicker pace. We pointed out that it is difficult to make any progress without the information that we requested over a year ago and that the administration has yet to supply in its entirety. We did try to focus on a small number of articles where we thought we might be able to make progress. Among those was our proposal to reconstitute the Affirmative Action Committee as the Non-Discrimination, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee with a broader role. While the administration’s attorney claimed that they agreed that Rider needed to do a better job in this area they could not agree with our proposal to expand the reach and authority of the committee.
Jun 29 Negotiation Update
Dear Colleagues,
The parties met and began to review our proposals. Though the administration’s attorney appeared to understand the goals of our proposals, there was very little engagement with the underlying substantive issues that form their basis. We will meet again next Wednesday.
In solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team
Negotiation Update for Wednesday, June 22nd
The parties met and the administration went over their proposal. They emphasized two major goals. The first, to alter our governance structure at the departmental, program, college, and university level to give complete control to the administration. And secondly, the bargaining unit members must make a significant reduction in compensation and benefits, as well as increase faculty workload to 4/4.
We will meet again next Wednesday and we will continue to update as we go forward.Colleagues,
The parties met and the university provided us with their proposal on governance and repeated their threat to petition the National Labor Relations Board if we don't agree to their proposal. Their proposal would replace the existing governance structure with a “faculty senate.” The senate could make recommendations to the administration and the administration could ignore those recommendations and implement academic policy on its own.
In Solidarity,
Your Negotiating Team