Rider University Chapter of the AAUP
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    • I - Name
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    • VII - Election of Officers
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    • XIII - Amendments
  • Saving WCC
    • Decision on Standing Lawsuit
    • AAUP Response to Provost Fredeen's October 2nd Email
    • Important Information on Campus Consolidation
    • Chinese Company Out As Buyer Of Westminster Choir College
    • Kaiwen is Gone
    • Kaiwen Education Reply to a June 2019 Inquiry from the Shenzhen Stock Exchange
    • Update on Kaiwen Education's Financial Status
    • Arbitration Over Layoffs at WCC
    • Kaiwen Education 2018 Annual Report
    • By Federal Reserve Standards Kaiwen Education is a Highly Leveraged and Risky Business
    • Two Updates on Kaiwen's Finances
    • Due Diligence and Kaiwen Education
    • Chronology of a Crisis
    • WCC Reset
    • New Jersey Attorney General’s Office Delivers Major Setback to Rider University’s Plan to Sell Westminster Choir College
    • Westminster Foundation Press Release on AG Investigation
    • Purchase Agreement
    • Faculty Shocked to Learn Secret Agreement Would Allow Buyer to Close Westminster Choir College
    • Universities as the Guardians of Assets
    • Press Release Kaiwen Finances
    • 2019 Report on Kaiwen
    • DejaVuDellOmo
    • Kaiwen Announcement 1/11/19
    • AAUP Goes to the NJ Assembly
    • Sign the Petition to Save WCC
    • WWCAC Letter November 8 2018
    • Kaiwen Education: Report on Company Performance Through the Third Quarter 2018
    • New Information Reveals Chinese Corporation Plans to Take $20 Million Westminster Choir College Endowment despite Prohibitions Imposed by State/Federal Law
    • More Bad News about Kaiwen
    • Claims v. Reality
    • AAUP Challenges Legitimacy of Newly announced Non-Profit Said To Be Created To Run Westminster Choir College
    • Label Your Stuff!
    • WCC Alumni Council Questions and Answers
    • Statement on Proposed Sale of Westminster Choir College Faculty Union Vows to Continue Oppose ill-conceived Sale of Iconic Music School
    • June 7 Letter to Board
    • A Failure of Due Diligence
    • Bond 2017
    • Chronology of the WCC Crisis
    • Kaiwen Education Technology
    • Pending Legal Actions >
      • Legal Complaints against Rider University over Sale of WCC
    • The Legacy of Westminster Choir College
    • Updates and Information Sent to Faculty from AAUP Leadership >
      • A Letter to WCC Faculty regarding President Dell'Omo's Letter
      • Open Letter to Board of Trustees
      • Letter to Faculty
      • How a For-profit Company Might Ruin Westminster
      • A Message from AAUP regarding the potential layoff of Westminster Faculty
      • ​Update on Westminster
    • Press Releases >
      • Outrage Over Rider University's Plan To Sell Legendary Choir College To Chinese For-Profit Company With No Experience in Higher Education
      • DellOmo Lays Off Entire WCC Faculty
    • WCC Crisis in the News >
      • The Coalition to Save Westminster Choir College Initiates Spin-Off Discussions With Rider University Administration
    • Letters of Support for WCC >
      • Eric Whitacre Praises Westminster
      • Statement of support from NJ Higher Ed Leadership Council.
      • Support for Westminster Choir College
    • Teach In at WCC
    • WCC Teach In Audio >
      • Remarks by Laura Brooks Rice
      • Have American Universities Lost Their Way? by Joel Phillips
    • Governance Standards in Institutional Mergers and Acquisitions
  • 2022 Negotiations
    • Negotiation Updates
    • STRIKE FAQ
    • AAUP's Response to Admin's "Critical Need for Change"
    • AAUP v. Admin Proposals
    • CREDO >
      • Admin's Prioritization Report
      • WCC Students Petition DellOmo
      • Dr. Sanjay G. Reddy Speaks to the Chapter
      • A Bargaining Unit Member's Guide to Credo Part 1
      • A Bargaining Unit Member's Guide to Credo Part 2
      • Rider AAUP Executive Committee Recommendations Concerning Credo Consulting
      • Administration Attempts to Bully AAUP Executive Committee
      • Save Rider Rally
What Happens After August 31st?
August 21, 2017

Dear Colleagues,

 
As we approach the August 31st expiration of the Agreement everyone is understandably anxious given the fact the parties remain very far apart. 
 
How far apart are we? The Administration has reduced its demands from about $10.1 million a year to about $9.25 million. The AAUP has made offers of concessions that exceed $3 million. The AAUP has worked diligently to find a path to agreement and will continue to do so, but the enormity of the Administration’s demands makes this very difficult. Of course the financial piece is important, but what it represents is critical —the Administration’s desire to fundamentally change the nature of the University.
 
So, what will happen if there’s no tentative agreement by August 31? Unfortunately, there are no simple answers. The outcome depends on the Administration’s choices on September 1.
 
In this communication we review what we know and what we don’t know and conclude with what our rights might be under different scenarios.
 
Interpreting the Administration’s August 9th statement
On August 9th the Administration gave us some indications of what they might or might not do if there’s no agreement by August 31st:
 
  • What we have said is that we would not agree to an extension of the contract beyond that (August 31) date (—R. Stoto in 8/9 email to J. Halpern)
 
To provide context, in the forty-year history of our union the parties always agreed to extend the existing Agreement while continuing to negotiate. These extensions were accompanied by jointly-authored statements that indicated the commitment of both parties to reach agreement. Their August 9 statement means that the Administration now considers the historical practice unacceptable.
 
In the same communication the Administration said that if there is no new agreement by August 31st:
 
  • (T)he long-standing legal precedent of the National Labor Relation Act regarding the rights and obligations after contract expiration will apply, including with respect to the obligation to maintain the status quo, and the continuing duty to bargain, and we will act accordingly.
 
So, what does this very lawyerly statement mean? What are the long-standing precedents under the National Labor Relations Act? According to the American Bar Association
 
  • Unilateral changes in wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment after expiration of a collective-bargaining agreement are unlawful because these conditions generally survive expiration of the agreement.  However, only those changes that are "material," "substantial," and "significant" violate the Act. The [Labor Relations] Board has also held that a small number of contractual provisions, including … union-security clauses, no-strike clauses (with limited exceptions), and arbitration clauses that establish terms and conditions of employment do not survive contract expiration.
 
Thus under the National Labor Relations Act the expiration of an Agreement does not mean the employer can stop negotiating with the recognized union. Nor can the employer fire employees or cut off or alter existing terms and conditions of employment. 
 
Under the Act once the contract expires, the union may take actions to pressure the employer to accept its demands up to and including striking. Though empowered to strike under such circumstances, unions are not obligated to do so and can take many other steps to pressure the employer. While the employer is empowered to lock out the union employees once the contract expires, this is almost unheard of in the higher education context (only one such example exists).
 
Impasse
If the parties reach a point where any further bargaining would be futile—a situation called impasse—the employer can implement its final offer. This does not mean that there is a contract in place. The union may strike or take other steps to pressure the employer to alter its position and thus return to the table. In the meantime, the employer’s last offer remains in place.
 
Interest Arbitration
Another possible scenario is that we find a formula for interest arbitration both sides can agree to. The AAUP offered a proposal that would have had the following consequences:

  • The elements of the new agreement already agreed to and elements of the old Agreement not in controversy would go into effect as of September 1.
  • The elements not yet settled would follow the existing Agreement until there was a decision by the arbitrator, whose settlement would be retroactive to September 1st.
 
The Administration rejected this proposal and said they would only agree to interest arbitration if the AAUP moves to within $1.5 million of their position. Given that the administration is still demanding over $9  million in concessions and has shown very little willingness to move off of their concessionary demands, the Administration’s counteroffer is tantamount to an offer for us to capitulate.
 
Yeshiva Decision and the NJ State Constitution
All of the rights listed above are normally enforceable through the National Labor Relation Board. If the administration were to violate any of them, the normal remedy would be to file an unfair labor practice charge against them with the Board. The legal situation for us is, however, less clear.  In their 1980 Yeshiva decision the Supreme Court found that under certain circumstances full-time faculty were “managerial employees” and thus not protected by the National Labor Relations Act. What is clear is that adjunct faculty are not affected by the Yeshiva decision and any actions relating to them are protected under the National Labor Relations Act.
 
Regardless of Yeshiva, the New Jersey State Constitution specifies that all private employees have the right to bargain collectively (Article I, Section 19: “Persons in private employment shall have the right to organize and bargain collectively.”).
 
Whether the Yeshiva decision and/or Article I, Section 19 would apply to our specific circumstances is an open question.
 
The Importance of Attending the August 31st Chapter Meeting
As we stated above, we are trying our best to reach agreement by August 31st, but if we cannot, we will brief you on our next steps at the Chapter meeting on August 31st at 12:00 p.m. in the BLC Theater.

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  • Home
  • About
    • Mission Statement
    • Chapter Meeting Minutes
    • Presentations from AAUP Meetings
    • Meeting Dates 21-22
    • Points of Contact
    • AAUP Officers
    • AAUP Awards >
      • Bertram Mott Award
      • Henry J. Frank Award
    • P&T Committee Members
    • APC Committee Members
    • UAPC Committees
    • Training for College/School Academic Policy Committee Members
    • CIM Training Video
    • Membership
    • Assumption of Risk and Waiver Form for Employees that is required for travel funds
  • Contract
  • Grievances
    • Grievance Process
    • Amendments to Grievance Process, Updated April 2016
    • Grievance Procedure Explained
  • Constitution
    • I - Name
    • II - Purpose
    • III - Membership
    • IV - Dues
    • V - Chapter Officers
    • VI - Committees
    • VII - Election of Officers
    • VIII - Removal of Officers
    • IX - Disciplining of Members
    • X - Meetings
    • XI - Contract Ratification
    • XII - Finance
    • XIII - Amendments
  • Saving WCC
    • Decision on Standing Lawsuit
    • AAUP Response to Provost Fredeen's October 2nd Email
    • Important Information on Campus Consolidation
    • Chinese Company Out As Buyer Of Westminster Choir College
    • Kaiwen is Gone
    • Kaiwen Education Reply to a June 2019 Inquiry from the Shenzhen Stock Exchange
    • Update on Kaiwen Education's Financial Status
    • Arbitration Over Layoffs at WCC
    • Kaiwen Education 2018 Annual Report
    • By Federal Reserve Standards Kaiwen Education is a Highly Leveraged and Risky Business
    • Two Updates on Kaiwen's Finances
    • Due Diligence and Kaiwen Education
    • Chronology of a Crisis
    • WCC Reset
    • New Jersey Attorney General’s Office Delivers Major Setback to Rider University’s Plan to Sell Westminster Choir College
    • Westminster Foundation Press Release on AG Investigation
    • Purchase Agreement
    • Faculty Shocked to Learn Secret Agreement Would Allow Buyer to Close Westminster Choir College
    • Universities as the Guardians of Assets
    • Press Release Kaiwen Finances
    • 2019 Report on Kaiwen
    • DejaVuDellOmo
    • Kaiwen Announcement 1/11/19
    • AAUP Goes to the NJ Assembly
    • Sign the Petition to Save WCC
    • WWCAC Letter November 8 2018
    • Kaiwen Education: Report on Company Performance Through the Third Quarter 2018
    • New Information Reveals Chinese Corporation Plans to Take $20 Million Westminster Choir College Endowment despite Prohibitions Imposed by State/Federal Law
    • More Bad News about Kaiwen
    • Claims v. Reality
    • AAUP Challenges Legitimacy of Newly announced Non-Profit Said To Be Created To Run Westminster Choir College
    • Label Your Stuff!
    • WCC Alumni Council Questions and Answers
    • Statement on Proposed Sale of Westminster Choir College Faculty Union Vows to Continue Oppose ill-conceived Sale of Iconic Music School
    • June 7 Letter to Board
    • A Failure of Due Diligence
    • Bond 2017
    • Chronology of the WCC Crisis
    • Kaiwen Education Technology
    • Pending Legal Actions >
      • Legal Complaints against Rider University over Sale of WCC
    • The Legacy of Westminster Choir College
    • Updates and Information Sent to Faculty from AAUP Leadership >
      • A Letter to WCC Faculty regarding President Dell'Omo's Letter
      • Open Letter to Board of Trustees
      • Letter to Faculty
      • How a For-profit Company Might Ruin Westminster
      • A Message from AAUP regarding the potential layoff of Westminster Faculty
      • ​Update on Westminster
    • Press Releases >
      • Outrage Over Rider University's Plan To Sell Legendary Choir College To Chinese For-Profit Company With No Experience in Higher Education
      • DellOmo Lays Off Entire WCC Faculty
    • WCC Crisis in the News >
      • The Coalition to Save Westminster Choir College Initiates Spin-Off Discussions With Rider University Administration
    • Letters of Support for WCC >
      • Eric Whitacre Praises Westminster
      • Statement of support from NJ Higher Ed Leadership Council.
      • Support for Westminster Choir College
    • Teach In at WCC
    • WCC Teach In Audio >
      • Remarks by Laura Brooks Rice
      • Have American Universities Lost Their Way? by Joel Phillips
    • Governance Standards in Institutional Mergers and Acquisitions
  • 2022 Negotiations
    • Negotiation Updates
    • STRIKE FAQ
    • AAUP's Response to Admin's "Critical Need for Change"
    • AAUP v. Admin Proposals
    • CREDO >
      • Admin's Prioritization Report
      • WCC Students Petition DellOmo
      • Dr. Sanjay G. Reddy Speaks to the Chapter
      • A Bargaining Unit Member's Guide to Credo Part 1
      • A Bargaining Unit Member's Guide to Credo Part 2
      • Rider AAUP Executive Committee Recommendations Concerning Credo Consulting
      • Administration Attempts to Bully AAUP Executive Committee
      • Save Rider Rally