Author: aaupwsuwebsite

Dear President Schrader,

We write in our capacity as the Association Council of the Western Michigan University chapter of the American Association of University Professors, representing over 900 faculty, to urge you to return to bargaining and negotiate a fair contract with your faculty.

As a University President, we have to assume that you are certainly familiar with the tenets of collective bargaining. Thus, we can only view the Board of Trustees imposition of a “last, best offer” as an unseemly display of bad faith. An offer which nullifies previous workload agreements; removes the right of faculty to bargain over healthcare; introduces arbitrary awarding of merit pay; prevents faculty salaries from keeping up with rates of inflation; lengthens service requirements for non-tenure eligible faculty to qualify for continuing appointments; enables the administration to impose furloughs and retain sole decision-making power over summer teaching assignments; and introduces an early retirement program which is clearly designed to remove positions through attrition dehumanizes the hard working faculty that are committed to Wright State University.

We believe the faculty’s objections to this imposed contract and their vote in favor of a strike as entirely justified. Representing only 17% of the University’s budget, according to public records, it is unconscionable to shift the burden of the consequences of financial mismanagement to your faculty and their salaries and benefits. As a bargaining institution, you are obligated to return to the table and find mutually agreeable solutions to the issues facing Wright State. We urge you to return to the table and invite AAUP-WSU to participate in meaningful negotiation for the sake of your students, mission, and our profession.

Sincerely,

The Association Council

WMU-AAUP

814 Oakland Drive

Kalamazoo, MI 49008

Kalamazoo, MI 49008

18 January 2019

Sara Kilpatrick, Executive Director
Ohio Conference of the American Association of University Professors
222 East Town St., 2W
Columbus, OH 43215

Dear Sara,

The Ohio Federation of Teachers stands in solidarity with you and your members against Wright State’s attack on your collective bargaining rights. Please know that OFT members across the state support you in urging the administration to come back to the table to bargain in good faith for a fair contract that supports faculty members and students.

The administration’s threat to eliminate your right to bargain health care reeks of Senate Bill 5. It was not so long ago that thousands of voters supported workers’ rights in a statewide referendum of the state legislatures attempt to eliminate collective bargaining rights. SB 5 was a resounding failure for those trying to attack workers. Similar efforts to eliminate collective bargaining rights through other routes also have failed. We stand with you against this attack.

We understand that the imposed contract would be overwhelmingly negative for faculty, students, alumni and the community. It is important that Wright State faculty stand up for students to reach a fair contract that preserves and improves the quality of education. We are all too familiar with how faculty workload – we know it in K-12 schools as class size – directly impacts the quality of education. It is sad that administrators fail to recognize the negative impact of their actions.

We urge the Schrader administration and Wright State Board of Trustees to return to the table to bargain in good faith toward an agreement that is fair to faculty and improves the experience of students.

Please keep us informed about how our members across the state can be helpful to your faculty at Wright State.

In Solidarity,

Melissa Cropper, President

Ohio Federation of Teachers

614-258-3240

 

January 18, 2019

Sara Kilpatrick Executive Director

Ohio Conference of the American Association of University Professors

222 East Town Street, 2W

Columbus, OH 43215

 

Dear Sisters and Brothers of the Wright State-AAUP Chapter,

On behalf of the nearly 10,000 Registered Nurses of the Ohio Nurses Association (ONA), we stand in solidarity in your fight to achieve a fair contract.

It is truly unfortunate the Administration for the Wright State University refuses to agree to a fair contract that recognizes the hard work and success of your members.

We too share in your commitment to collective bargaining and also believe this is the best way to ensure that working families and students receive strong education.

If there is anything the Ohio Nurses Association can do to help support you in your fight to achieve a fair contract, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Sincerely,

Robert L. Cousins

Deputy Executive Officer-Labor Relations Ohio Nurses Association bcousins@ohnurses.org

(402) 643-1209

 

The Recognized Leader and Advocate for Professional Nursing in Ohio

3760 Ridge Mill Drive, Hilliard OH 43026 ¨ 614-237-5414 ¨ www.ohnurses.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Recognized Leader and Advocate for Professional Nursing in Ohio

3760 Ridge Mill Drive, Hilliard OH 43026 ¨ 614-237-5414 ¨ www.ohnurses.org

Here is the response from AAUP-WSU:

Press Release Featuring Annotated Response to Larry Chan’s E-Mail

Here is an associated news story from WHIO:

2019-01-17 WSU Makes Offer to Negotiate; Faculty Union Declines

The article headline is potentially misleading: we are striking over the imposed contract, and their response is to offer to begin negotiating the next contract. Yes, if we had the imposed contract as the new baseline from which negotiations would proceed, we would be eager to begin negotiating from that position of rigged advantage, too.  “Negotiate” is coming close to having no meaning whatsoever.

 

Jan. 16, 2019

Wright State University Dr. Cheryl Schrader University Hall 250

3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy Dayton, OH 45435-0001

 

Dear Dr. Schrader:

On behalf of the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF), which represents the more than 5,500 faculty and coaches employed at the 14 universities comprising Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education, I write to express our full support for the faculty at Wright State University and to request that you honor the AAUP chapter’s demand for the university administration to bargain in good faith.

APSCUF understands that the budget situation at Wright State is largely the result of poor management. Regardless, your faculty still provided a menu of concessions that demonstrates their commitment to the university and their students. Ignoring those concessions and imposing a contract that punishes the faculty does not serve your students well. The conditions under which faculty work are the conditions under which students learn, and the imposition of a contract does nothing but weaken those conditions.

Please do not underestimate the will of the faculty and their unity. In 2016, the State System of Higher Education doubted our solidarity, and the result was a successful strike. We are certain that the students at Wright State will support their faculty the same way our students supported us. But your faculty do not want to go on strike. They want your administration to rescind your administration’s unilateral action and to bargain fairly. As Marty Kich (AAUP-WSU president) has said, your faculty “have a deep interest in the long-term viability” of Wright State University.

For the sake of the university reputation, current and future students, and your future relations with your faculty, we strongly urge you to rethink your decision and to bargain fairly with your faculty.

Sincerely,

Dr. Kenneth M. Mash APSCUF president

 

CC: Martin Kich, President AAUP – WSU

Dear President Schrader,

We write in our capacity as the Executive Council of the Hofstra University chapter of the American Association of University Professors, representing over 700 faculty, to urge you to return to bargaining and negotiate a fair contract with your faculty.

The Wright State University Board of Trustees has attempted to unilaterally impose a contract on full-time teaching faculty which plainly assaults academic freedom and the integrity of the academic mission.  Public records reveal that compensation and benefits for full-time teaching faculty at WSU constitute only 17% of the university’s budget.  While you and the Board may now struggle with the consequences of fiscal mismanagement, they were not created by any investment in full-time tenure lines.

When you return to the table, we hope you will remember that wages and benefits are mandatory topics of collective bargaining; an unnecessarily long probationary period on non-tenure eligible faculty is disruptive to the university’s teaching mission; the implementation of “cost savings days” is little more than wage theft; that merit pay provides no standardized procedure for evaluating contributions to departments and disciplines but rather gives sole discretion to Chairs and Deans; the proposed elimination of a formula for summer teaching is also a form of merit pay, as it would give the administration sole discretion on assigning classes to faculty; and most egregiously, language on “retrenchment” is a dead aim at the principles of academic freedom and tenure, an attempt to transform faculty into contingent employees of the university.

We strongly suggest you invite AAUP-WSU back to the table.  We at Hofstra will stand shoulder to shoulder with our faculty colleagues at Wright State as they fight for AAUP principles and quality education, for the sake of your students and our profession.

Sincerely,

The Executive Council, Hofstra-AAUP

 

 

 

January 16, 2019

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI CHAPTER

PO Box 210176 ● University of Cincinnati ● Cincinnati, OH 45221-0176

 

Dear Dr. Schrader,

The University of Cincinnati Chapter of the American Association of University Professors, representing over 1,600 faculty members, condemns the unilateral imposition of a contract on the full-time teaching faculty represented by AAUP-WSU. We urge you and the Board of Trustees to come back to the table and negotiate in good faith to find common ground for a fair contract for both the Faculty and the University.

For those of us who have watched this situation unfold, it’s clear that Wright State University has faced troubling budgetary issues for the past several years. The University’s poor decisions have placed significant strain on its financial resources. Additionally, it must be noted that compensation and benefits for full-time faculty had nothing to do with these issues.

Nevertheless, it appears that the administration wants faculty to make major concessions to cover for its mistakes.

It’s even more disheartening to know that the AAUP-WSU members have been willing to negotiate permanent and short-term financial concessions. They clearly understand the situation at WSU and know lean times are ahead. What they cannot do, and what they should never do, is allow you and the Board of Trustees to use this financial mess to eviscerate the collective bargaining agreement.

WSU exists for the common good of the community it serves. Where would it be without a strong, committed Faculty? Again, we strongly urge the WSU administration to abandon the reckless imposed contract approved by the Board of Trustees and come back to the negotiating table.

Sincerely,

AAUP-UC Executive Council

 

 

Dear President Schrader,

I am writing to you in my capacity as president of the Cleveland State University chapter of the American Association of University Professors to urge you to return to bargaining and negotiate a fair contract with your faculty.

I have reviewed the contract imposed by the Wright State University Board of Trustees and it is plainly an assault on the academic freedom of the faculty and the integrity of the academic mission. The faculty have been devalued and treated unfairly and I support their strike without reservation. I certainly intend to bring this issue before the CSU AAUP chapter and other labor organizations in North East Ohio to build support for our colleagues in their just struggle.

Sincerely,

Jeremy Genovese

January 15, 2019

Dear Dr. Schrader,

The Kent State University Chapter of the American Association of University Professors stands in support of the faculty at Wright State University and the AAUP-WSU. The WSU faculty highly value their students and the WSU community and do not wish to strike; however, the faculty cannot be expected to continue working in the current environment at WSU.

The responsibility for the financial problems at WSU is solely with the administration’s mishandling of resources. It is unfortunate that the administration insists on passing this burden onto the faculty, students, and community members who will also suffer from the breakdown in transparency and trust that is so vital between faculty and administration. Repairing this relationship is of the utmost importance.

The KSU-AAUP finds it disingenuous that within the imposed contract the administration has nullified workload agreements, can now arbitrarily assign merit pay, and has threatened the job security and promotion eligibility of the non-tenure eligible faculty. The provisions for merit pay and NTE job security were not necessary for the financial sustainability of WSU and demonstrate a lack of consideration for the expert faculty who have dedicated their careers to the university and students of WSU. Imposing a contract that removes the faculty ability to bargain healthcare, imposes furlough days, allows adjunct faculty to receive summer assignments over full-time faculty, and in essence forces pay cuts onto the faculty, requires that the faculty strike. The AAUP-KSU believes the faculty at WSU have no current recourse but to strike.

At Kent State University, the AAUP and faculty body value the open communication and respectful relationships we share with the administration. A university cannot operate without faculty and students cannot learn and fulfill their potential without the knowledge and expertise of the faculty. We encourage the WSU administration to return to the bargaining table and work with your faculty to establish a fair contract that is good for everyone and to come together to solve your problems. We ask that you please reconsider the imposed contract and work to renew your relationship with the faculty. It is best for everyone.

AAUP-KSU Chapter

 

January 14, 2019

Dear Dr. Schrader,

We are writing to express our support for the faculty of Wright State University and the university’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors in their demand for the WSU administration to bargain in good faith for a fair contract.

We understand that WSU faculty do not want to strike. They value their students and want to ensure that students complete their degree requirements and graduate in a timely manner. However, we also understand that faculty cannot be expected to provide high-quality learning experiences under unfair working conditions and without fair compensation.

It has been disheartening to watch the negotiations at WSU proceed at an unacceptably slow pace over the past two years, then break down completely resulting in the present impasse and impending faculty strike. At every stage, the WSU administration has sought to shift responsibility for the financial burdens of the university onto faculty, despite the fact that the university’s financial problems overwhelmingly stem from administrative mismanagement. Shortly before the WSU-AAUP voted to strike, the WSU Board of Trustees voted to impose a “last best offer” contract that nullifies previous workload agreements; introduces arbitrary awarding of merit pay; lengthens service requirements for non-tenure eligible faculty to qualify for continuing appointments; removes the right of faculty to bargain over healthcare; enables the administration to impose furloughs in the form of “cost saving days” and retain sole decision-making power over summer teaching assignments; prevents faculty salaries from keeping up with rates of inflation; and introduces an early retirement program that lacks any safety measures to prevent the delay or elimination of new faculty appointments following an early retirement.

In light of the objectionable provisions contained in the contract that the WSU Board of Trustees seeks to impose on faculty, we believe the reasons for faculty rejection of this imposed contract and vote in favor of a strike are completely justified. We support our faculty colleagues and the WSU-AAUP in their decision to strike, and we urge the WSU administration to return to the bargaining table in good faith to negotiate a new contract that supports, rather than punishes, faculty. At Bowling Green State University, we have found that when administrators and faculty work together to identify shared interests and collaborate to find mutually agreeable solutions, the outcome improves faculty working conditions, streamlines administrative procedures, and facilitates better relations between the faculty and university administration as a whole.

However, this process cannot work if one side seeks to impose its will on the other, which is what we see the WSU administration attempting to do to faculty.

A university is truly only as strong as its faculty, and WSU cannot cultivate a strong faculty by curtailing their participation in decision-making about the terms and conditions of employment that impact their professional lives and livelihoods. We encourage the WSU administration to abandon the imposed contract approved by the Board of Trustees and instead work to re-start negotiations with faculty to find mutually beneficial solutions to the problems currently facing the university.

Best regards, The BGSU-FA

 

David Jackson, President

Stephen Demuth, Vice President

Amy Fry, Treasurer

Vera Lux, Membership

Joel O’Dorisio, Non-tenure Track Faculty Representative

Megan Rancier, Communications

Philip Stinson, Contract Administration and Grievance Officer