Ithaca College Contingent Faculty Get Great Contract!!
Thanks for your support in the campaign of Ithaca College Contingent Faculty/SEIU200 United in getting a great contract with the Ithaca College (IC) Administration! After 10 1/2 hours of negotiations that ended late Sunday evening, and just prior to a strike looming on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Contingent Faculty and IC Administration came to terms favorable to Contingent Faculty after long and hard months of bargaining. The Tompkins County Workers’ Center is proud to have stood tall in organizing with the Contingent Faculty and playing our role in helping to bring community pressure to bear upon the Ithaca College Administration to settle a contract most favorable to Contingent Faculty as well as to the campus community as a whole! [Become a MEMBER of the Workers’ Center by clicking on this link.]
A Celebration Rally for the campus community as well as the larger community–YOU are invited–will be held at 4:30 THIS TUESDAY at Free Speech Rock (which is just outside of the IC Campus Center) for this important victory. The use of contingent faculty has increased around the country as a way for colleges and universities to cut costs. The Ithaca College Contingent Faculty have accomplished a warning shot across the bow that says that taking advantage of contingent faculty is not acceptable. This is ALSO a great testimony to the power of workers ORGANIZING TOGETHER in their workplace to bring about change.
The message from the Contingent Faculty in their own words, is below with details of this important victory:
Today at negotiations we won on everything! A significant pay increase for PT faculty, more stable appointments for FT contingent faculty, and maintaining our voice as one faculty union. We are very pleased to announce that on the
eve of our strike, our administration met all our demands. We have tentatively agreed to a collective bargaining agreement that we are extremely proud of. Let us be clear, none of this would have happened without the campus community coming together in overwhelming numbers and demanding justice for our profession, our students and our college.
Our strike is off and we will be announcing dates for a two day ratification vote soon, where all members will get to review the contract and vote on it. We will send out the tentative agreements and highlights after all clerical matters are cleaned up and finalized on the written agreements. When we stand together, we win.
Some highlights include:
– An established path towards pay parity for PT faculty. PT faculty will receive immediate raises, as well as annual raises totaling $1,025/3 credit course over the life of our contract. We believe that because of our hard work the administration is committed to the concept of pay parity going forward.
-More stability for FT contingent faculty. FT contingent faculty will be eligible for two year appointments after 3 years of teaching at IC and three year appointments after 5 years of teaching at IC.
-More stability for PT contingent faculty. PT contingent faculty will be eligible for two year appointments after 3 years of teaching at IC. In addition, if classes are cut last minute, PT contingent faculty will receive a $1,300 kill fee per class canceled.
-Earlier notice of appointment for FT and PT contingent faculty to plan our lives.
– Guaranteed interview and consideration for minimally qualified FT and PT contingent faculty applying for any full-time faculty position.
-Access to professional development funding
-A grievance procedure as well as just cause provision so no one will be fired without just cause.
-A labor management committee which will meet regularly to discuss contingent faculty concerns.
-Contingent faculty will be eligible for the same teaching excellence awards as tenured and tenure track faculty.
-Earlier fall semester pay day for part-time faculty.