CUPE 3906

Our next General Membership Meeting (GMM) is scheduled for Tuesday, February 17th at 2 p.m.

The meeting will be held via Zoom and the link will be sent out shortly. You’ll need to register at least 24 hours in advance. The agenda will be posted in advance at www.cupe3906.org/gmm-materials 

Join our Equity Committee and best-selling author Desmond Cole on February 23rd at 3 p.m. in MUSC 311/13 for a discussion of his book The Skin We’re In. An event poster is attached here.

Bargaining update

Your Unit 4 Bargaining Team believes that we have the potential to reach a tentative agreement in the very near future, but there are still several items on the table.

As of today (Tuesday, February 3rd), we’re still negotiating Compensation and Hours of Work, among a few other items.

As per the Employer’s most recent proposals, they are attempting to assign additional duties for CAs. These additional duties proposed by the Employer include:

1. Mandatory move-out shifts;
2. Mandatory open house shifts;
3. Mandatory room inspection shifts.

These duties have historically been done by positions other than CAs (eg. GRAs and PAs), so by downloading this work onto CAs, the Employer is unfairly seeking to take away the paid hours of these other workers. We are of the position that these duties should not be downloaded onto CAs as this would only benefit the Employer’s own pockets, while harming Unit 4 workers.

Furthermore, the Employer is unfairly insisting that CUPE 3906 agree to a pay equity plan as part of collective bargaining. Pay equity, while important, is a process that is separate from collective bargaining and governed by separate legislation. We believe that the Employer’s assertion on this matter is highly unusual and is unreasonably delaying good faith negotiations.

What’s next?

This week, we have two more full-day collective bargaining dates booked with the Employer on Wednesday and Friday.

We believe that we are negotiating fairly and making reasonable movement in order to ensure we get the best mutually agreeable deal and the best outcome for Unit 4 workers. We are hopeful that the Employer will reconsider their proposals so that we can reach a fair deal soon.

We’ll have another update with more information on Friday!

Sincerely,

Your CUPE 3906 Unit 4 Bargaining Team

(Caleb, Elissa, Simran, Anna, Muskaan, and Vanessa)

The dental change of coverage period (i.e., for opt-outs and family coverage enrolments) for CUPE 3906 members working as a Classification “A” Teaching Assistants or Research Assistants (in lieu of TA) (Unit 1) or as a Sessional Faculty and Hourly Rated Sessional Music Faculty (Unit 2) in the Winter 2026 term is now open!

The Winter 2026 deadline for dental opt-outs and family enrolments for eligible Unit 1 members is: January 26th, 2026. For more information, and to access Unit 1 dental opt-out/family enrolment forms, please click here.

The Winter 2026 deadline for dental opt-outs and family enrolments for eligible Unit 2 members is: January 30th, 2026. For more information, and to access Unit 2 dental opt-out/family enrolment forms, please click here.

Please note that these change of coverage options are only available to Classification “A” Unit 1 members and Unit 2 members who did not work as a CUPE 3906 Unit 1 or 2 member in the Fall 2025 term.

Questions may be directed to administrator@cupe3906.org.

CUPE 3906 expresses its solidarity with the people of Iran who are participating in peaceful protests in support of fundamental rights and basic freedoms.

We note with concern ongoing reports of violence, repression, arbitrary detention, and restrictions on freedom of expression affecting protesters, students, workers, and women. The rights to bodily autonomy, freedom of expression, and peaceful assembly are recognized international human rights and are central to the values of our union.

These concerns are further heightened by restrictions on communications, including digital and internet access, which have made it difficult for many people to maintain contact with family members and access reliable information.

In addition to the concerns already noted, reports from human rights organizations indicate that at least 12,000 people have been killed during the protests and their aftermath. This scale of loss of life highlights the urgent human rights implications of the ongoing repression.

As a local representing academic workers, researchers, and students, CUPE 3906 recognizes that these developments have direct impacts on members through family ties, academic relationships, and lived experience. We affirm our support for those who are seeking safety, dignity, and respect for their fundamental rights.

Many members of the CUPE community are directly affected through family, academic, and professional connections.

CUPE 3906 calls for respect for international human rights standards, including the protection of civilians and the right to peaceful dissent.

We reaffirm our commitment to solidarity, human rights and social justice, human dignity, and the principle that all people have the right to be heard.

In solidarity,
CUPE 3906 Executive

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“Note: All CUPE 3906 members have access to the Employee Family Assistance Program, which includes some free, confidential mental health resources and supports: https://hr.mcmaster.ca/employees/health_safety_well-being/well-being/employee-and-family-assistance-program/

Members of Unit 1, Unit 2, and Unit 3 have access to a number of leaves, such as sick leave and bereavement leave. Members can contact staff@cupe3906.org for more information.

Members of Unit 3 have access to the Post Doc Support Fund, which provides limited, one-time financial support for unexpected circumstances (such as needing to go home unexpectedly): https://cupe3906.org/postdocs-unit-3/post-doc-support-fund-unit-3/

The January General Membership Meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, January 22 from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM.

A Zoom link will be sent soon, an agenda will be posted shortly, and you’ll be able to find all meeting materials at: www.cupe3906.org/gmm-materials 

The final pay of the fall semester arrived in your account on Friday December 12th and covered the period from November 23rd until December 6^th. All work was paid for at this point, though we understand that some of you had final exams or grading to complete past that date (though some of you did not). Either way, that was the date that the contract was paid in full, even if there was some outstanding work to be done. For those of you teaching in the winter semester, the first pay of the semester will be January 23rd. You can see the full pay schedule for 2025/26 here.

Employment Insurance
The final pay of the fall semester was December 6th. This final pay triggered what Service Canada refers to as an ‘interruption of earnings’ and, for those of you who apply to Employment Insurance, should be the date you list on your EI application as the last pay date (not the date for which you were last paid). The ‘day for which you were last paid’ and your ‘last day worked’ should be listed as December 4^th.  We would encourage all Sessionals who may utilize Employment Insurance at any point in 2026 to apply as soon as possible, even if you are employed during the winter term. 

If you’ve missed the previous fall semester’s deadline, no worries, you can submit throughout the upcoming winter semester.

First Consideration Appointments

One major question we get related to seniority relates to job security. Sessionals have job security in the form of First Consideration Appointments. These function in the same way as a right of first refusal. First Consideration Appointments are a form of job security that occurs when you are appointed to a course without having to apply to it through a competitive application process.

You become eligible for a Standard First Consideration Appointment when you have taught the course for two consecutive appointments after applying to teach it in two open competitions. With First Consideration, you are entitled to be appointed to that course, without it being posted or you needing to apply for it, the next three times that it is offered to Sessional Faculty.

Members who have completed a Standard First Consideration Appointment are then eligible for an Enhanced First Consideration Appointment. When the course is posted again and you are hired in an open competition, you are then entitled to be appointed to that course, without needing to apply for it, the next four times that the course is offered to Sessionals.

Once you have secured a Standard or Enhanced First Consideration, the department can extend your appointment and continue to appoint you directly.

Voting for the president election, initiated at the December 16th General Membership Meeting, has concluded. Mitchell Lupa has been elected President. Congratulations Mitchell, and welcome to the executive committee. Mitchell’s term begins at 12:01 a.m. on December 23rd. Kusum Bhatta will remain in the Vice President role.

The Local would also like to thank Oluwadamilola (Dams), the former president, for her service to the Local since first being elected to the executive committee in October 2024.