Executive Committee Vacancies

Evan JohnstonGeneral

CUPE LOGO inverse

Two positions have recently become vacant on the CUPE 3906 Executive Committee, — the positions of Chief Steward Unit 1 and Chief Steward Unit 3 —for which elections will be held at our next General Membership Meeting (GMM) on July 28. For a brief description of responsibilities for these positions, please see the following document.

All members in good standing may be nominated. A member in good standing is someone that is currently a CUPE member or someone who has been in the past eight (8) months. Given that these two positions are unit-specific (Units 1 & 3), only members of that unit may be nominated.

For more information, please contact Evan Johnston (president@cupe3906.org).

Update on Gender Neutral Washrooms

Brad WalchukGeneral

We met with the Employer (again) yesterday about gender neutral washrooms on campus. There are three confirmed locations: one in Univ. Hall and two in CNH. It took close to two weeks to receive confirmation on this. We feel that more are needed on campus to be inclusive of our transgendered community. CUPE is developing a policy that we hope that university will implement, and we’re working with Human Rights and Equity Services on this key issue. As a starting point, we think that current locked, single stall, gender specific washrooms can easily and quickly be converted into accessible gender neutral washrooms for a minimal cost (new signs). We’ll keep you informed.

li-gender-neutral-washroom

CUPE Statement on TA Evaluations

Brad WalchukGeneral

Dear Members,

It is our understanding that there has been a recent interest from several Teaching Assistants to receive official feedback in the form of teaching evaluations. We understand that some of you would appreciate having this information for professional development purposes and for the purposes of creating teaching dossiers. CUPE has, and does, support the practice of TAs administering their own evaluations.

That said, we feel that it is important that we highlight three important points so that the practice of these evaluations is consistent with our Collective Agreement and protects your rights, while at the same time providing you with important feedback.

  1. These evaluations need to be completely voluntary and initiated by you as the Teaching Assistant. The union would be happy to provide resources, such as sample evaluation forms, should you request them. Requests can be made at (cupe3906@mcmaster.ca).
  2. The release of this information is entirely at your discretion. The evaluations should only be seen by you and the people, if any, with whom you wish to share this information.
  3. These evaluations cannot be used for disciplinary purposes under any circumstance They are solely used for your professional development as well as to help build your teaching dossier if you choose to use them for this purpose.

Please let us know if you have any questions about this process.

In Solidarity,

 

Evan Johnston

President, CUPE 3906

 

**A signed PDF copy of the letter can be found here**

Screening of PRIDE at Workers Arts and Heritage Centre

Brad WalchukGeneral

Join us at the museum on Wednesday, June 17th at 8 pm for a FREE screening of the rousing and critically-acclaimed Pride: The Movie! Refreshments will be provided. This screening is co-presented by the Workers Arts & Heritage Centre and the Hamilton and District Labour Council in celebration of pride hamilton 2015.

PRIDE is inspired by an extraordinary true story. It’s the summer of 1984, Margaret Thatcher is in power and the National Union of Mineworkers is on strike, prompting a London-based group of gay and lesbian activists to raise money to support the strikers’ families. Initially rebuffed by the Union, the group identifies a tiny mining village in Wales and sets off to make their donation in person. As the strike drags on, the two groups discover that standing together makes for the strongest union of all. Starring Andrew Scott, Bill Nighy, Dominic West and Imelda Staunton.

Watch the trailer here: http://remstarfilms.com/en/catalog/pride/

 

pride

CUPE Local 3906 Delegates at CUPE Ontario 2015 Convention

Brad WalchukGeneral

Six members of our local were elected to serve as delegates at the CUPE Ontario 2015 convention.  For five of the six, it was their first CUPE Ontario convention.  Here’s a picture of three of delegates (Evan, Angie and Ryan), along with other young workers (30 and younger) at the microphone speaking on a resolution.

 

cupeontario2015

Free First Aid Training for CUPE 3906 Members

Brad WalchukGeneral

Free First Aid Training is a benefit guaranteed under each of our three Collective Agreements (CAs) and available to TAs/RAs in lieu (Article 18.13 of Unit 1 CBA), Sessional Faculty/Hourly-Rated Sessional Music Faculty (Article 17.13 of Unit 2 CBA) and Post Docs (Article 14.12 of the Unit 3 CBA).

The course, a Standard Red Cross certificate course, is offered being offered on a number of dates this spring through Athletics and Recreation, and the cost of registration is covered by the Employer. The course runs from 9-5 on both days, and the open dates are:

May: 5/6, 12/13, 23/24, and 27/28

June: 2/3, 11/12, 13/14, 18/19, and 23/24

You will need to attend both days in order to receive the certificate.

The sessions are being held on campus here. More information can be found in the McMaster Athletics and Recreation 2014/2015 Fall/Winter Program. If you have questions about the specifics of the material being offered, please contact Athletics and Recreation at ext. 24464.  They are the ones who are offering and teaching the class. Online registration is not an option.

More details are available here: https://onlineca.activecommunities.com/macreconline/Activities/ActivitiesAdvSearch.asp

If you are a TA/RA in lieu and working in a different department/program other than the one that you are registered in as a student, registration should be done through your academic department.

Normally, the Administrator (Graduate Secretary) from your academic department or program will need to register you as they must provide the departmental code so the cost can be billed accordingly. This charge cannot be passed on to you.

May General Membership Meeting: May 13 at noon (DSB B-105)

Brad WalchukGeneral

Our May General Membership Meeting will be held on Wednesday May 13th at noon in DSB B-105. Pizza and childcare (on request) are provided. We have some important items on the agenda, including a detailed benefits report and update, a campaign update on mental health services at McMaster, and the election of two trustees (needed to perform a yearly audit of the union’s finances). We hope to see you all there.

poster

 

Stop the cuts to graduate mental health services!

Evan JohnstonNews

Dear CUPE 3906 members,

On March 31, graduate students voted overwhelmingly to reject the administration’s proposed supplementary fee protocol, which was presented and debated at the Graduate Student Association’s Annual General Meeting (AGM).

The proposed protocol — lobbied for on behalf of the administration by the Associate Vice-President and Dean of Students, Sean Van Koughnett — was advertised as providing improvements to mental health, personal counseling, and career services, but would have resulted in a significant increase in the ancillary fees paid by graduate students each term.

During the AGM, individual members of the CUPE 3906 Executive Committee spoke out against the proposal, and raised concerns about the administration downloading the costs associated with these services onto the backs of students.

As a result of voting down this proposal, graduate students are now being threatened with service cuts, and we fear that these cuts are putting lives at risk.

Forward with integrity and compassion

The majority of graduate students value and support the expansion of these services, but are frustrated by the limited number of choices that have been presented thus far: either pay up, or prepare for cutbacks.

We believe that this approach only serves to polarize the conversation on terms that systematically disadvantage students from poor and low-income families, students enrolled in graduate programs with lower levels of guaranteed funding, international students who pay higher tuition, and those in most immediate need of mental health support. The outcome of such an approach is squarely at odds with McMaster’s new Student Mental Health and Well-Being Strategy, which speaks of a commitment to building “a culture of caring,” and fostering “a healthy, supportive and inclusive educational environment.” If McMaster truly wants to be a leader in “mental health and research expertise,” it needs to do better.

As many of you know first hand, post-secondary education is already unaffordable. Ontario graduate students pay the highest tuition fees in Canada, and are saddled with increasingly unsustainable levels of debt. This is particularly true for international graduate students, who regularly face steep tuition hikes due to a lack of provincial regulation, as well as additional fees not required of domestic students.

Sadly, McMaster’s Board of Governors has shown no interest in making the lives of students more affordable, voting each year to increase tuition fees to the highest allowable amount. As tuition fees and debt levels continue to rise, graduate students are forced to work more part-time jobs during their studies, acquiring more stress and anxiety as a result. These facts need to be part of every conversation that we are having about mental health services, academic success, and the future of our educational environment.

We agree with Sean Van Koughnett when he says that “without these support services, it makes your academic success much more difficult. In some cases, for some students, it’s absolutely critical that they have access to these services. They wouldn’t be here without them.”

That is why the CUPE 3906 Executive Committee is calling on the McMaster University administration to:

  • Immediately stop and reverse the planned cuts to mental health, personal counseling, and career services for graduate students; and
  • Allocate new funds in the upcoming 2015/16 operating budget to reflect a principled commitment to the mental health and wellness of students and workers at McMaster.

If you agree with us, please consider supporting our campaign by:

  1. Signing our petition — https://www.change.org/p/dr-patrick-deane-president-and-vice-chancellor-stop-the-cuts-to-graduate-student-mental-health-services-at-mcmaster-university 
  2. Liking our campaign Facebook page — https://www.facebook.com/macgrads4mentalhealth 
  3. Sending an email to Patrick Deane (president@mcmaster.ca) and Sean Van Koughnett (avpstudents@mcmaster.ca), letting them know how you feel about the cuts to our services
  4. Attending our next General Membership Meeting on May 13 at Noon, where we will be discussing this issue further (more information will be posted soon at http://cupe3906.org)

In Solidarity,

Evan Johnston
President, CUPE 3906

On behalf of the CUPE 3906 Executive Committee