Design Competition – $200 Prize for The Winners (**Deadline Extended**)

Communication OfficerCommunications, General, News

CUPE 3906 is pleased to announce our local’s design competition. The aim of this competition will be to design a new header for our bulletin boards that are across campus. This design can be the basis of our local’s visual identity. All CUPE 3906 members who are interested in graphic design are highly encouraged to submit their designs for this competition.

Prizes: The 1st place design will receive a $150 cash prize.

The second place and third place designs will receive $25 gift cards for titles bookstore.

Submission Deadline: June 30th July 14th (deadline has been extended for another two weeks).

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International Member Get-Together

Brad WalchukEvents, International

Hello fellow international CUPE members,
Did you have a hectic winter term? It’s time to get together, relax and enjoy some good company over dinner!
More details:
You are invited to a FREE dinner hosted by CUPE 3906 on the 9th of May (Thursday) at 6pm in the Phoenix.
Why?
Food and Fun! Board games! Make some new friends! Share your experiences and laughter! Learn how CUPE 3906 can help you!
How do I sign up?
Please join the Facebook event (link below) so that we can make sure that there is enough food for everyone! If you don’t have a Facebook account, you can email Venu, our international office, (international@cupe3906.org).
https://www.facebook.com/events/151789548326691/
It will be fun and hope you can make it!
See you there! Venu (International Officer, CUPE 3906)
If you have any questions, feel free to email: international@cupe3906.org

Job Posting: Part Time Adminstrative Assistant

Brad WalchukGeneral

Hi All,

CUPE 3906 is hiring a Part Time Administrative Assistant.

The administrative assistant will work with the executive committee. Their primary role will be the
administration and processing of benefits. This includes processing claims, answering member inquires, and
prepare annual reports on benefits. S/he will also be responsible for Job Postings administration, including
checking over all postings that come in from the University to ensure they are in line with the Collective
Agreement, and posting them to the website. S/he will also be partly responsible with the Staff supervisors
for ensuring the day to day functioning of the 3906 office.

For more details please the attached job posting CUPE 3906 Admin Assistant .

 

TA/RA Awards Winners Announced

Cheif Steward Unit 1General

Thank you to all who participated in the 2013 TA/RA Awards! We received close to 150 nominations for TAs and RAs whose appreciable work received the acclaim of students, fellow TAs and professors. After careful consideration by the TA/RA Awards Committee, the winners were determined and declared at the GMM on April 30, 2013. Here are the five winners of the CUPE 3609 TA/RA awards for 2013:

    • Engineering: Alizera Akbari
    • Health Sciences: Ankush Chander
    • Humanities: Joseph Frank
    • Science: Jessica Vanderploeg
    • Social Science: Douglas Wong

Congratulations to the winners! If you know of a TA/RA who deserves recognition, be sure to keep them in mind for next year’s TA/RA Awards.

Bargaining E-Bulletin #1

Brad WalchukBargaining, General, Unit 2

Bargaining Update

The Union and the Employer have met on a number of occasions, and more dates are scheduled for May.

What We Have Proposed

Based on the membership survey that you filled out in late 2012 and early 2013, the union has five main bargaining priorities:

– Increased Job Security (in the form of expanded First Consideration Appointments)

– Wage Increases and Lump Sum Payments

– An Expansion to Benefits (the creation of a separate Dental Plan and a separate Child Care Plan, and increases to the Professional Development Fund)

– Term (a 3 year collective agreement)

– Increased TA support to relieve workload

What the Employer Has Proposed

– Failed to respond to expanded First Consideration Appointments

– Proposed wage increases of 0% in the first two years

– Refused to create a stand-alone child-care plan or dental plan, or to increase the Professional Development Fund

– Proposed a 5 year collective agreements

– Failed to agree to TA support increases

What is Next?

– Your elected bargaining team continues to work hard on securing important gains for you.

– We have scheduled meetings with the Employer on May 6, 8 and 15.

What You Can Do

Join the Bargaining Support Committee!!!

Questions??? Send an e-mail: staff@cupe3906.org

in soli? part II: A panel, discussion, and social event about the tensions of being “in solidarity”

Brad WalchukGeneral

in soli? part II: A panel, discussion, and social event about the tensions of being “in solidarity”

When: Wednesday, May 8th, 7-9pm (Doors at 6:30)
Where: Artword Artbar, 15 Colbourne St. (at James N. and Colbourne)
Cost: Free!

The Political Action Committee of CUPE 3906 warmly invites you to a panel and discussion to explore various tensions we face when claiming to be ‘in solidarity’ with others. As a key catch-phrase for activists within and beyond organized labour, ‘in solidarity’ is often taken as a self-evident and non-contentious statement. However, many also recognized the need to challenge these presumptions about being ‘in solidarity’ and to critically interrogate this phrase and what it means practically for the work we can (and cannot) do. In order to prompt more of these discussions we have organized this panel to follow up on the panel ‘In Soli?’ hosted in February 2012, this time looking more specifically at the tensions in and between different ways of being ‘in solidarity’. Our panel will include four speakers whose activism spans a variety of forms and concerns (from decolonizing ecology and indigenous sovereignty to wage-theft, precarious and sex-worker struggles and anti-gentrification) speaking to the question:What kinds of challenges or tensions have you faced being ‘in solidarity’ and what kinds of practical strategies have you used to negotiate these? The panel presentations will be followed by an open, facilitated discussion.

Admission is free. Light snacks provided, cash bar. Bus tickets available.

Please note that this space is not accessible. We apologize for this, and welcome any feedback or suggestions.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/178373372318839/

For more information: politicalaction@cupe3906.org

Communications Distruptions Notice

Communication OfficerGeneral, News

Dear Members,

Please note that there may be disruptions to our communications and services (including telephone extensions, office hours and mail/forms collection) during our moving dates (April 24th and 25th).

We apologize for any inconvenience.

We hope to see you in our new office, KTH B111.

Best,
Mary Ellen Campbell
Office Relocation Manager

CUPE 3906 Office Relocation

Communication OfficerGeneral, News, Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 3

Dear Members,

You may have heard that all tenants of Wentworth House (including CUPE 3906) have been instructed by the University to relocate their offices in light of the upcoming demolition of the building.

In light of this request, we are relocating our office to the basement of Kenneth Taylor Hall.

As of April 24th, 2013, our new office location and address will be:
CUPE Local 3906
Kenneth Taylor Hall B111
McMaster University
1280 Main Street West
Hamilton, ON L8S 4M4

All of our other contact information, including telephone numbers and extensions, e-mail addresses, and fax number, will remain the same.

Please redirect your mail to CUPE 3906 to this address as of the 24th of April.
We look forward to seeing you at our new office!

In solidarity,
Blake McCall
President, CUPE 3906

Annual General Meeting

Brad WalchukPostings

Our Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be on Wednesday, April 3rd at 5:00pm in BSB B136. At our AGM all positions of the local executive are up for election; you may come and nominate yourself or nominate others for these positions. Nominations may come from the floor or you can fill out an Executive Nomination Form ahead of time. A list of all executive positions and the corresponding descriptions can be found here. If you have any questions about any executive positions please email Blake McCall at: president@cupe3906.org or Berkay Ayhan at: vicepresident@cupe3906.org.

 

We hope to see you there!

CUPE 3906 TA/RA Award 2013

Communication OfficerGeneral

Dear members of the McMaster community,

CUPE 3906 is pleased to announce their second annual TA/RA awards.  Students, employment supervisors or other TAs are encouraged to nominate Teaching or Research Assistants for the award.

There will be a total six awards given, one for each faculty. Successful candidates will receive a $200.00 prize and a letter of recognition from the current CUPE 3906 Executive.

Any CUPE Local 3906 member may be nominated for the award by their students, fellow TAs or RAs (in lieu) or by supervising Professors.

The nomination form is available here. Please submit nomination forms to the CUPE 3906 office (B108 Wentworth House) by April 15, 2013. Forms can also be emailed here. The awards will be given out at the end of the CUPE 3906 General Membership Meeting on April 30th.