What is Bargaining?
Collective bargaining is one of the ways that we improve our working conditions. A Collective Agreement (CA) is a single contract that limits the rights of management and guarantees pay and other compensation for workers in the union. Bargaining is an expression of collective power that gives employees the ability improve their workplace in ways that individually would be limited.
2022/23 Bargaining Updates
- #9 Membership calls Strike Vote for March
Last week, Contract Committee called a Special General Membership Meeting (SGM) to seek guidance from the membership on how to proceed with bargaining, given the concessions demanded by the Employer as well as their prolonged stalling tactics. At a packed SGM, our membership unanimously voted to cancel the remaining bargaining sessions for March and instead hold a… - #8 “not a proposal, obviously” – SFU bargaining committee continues to stall
TSSU had two more bargaining sessions with the Employer last week, on Wednesday the 15th and Thursday the 16th. At these sessions we continued to discuss proposed changes to the articles of the Collective Agreement concerning Sessional Instructors and Teaching Assistants, but little progress was made. The Employer continues to stall. Concerning Teaching Assistants, the…
Pre-2023 RA Bargaining Updates
- RA Update #10: SFU shows up, but won’t bargain meaningfully because of an elephant in the room
After months of waiting, yesterday TSSU finally received a counter proposal from SFU, but it was lacklustre and disappointing. SFU said it is difficult to bargain after the arbitrator’s decision on who is and isn’t an RA had resulted in an “elephant in the room” because, despite the clear and forceful language of the Sept 12, 2022 Arbitration, the Employer still thinks that most graduate students RAs are not employees. Even on clear and urgent issues such as fieldwork bullying and harassment where the Employer said negotiation is possible, SFU… - RA Update #9: A proposal full of precarity
At our last bargaining session on December 2, we saw an employer that is unwilling to bargain. The proposals that they have passed across the table since they changed spokesperson this summer have shown no movement toward the TSSU’s proposals. Although the Union’s bargaining team has made numerous moves towards the administration’s position, this employer has enjoyed a $53 million surplus this pandemic year alone and yet says it can’t afford a living wage for RAs. SFU Admin brought the same position on wages and benefits as the November 10th…
Detailed information on Proposals
The TSSU does not publish current proposals on its public website, but you can see a detailed list of our bargaining priorities. Proposals are negotiable positions that are intended to address our members’ concerns about our work, and may shift substantially during negotiations. Current detailed proposals are available for members and other interested parties, please contact tssu@tssu.ca for more information.