October 23, 2007
UGFA Report on AUFA’s Strike
The first faculty strike in Canada this year is now taking place at Acadia University, a smaller, mainly undergraduate institution in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. This is the second strike in just four years for AUFA (Acadia University Faculty Association) - a very unusual repeat that reflects the failure of the administration to uphold the commitments it made when the previous strike was settled. Sue Hubers, UGFA Executive Administrator, and David Josephy, UGFA Counsellor, travelled to Acadia last week, with financial support from CAUT (Canadian Association of University Teachers) to be “flying pickets“. CAUT has sponsored this program for several years, providing striking faculty unions with practical and moral support from their colleagues across Canada.
Why is AUFA on strike?
Management has walked away from negotiations, after leaving an unacceptable proposal on the table. In an astonishingly inept gesture, the President of Acadia responded to the start of the strike by immediately boarding a flight to ... China! Expenditures on academic salaries have increased by only 32% since 2000, while the Acadia administration’s budget has more than doubled. Apparently Acadia now has six Vice-Presidents, but their web page just says that “Acadia’s Administrative Structure diagram is under construction“ (!) Faculty remain among the worst paid in Atlantic Canada, a region that already has wages lower than the Canadian average. Benefits aren’t good either. Acadia is the only university in Canada where faculty do not have a dental plan. The faculty complement is threatened with major cutbacks. Meanwhile, new campus buildings keep going up, including an impressive sports stadium and the K.C. Irving Environmental Science Centre.
On Friday morning, David and Sue reported to AUFA strike headquarters, which has been set up in a spacious storefront office, one block from the campus. They met the other flying pickets and a large contingent of “driving pickets“ who had arrived from campuses all over the Maritimes, such as UPEI, Moncton, Dalhousie, Mount Allison, and St. Francis Xavier. Then our team joined the AUFA faculty and librarians on the picket line, which stretched across the front and sides of the compact Acadia campus. No attempt was made to block access; all classes were cancelled, so there was no need to prevent other workers getting to their jobs, if they wished. The spirit on the line was excellent. Faculty carried a variety of placards, many of them light-hearted but carrying a powerful message. “Prez has gone to study working conditions in China“; “Even Tim Horton’s has a dental plan“; “Acadia faculty are the Acadia Advantage“ ... Several strikers were accompanied by their pets: a beagle carried a little placard for “WOOFA“ and its owner’s placard read “Thank you, Prez, for this quality time with my dog!“. David comments that “one of the unexpected aspects of picket line duty was the way in which faculty - even AUFA colleagues from different parts of the campus, who might never have met before - were marching side by side, getting to know one another, and discussing everything from academic research plans to the best styles of walking shoes“. A little wagon was pulled along the line, distributing tea and Fair Trade coffee and home-made cookies. Passing cars honked and gave the “thumbs up“, and staff driving on and off campus rolled down their windows and wished everyone good luck. An impromptu acapella group sang “R-E-S-P-E-C-T ... just a little bit!“
Our team discovered lots of personal connections between Acadia and Guelph. Anna Migliarisi, walking the line as a picket captain, recounted her semester of sessional teaching in our Theatre program. Bernard Delpêche taught at Guelph in the mid-1990s and is now an Associate Professor of French Studies at Acadia. And Vlad Zamlynny recalled his Chemistry Ph.D. studies at Guelph. Vlad commented, “This is already my second strike. I grew up in Ukraine and I was always very skeptical about unions and strikes, but now I appreciate how important it is for faculty to have the ability to take collective action. Due to the last strike, our teaching loads were reduced. This significantly improved our research activities and positively contributed to the quality of education overall. This improvement was definitely worth two weeks of uncertainty.“
At 11 a.m., the faculty marched together through the centre of Wolfville and assembled in Clocktower Park for a lively rally. Each of the flying pickets spoke briefly, expressing solidarity with AUFA; most presented cheques to support the strike (UGFA gave $1,000). Acadia students came to the podium to offer expressions of support for their teachers. Afterwards, David was interviewed by Global TV News.
Back at the strike headquarters, faculty were lining up to collect their strike pay cheques, lunch boxes were being filled, and lots of planning meetings and discussion were happening. Sue and David quickly learned some practical things about a strike: It’s a great exercise opportunity - two solid hours of picketing and you've had a fine workout. Confrontations really don’t happen - at least, we never saw any or heard of any. And organization is critical: there are so many jobs to be done, from media relations and bargaining strategy all the way to coordinating lunches and renting megaphones. We learned that determination is the key. The membership must have solidarity of purpose if they are going to achieve successful collective bargaining.
In the evening, Sue and David joined about a hundred strikers and their families for a pot-luck dinner at the Wolfville Curling Club. The food was delicious and a faculty rock-and-roll band provided lively down-home entertainment. But the upbeat music did not hide the great concern felt by AUFA members about their loss of wages, the effect of the work stoppage on their students, and a gloomy realization that campus morale is deteriorating and faculty are starting to look for positions elsewhere. Driving back to Halifax on Saturday morning, rain was beating down and a fierce wind was blowing - Nova Scotia weather had returned to normal! David and Sue’s thoughts were for the AUFA members, who might soon be facing wet, cold, uncomfortable days on the picket line. We hope that Acadia management will soon return to the negotiating table with reasonable proposals that can bring an end to the job action and let academic life resume at the Acadia campus.
