December 2022 Faculty Association Statement from UFF-UNF

Elizabeth Brown, President, UFF-UNF

Good afternoon. 

Since the last Faculty Association meeting, UFF-UNF is thrilled to announce that the faculty and the Board of Trustees have ratified the new collective bargaining agreement that is now in effect. As stated in the all-faculty email from Carrie Guth on November 22nd, “University administrative offices are working diligently to process the salary increases for FY 2022-2023 as outlined in the CBA for those in-unit employees that meet eligibility requirements. In the paycheck dated December 16, for the pay period beginning November 26, each eligible faculty member will receive an increase to their base rate of pay equivalent to five percent (5%) of their August 8, 2022 base rate of pay; A retroactive distribution equal to 5% of the base rate of pay from August 8 to November 25; A non-recurring one-time payment in the amount of $1,000, pro-rated based on FTE, subject to applicable taxes and withholdings.”

Members of UFF-UNF are invited to the Contract Ratification Celebration tomorrow from 3-4:30 PM. Feel free to bring an in-unit colleague who is not a member (be sure to include them on your RSVP). UFF-UNF sent Punchbowl Invitations to your personal email addresses with an option to RSVP. If you did not receive an email (or cannot find the email) but are a member of UFF-UNF and would like to attend the event, please let me know, and I will add you to the headcount. We would love to see you there.

In other news, on November 9th, the Board of Governors approved a post-tenure review regulation (BOG 10.003) for the State University System (SUS). The good news is that although the public comment period on the regulation was set to close on November 24th, the BOG has extended the comment because of considerable public interest. The comment period will now close on December 9th. This proposed Post-Tenure Review regulation impacts all UNF faculty, regardless of status or rank, and even applies to SUS institutions without tenure. Based on the laws passed recently, this regulation aims to stifle academic freedom and weaken our collective bargaining rights. We all need to band together to defend our rights and protect the integrity of our higher education system. We are stronger together. We need all members, colleagues, family members, community allies, and business leaders across the state to organize to halt or amend this regulation before time runs out. 

If you need help getting started on your comment about the post-tenure review regulation, here are some ideas for talking points. Many faculty have pointed out that versions of post-tenure review exist in the SUS. Not only are faculty reviewed annually, but the contract outlines consequences for low evaluations. Tenured faculty can be disciplined/fired for cause. Other faculty have discussed how the Florida constitution states that the Florida government shall not abridge the right to collectively bargain. Another point discussed by faculty is how the academic job market sets tenure as a standard, which means that many highly qualified prospective job candidates will not apply to Florida institutions that do not provide tenure. The protections offered by tenure draw the best faculty to Florida. Florida’s ability to attract and hire qualified faculty members has implications for grant funding and research university status. Harming the tenure process will damage the entire higher education system. Other faculty have pointed out how public education is a public good that should not be subjected to political influence. Faculty have also discussed how academic freedom protects faculty’s research, teaching, and community service across the political spectrum and across areas of study. Some faculty have pointed out that the proposed regulation places the decision of whether to retain someone’s tenure into one person’s hands which is too much power and violates the long tradition of shared governance and peer review within higher education. I hope these talking points are helpful as you think about composing your public comment and encourage others to speak out against the post-tenure review regulation.

Additionally, after you make a public comment, please sign our UFF petition to protect tenure in the Florida University System and share the petition with others. I sent a link to the petition in my all-faculty email on Tuesday morning. We hope to gather signatures from both the public and the higher education community on a local, national, and international scale. UFF will submit the petition in mid-January. The final adoption of this post-tenure review regulation will likely occur during the BOG’s next meeting on January 24-25, 2023, at Florida International University. UFF-UNF will inform you about further collective action on this issue. If you are a member who would like to get more involved with this issue, please reach out.  

UFF-UNF members will not be left to weather the storms alone. If you are a member of UFF-UNF and need assistance with a work-related matter, please reach out if you need a membership form or have a general question.