Pro-Israel faculty members launch air raid on CUPE

By: Will McNair · January 7, 2009 · Filed Under Humour · 1 Comment 

Following an announcement by the Canadian Union of Public Employees calling for a ban of Israeli academics from Ontario campuses, Israeli faculty in Ontario have begun an intensive aerial assault. Casualties among CUPE members stand at roughly 300, with the number expected to climb.

Correspondents at the scene also report that faculty troops are amassing near the borders of CUPE headquarters, fueling speculation of a possible faculty ground assault.

In response to global uproar, pro-Israeli faculty leaders called the campaign a “perfectly proportional” response to CUPE’s continued attacks and offered no further comment.

In related news, York University students will return to classes tomorrow.

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CUPE Seeks to Ban Israeli Academics from Ontario Campuses

By: Contributor · January 6, 2009 · Filed Under International Law, Politics · 3 Comments 

In the latest idiotic move by CUPE, the union representing striking York University graduate students and contract faculty, the university workers committee will be lobbying in favour of banning Israeli academics from Ontario campuses due to the escalating crisis in Gaza.

Sid Ryan, president of CUPE Ontario, said that:

“Israeli academics should not be on our campuses unless they explicitly condemn the university bombing and the assault on Gaza in general. It’s a logical next step, building on policy adopted by our provincial convention in 2006.”

The previous policy that Ryan refers to is Resolution 50, which favored divestment and boycotting of Israeli and Israel-related companies (like Caterpillar and Hewlett Packard?).

According to a press release published on January 5, the union now seeks a ban on “Israeli academics doing speaking, teaching or research work at Ontario universities.”

Ryan, who failed to see the irony in his own words, told the Globe and Mail that:

“Attacking an institution of learning is just beyond the pale. They deliberately targeted an institution of learning. That’s what the Nazis did.”

The solution that CUPE proposes to this “attack on an institution of learning” is, of course, to attack academic freedom.

Prof. Costanza Musu, who presently teaches International Relations courses at the University of Ottawa, points out the obvious absurdity and academic harm inherent in CUPE’s position:

As professors we have a duty to teach our students to think autonomously, analyze information critically and listen to others’ opinions. As someone who teaches the Arab-Israeli conflict I cannot think of any more useful pedagogical tool than integrating in my classes lectures (as well are readings, or should articles and books be boycotted too?) by people from both sides in order to expose students to different points of view and narratives… I cannot fathom how I would be fulfilling my duty as a professor if I decided to stop inviting Israeli speakers and to prevent students from listening to them and form their own opinion.

…

What about those who might teach information technology, or neurosciences, or astrophysics? They would have to stand in front of their audiences and start their talk with a short speech in condemnation of the Government of Israel?

Prof. Emanuel Adler, chairman of Israeli Studies at the University of Toronto, echoes Musu’s concerns:

“Students should receive the message that the situation is very tragic for both Israelis and Palestinians, but the conflict and the violence should not be brought inside the university… If there is a place that some solution should come out of other than government it should be a place where creativity can lead to a peaceful resolution of conflict.”

The other problem with CUPE’s proposal is that they seek to ban academics on the basis of national origin. Fortunately, CUPE has no actual power to hire or fire academics on University campuses. If they did, this would smell like a human rights violation.

For now, this just smells like stupidity.

Say what you will about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; unions should stick to representing their workers,  not meddling in international politics.

h/t to Eivor Cormie at the University of Western Ontario.

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UWO Strike Averted

By: Lawrence Gridin · December 15, 2008 · Filed Under ADR/Mediation, Labour & Employment Law · 1 Comment 

A strike at the University of Western Ontario has been averted after the school reached an agreement with the union.

The bizarre union – International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 772 – is comprised of only 10 members. These 10 employees run the obsolete steam plant which heats both Western and University Hospital. They also keep the tunnels beneath the school nice and toasty warm.

An email was sent to Western students earlier this week to warn of a possible strike and to set out steps to help students avoid disruption of classes and transportation networks. Local 772 would have been in a legal position to strike as of midnight tonight.

Fortunately, Western News reports that a tentative collective bargaining agreement has now been reached, subject to ratification by the Board of Governors.

No word yet on York’s ongoing battle with its TA/Grad Student/Contract Faculty union. It’s an issue we’ve been following for some time now.

See e.g.:

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The Privileged and the Impoverished: Now One and the Same?

By: Contributor · November 10, 2008 · Filed Under Labour & Employment Law · 18 Comments 

The Problem with a Striking Union Claiming Poverty

The first full week of the York University lockout has begun and York Administration and CUPE 3903 appear to be miles apart. Among its demands, CUPE 3903 is asking for a marked increase in wages (an 11% increase over two years). Lofty ambitions indeed.

To preface this discussion, consider the following facts. The average wage increase for public employees was 2.6% in 2006. Currently the York administration is offering 3903 a wage increase in line with this average.

3903 is comprised of three units, and in its strike demand asserts that the units comprised of teaching and graduate assistants should receive wages (including grant-in aid and minimum summer guarantee) above the poverty line. 3903 uses the LICO measure as a poverty line indictor ($22, 653).

Let me be clear in stating that this assertion is not only incredibly insensitive but also misleading.

To clarify, 3903 expects a high-quality graduate education, to obtain a graduate degree (at no net cost to them) and to be paid $22,653 for their part-time work in the process.

Discussion of this topic could take many different paths. I could perhaps discuss the problems with using LICO as an indictor for poverty, or discuss the various problems and barriers when negotiating with a Union (which also includes contract faculty) which represents many varied interests. While tempted, my main assertion is that one must not confuse or conflate the respective purposes of education and employment.

Pursuing a graduate degree requires both academic excellence and some financial liquidity. While there is room for flexibility on both, graduate students are well aware that in order to study further, one must forego the prospect of full-time employment in most cases.

Graduate students receive income which not only covers the expense for their education but also leaves a lot of money left over for personal living expenses. Additionally, they receive a comprehensive benefits plan and frozen tuition that reflects fees from approximately ten years ago (after tuition rebate). How many other students can say they receive benefits remotely close to these?

Factors Indicative of Poverty

3903 claims they are living below the poverty line. The Ontario government and other anti-poverty agencies confirm that low wages is a key factor to families living in deepening poverty. To remedy this, Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy is to increase over time the minimum wage to $10.25 and to provide health and dental benefits to low wage workers. In contrast, 3903 members make well over $23.00 an hour and receive a benefits package that is unparalleled by many sectors.

According to the 2007 Report Card on poverty in Ontario, another key factor is the increased use of food banks by those under the poverty line. Have any members of 3903 begun to frequent these establishments?

This report also discusses the use of social assistance by many families who are under-employed or don’t have a job at all. Have 3903 members considered applying to receive Ontario Works? Since the Union asserts that their income is ‘below the poverty line’ meeting the financial criteria will be a cinch (sarcasm intended). They will have to establish, however, that they need money for food and shelter immediately, oh, and will also have to be willing to take part in activities to help them find a job.

N.B. You are ineligible to apply for Ontario Works if you are a single student receiving a student loan. The rationale behind this is probably that education is considered a critical pathway out of poverty that increases skill levels and access to better paying jobs. See A Poverty Reduction Strategy for Ontario for more.

The Union argues that the University provides funding and dissuades students from procuring external employment as is reflected in their contract. Taking that point to be true, it is virtually impossible to enforce and is a minor deterrent at best (for those in need of extra funds). Further, during the summer term they can very manageably work 20 hours/week, if not full-time, while completing their research, thereby significantly supplementing their income

My application of poverty indicators to 3903 may seem too extreme to address this Union’s demands. I must stress, however, that this is the reality of poverty in Ontario.

I invite those who read this post to weigh in on what they believe poverty to be. It is clear, that a review of the employment conditions of 3903 does NOT reflect true poverty. Graduate students are supposedly among the best and brightest in Ontario and will most likely receive higher than average incomes. By claiming poverty, they are distorting what society perceives poverty to be. In turn, this may lead to a desensitized view of the real and pressing issues of poverty in Ontario. Dissatisfaction with wages does not amount to poverty, and as such this line of argument should be rescinded from the message of CUPE 3903 immediately.

Sunira Chaudhri Second Year Law Student at Osgoode Hall

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