‘Reinvesting in our students’: U of A staff rally for raises, job security as bargaining enters 2nd year

University of Alberta instructors and researchers rallied outside campus Wednesday calling for better job security.

The Association of Academic Staff University of Alberta (AASUA) rallied Wednesday to mark a year since it began collective bargaining.

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AASUA members gathered outside the Timms Centre for the Arts in support of their negotiations team, who are currently in talks with the University of Alberta’s (U of A) board of governors.

Kristine Smitka, AASUA vice president, said the group will enter informal mediation later this month. It is asking for raises and for the U of A to reduce the number of short-term contracts going to academic staff.

Smitka said half of undergraduate courses are taught by instructors on short-term contracts who need to reapply for their jobs each semester.

“Those contracts are often only four months long, and often they’re coming to our members at the last minute, one or two weeks before the semester starts,” Smitka said. “That really puts a lot of pressure on those instructors to try to plan their courses at the last minute.”

The AASUA said the U of A puts less funding toward teaching and research than other comparable Canadian universities. Smitka said competitive compensation is needed if the university wants to attract and retain top researchers.

“By reinvesting in frontline teaching and research staff, it’s really about reinvesting in our students and it’s about reinvesting in the future of this province,” she added.

The AASUA wants to see the university divest more of its operating budget for what it calls “front-line teaching.”

The U of A said it cannot comment on specifics while negotiations are underway, but that it is “encouraged by the progress made so far.”

“Many items are currently in discussion, including compensation,” the U of A said in an emailed statement. “The university is hopeful that an agreement can be reached through negotiation as it always has.”

According to the AASUA, the board of governors has been “transparent” that funding cuts from the provincial government are impacting the negotiations by constricting the salary offers that can be made.

CTV News Edmonton reached out to the Minister of Advanced Education for comment but did not receive a response.

“The spark of learning burns bright at the U of A,” wrote AASUA president Gordon Swaters in a press release. “A failure to fund frontline teaching and research put it at risk. We’re rallying with one message for university administration and the government: support the spark.”

The AASUA represents about 4,000 members across five campuses in two cities, including academic faculty, teaching staff, librarians, researchers and academic administrators.