SMU Senate By-law now includes Part-time Faculty!
After years of perseverance by Karen Harper and other CUPE 3912 members (like Philip Bennett a few years ago, and Isabel Fearon and Erica Fischer more recently), the SMU Senate bylaws have finally been amended to allow Part-Time Faculty to run and vote for a seat on the Senate.
CUPE NS 2025 Convention
Convention was held last week on Sunday May 25 to Wednesday May 28. Thank you to all 12 delegates who helped campaign for Christine, shared many great conversations, and spoke in support of resolutions! We would like to thank Lachlan Sheldrick, VP NSCAD, and Karen McDonald for attending in place of two other members who had other pressing commitments.
Elections
Congratulations to Alan Linkletter, previously VP and from 8920, was elected as CUPE NS President. While we had hoped Christine would be elected, we are renewed and excited about the conversations we helped ignite and the connections we started building. Special shout out to Océanne Tardif and Ameilya Power from 4291 Adsum House, Jackie Rodler and Margot Nickerson from 4745, Sharon Hubley from 1867 and Kristin Welbourne from 5047 for joining us and making such a great campaign team!
Christine shares, “This campaign was about raising voices, building connections, and showing what bold, inclusive leadership can look like. I’m so proud of the team, the conversations, and other solidarity we sparked.”
Front (left to right): Jackie Rodler, Océanne Tardif, Lachlan Sheldrick, Ameilya Power, Christine Saulnier, Sophie J. Boardman, and Erica Fischer.
Back (Left to right): Alec Stratford, Julie Quin, Rena Alexander, Karen McDonald, Aiden Farrant, Lauren McKenize, Larissa Atkison, Wens Amezcua, and Margot Nickerson.
Congratulations to the folks elected to the following positions:
- Lauren McKenize, President, was elected as Alternate for Central VP
- Erica Fischer, VP PT SMU, new member of the Political Action Committee
- Larissa Atkison, VP PT Dal, new member of the Education Committee
- Sophie J. Boardman, Communications Officer, young worker member of the Global Justice Committee
The two resolutions we submitted passed with unanimous support from convention delegates. We are hopeful that CUPE NS will follow through with the support in the post-secondary sector and the Justice for Workers Campaign! Thank you to our delegates who spoke on the floor in support of these resolutions, and to Lachlan, Alec, Rena, and Océanne who spoke in solidarity and support of other resolutions presented!
Rally to Support the Home Care Sector
On Tuesday May 27 we all attended a rally in front of Sydney’s City Hall to support Home Care Workers. We were happy to stand in solidarity with these workers as they have been bargaining and without a contract for four years!
Samantha Williams, VP SMU TAs, Receives the Sean Foley CUPE NS Health and Safety Award! 
We are so proud of Sam for being nominated and awarded for her contributions for the SMU TAs fighting for accessibility and safety for all her members. Aiden Farrant (pictured and photo taken from CUPE NS), Recording Secretary, received the award on her behalf as he was one of the members who nominated Sam.
We also pledged to support the CUPE NS Solidarity Assistance Fund by contributing $500. All locals at the convention raised $14,500! We recognize how lucky we are to have been able to send 12 delegates and we hope our contribution will support smaller locals attending the convention next year!
Other News and Reminders
- allNovaScotia covers SMU in an article titled “Part-Time Faculty Win Say In SMU Senate”. In the article it states, McKenzie says it’s a big victory for SMU academic workers, particularly after recent cuts to course offerings impacted their jobs.
- Apply for the Nova Scotia Federation of Labour Bursaries. The NSFL offers six $1,000 bursaries to full-time students entering or returning to post-secondary studies. Applications must be received by the Federation office by Friday, July 4, 2025. Head to their website to fill out an application here.
Please send your story ideas, letters, articles, news, summaries, pictures and any relevant information for the Membership Spotlight to Sophie, Communications Officer, by July 1st, 2025