cupe3912webmaster We are holding information pickets on campus about the course cuts at SMU tomorrow: Tuesday 22 April from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM and from 1:30 PM to 3:00 PM.
The picket will involve handing out flyers around the more common spaces on campus that see higher student traffic during the exam period: Atrium, Loyola, and Homburg.
Please consider joining this action! We are stronger collectively.
Meeting place: outside Loyola 170.
Email Neil to let us know you are attending.
CUPE 3912 is in the news! Thanks to our SMU VP Part-time Faculty, Erica Fischer, for her work in notifying members of the upcoming course cuts at SMU. Around 80 courses have been cut in the departments of English, religion, history, and languages and cultures and will severely impact our members! See Erica’s poster below. You can read the full article here.
You can watch the accompanying video here.
CUPE 3912 is in the news! Thanks to our SMU VP Part-time Faculty, Erica Fischer, for her work in notifying members of the upcoming course cuts at SMU. Around 80 courses have been cut in the departments of English, religion, history, and languages and cultures and will severely impact our members! See the second slide for Erica’s great poster! You can read the full article here.
You can also see the accompanying video here.
The CUPE 3921 Executive has sent a donation and the following letter of support to PSAC Local 901, currently on strike. The union represents graduate students at Queen’s University.
The CUPE 3912 Executive has the following letter of support and a donation to CUPE 1656, the Regional Municipality of Waterloo outside workers, currently on strike. Another letter was sent to the Waterloo Regional Council calling for an end to the strike that satisfies CUPE 1656’s demands.
CUPE 3912 stands with CUPE Locals 2559, 5040, 2545, 40, 520, 3484, 3550, 4625, and 5543, currently striking in Alberta.
As precariously employed in the academic system ourselves, your colleagues and peers at CUPE local 3912 emphatically support your strike action. It is unacceptable that the government you are negotiating with is refusing to invest in its future by systematically and chronically underfunding its schools. We recognize the important work that your members do ensuring the safe and quality tutelage of our nation’s youth, and we support your struggle to ensure that your working conditions are as idyllic as the environments you seek to deliver.
Please know that you are not alone, and that across the academic sector and at all levels, your brothers and sisters in the labour movement are striving to improve our collective situation and shore up eroding rights for workers. Your victories are all our victories, and we are honoured to participate and support your goals and ambitions. Continue to fight back against unfair wages, improper working conditions, and systemic disenfranchisement.
ANSUT (The Association of Nova Scotia University Teachers) is inviting CUPE 3912 members to join their efforts to stop Bill 12, which has passed the 2nd. With a majority government, as well as recent changes to the Law Amendments Committee that may prevent any debate in the Legislature, it could achieve Royal Assent by next week at the latest.
As an overview, Bill 12 would give the Minister of Advanced Education unilateral power to:
You can read more about the dangers of Bill 12 here.
Please consider signing this letter prepared by ANSUT to have your voice heard on this critical Bill that could restrict the autonomy of post-secondary education in Nova Scotia.
The CUPE 3912 Executive Committee is proud to endorse CUPE 3912 member, Christine Saulnier, for CUPE Nova Scotia President.
Christine has been working at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives-Nova Scotia for 17 years, running everything from research publishing to budgets and fundraising. Her work has helped build this policy institute into the go-to progressive voice in Nova Scotia.
Christine teaches part-time at Saint Mary’s University and is an active CUPE 3912 member. In 2022-2023 she was a member of the CUPE 3912 SMU mobilization and strike avert committees. She has been extremely helpful in using her platform to raise awareness of CUPE 3912 efforts and broader issues of precarious academic labour in Nova Scotia.
More generally, she is active in the labour movement, having served on the NS Federation of Labour’s women’s committee.
Christine’s work and activism — through research and publishing, through the press, at rallies, and at legislative committees — have made her a trusted voice in Nova Scotia politics, and an advocate for policies that help workers and families. She has tirelessly worked towards a poverty-free province. Her leadership on living wage reports has shaped debates about affordability and has driven the conversation of how to make work better for everyone in Nova Scotia.
It is because of these efforts, experiences, and this dedication to workers and to worker-led movements, that we are happy to endorse her nomination for CUPE Nova Scotia president.
The CUPE 3912 Executive Committee has sent the following letters to the Alberta Premier and Minister of Education in support of striking education workers in Alberta school districts.
By JP Bourgeois
It should not come as a surprise that all our university employers are cutting back on part-time lecturers given their financial pressures. While the reduction in classes in the fall and winter term has been noted, this is likely to accelerate over the course of the summer and next fall. The fall 2025-26 schedules are already out for some departments, and the cuts are quite noticeable.
While it is not pleasant to know your course load may be reduced, proper planning is important. We invite you to discuss these with your department chair.
It’s important to know that in the eventuality of a complete loss of course load, you may be eligible for employment insurance (EI) benefits. Applying for employment insurance (EI) can sometimes be tricky for part time faculty, and that is why we are offering this guide to help.
Employment insurance is a federal program which provides benefits (money) to someone when there is a shortage of work (there are other reasons, but this is the main reason for a part-time lecturer to apply). Benefits vary in value, based on how much income and how many hours you worked in the past.
What will you need to apply:
A Record of Employment is a document that states how much you have earned over a period of time and how many hours you have worked (insurable). These are to be requested from the universities as soon as possible. Do so by contacting Human resources at each university:
These documents will be sent directly to Service Canada by the University (even if you don’t have your account setup in step 2)
Visit this page to set up your Service Canada account. Follow the directions to complete your profile. Note that for most applicants, you will receive a PIN code in the mail to then gain full access to your account. This can take time to receive and we would encourage you to set up the account before your contract expires. This would allow you to apply for EI immediately after the end of your contract. Waiting longer than two weeks can result in loss of benefits.
While there are many types of benefits, part-time faculty who have lost their course load would apply for regular benefits. Note that there is a category of benefits for schoolteachers which does not apply to university work.
Entering hours and wages from contract work is sometimes tricky. You will likely need to review your contract or contact HR at your institution to find out how many hours per week and at what hourly rate the institution renumerates the position. This varies considerably between universities, and is indicated on your ROE. Making a mistake is not fatal: if you do, contact Service Canada’s EI department and they will correct the mistake. Unlike other Canadian departments, the waiting time on the phone is usually very short.
After applying and getting approved, you will need to be actively looking for work and able to work to continue receiving benefits.
You are expected to be available and looking for suitable work. Click here to learn more about reasonable job search and suitable employment. Reasonable job search efforts involve activities like networking and updating your resume in addition to applying for jobs. Keep track of this activity as Service Canada can audit you for it for up to the next six years!
You will need to report any other money you receive while on EI; it is likely that it will be deducted from your EI benefits.
FAQ
I had a teaching contract from Jan- April at Dal, then 2 summer contracts from May to June at the Mount. I also received an offer of contract for September at Dalhousie. Can I apply for EI?
You most certainly can. Applying between contracts is completely acceptable. Simply ask for your ROE the date your contract ends and complete the EI application.