Threatened budget cuts
Dear Colleague,
As you know, on July 1, 2008, most articles governing faculty terms and conditions of employment under the old expired collective bargaining agreement pf 2001-3, including the layoff article, were superseded by new articles under a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed by the faculty union (UFF) and the Board of Trustees (BOT) last April and approved overwhelmingly by the faculty soon thereafter. Both the new layoff article (new Article 33) and the entire Memorandum of Agreement can be viewed on the UF Human Resources website at http://www.hr.ufl.edu/labor-relations/union.asp#uff or the UFF website at http://www.uffacultycontract.org/new/tentagreements.shtml.
Provost Glover has now apparently told college deans that the old contract the MOA superseded is back in effect and that in their planning for new layoffs they should follow its provisions. In the words of one dean, "I have been advised by the Provost's office that negotiations have been reopened on the layoff article, and that we therefore automatically default to the 'status quo.' In practical terms, this means that any layoffs would once again be guided by Article 13 of the expired Collective Bargaining Agreement."
What Provost Glover says is false. Last Friday, February 27, the BOT did REQUEST that the layoff article now in force be re-negotiated, and the BOT presented a PROPOSAL for radical changes to it. However, under Florida law, re-opening, or making any change in, an article requires the agreement of both sides, agreement that in this case the union categorically refused to give. Thus, since the union and the BOT have not agreed to re-negotiate the article, it remains in force. Neither side can change a contract unilaterally. That is the most fundamental tenet of collective bargaining law, the very definition of what collective bargaining means. Provost Glover's action is not only illegal, but it constitutes a repudiation of the right of collective bargaining guaranteed under the Florida constitution.
Provost Glover speaks of defaulting to the status quo. However, it is clear that since July 1, 2008 the status quo has been what the MOA says. The first provision of the MOA stipulates that the listed articles (one of which is the new layoff article) "shall be implemented and shall remain in effect pending final ratification of the complete UFBOT-UFF Collective Bargaining Agreement by the Trustees and by the bargaining-unit faculty." It does NOT say that the articles will remain in effect until one of the parties wants to renegotiate them before the Collective Bargaining Agreement is completed.
The legal situation could not be clearer: any article that went into effect on July 1, 2008 remains in force, regardless of what Provost Glover says. Any violation of any such article is subject to grievance, unfair labor practice suit, or other appropriate action and penalty under the rules governing collective bargaining in this State.
Let me remind you that at the time the MOA was signed, the administration pleaded, on the pretense of practical difficulties in implementation, to delay putting it into effect until July 1, 2008. Having received assurances that no layoff action would take place before that date, the union, giving the administration the benefit of the doubt, agreed. You all know what happened. The delay was used to lay off a number of faculty, some on the brink of receiving tenure. In some cases, even the provisions of the old contract were violated. The union continues to challenge these actions through the grievance and arbitration process laid down in the MOA. Arbitration rulings on these cases are expected very soon.
As has been clear for some time now, the administration is using the excuse of a financial emergency to re-shape the university in ways that it refuses to discuss openly with the faculty. It has now apparently decided that in executing its plan, it can thumb its nose at the law. It is important that we do not allow this to happen. I hope you will make your voice heard in whatever way seems best to you: this is no way to run a university.
I shall be writing to you again soon about what changes the administration wants to see in a new layoff article. I hope you will take the time to compare the administration's proposal carefully with the layoff article secured for you by the union under the MOA and. Doing so will tell you what life at UF would be like without the union.
Sincerely,
John Biro, President
United Faculty of Florida
238 Norman Hall, PO Box 117055
Phone: 392-0274
Email: president@uff-uf.org
