Daily Egyptian

Page 1

DE Since 1916

Daily Egyptian THURSDAY, JANUARY 22, 2015 VOLUME 99 ISSUE 4

By the numbers

6

Days on strike

18

Months Faculty Association worked without contract

2k

Employees would recieve money if SIU does not appeal

Total to be paid

$1.9M

Key People:

S arah G ardner • d aily e Gyptian In this file photo from Nov. 7, 2011, supporters of the Faculty Association march through the Agriculture Building during a student-organized rally march across campus. Students, faculty, members of Occupy Carbondale and community members joined the crowd as they made stops around campus.

Lawsuit appeal deadline Thursday Effects of 2011 strike could now reach SIU

Glenn Poshard former president

Luke Nozicka

@LukeNozicka | Daily Egyptian

The university has until Thursday to appeal an Illinois Education Association’s unfair labor practice lawsuit against SIU’s former administration. If it does not appeal, SIU would have to pay nearly $1.9 million to about 2,000 current and former employees. According to the ruling, the administration at the time–President Glenn Poshard and Chancellor Rita Cheng–acted unfairly in contract negotiations, resulting in a six-day strike and four furlough days in 2011. On Wednesday, President Randy Dunn met with the SIU Board of Trustees executive committee–Chairman Randal Thomas, Vice-Chairwoman Donna Manering and

Rita Cheng

former chancellor

What we don’t know: If no appeal, how will the university pay for the furlough days? When would employees receive the money owed to them?

July & October 2012

April 2010

Non-Tenure Track Faculty Association recieves notices of possible layoffs.

Contract negotiations begin ahead of contract’s end in July.

Secretary Don Lowery–in Edwardsville for a special meeting to discuss the situation. “No action from the meeting today,” Dunn wrote in a text message. “Announcement anticipated [Thursday] to be released by campus through Rae [Goldsmith, the university’s spokeswoman.]” In August, Poshard said the university was facing a severe fiscal crisis at the time and relied on Cheng’s assessment of the situation. “She felt like she had a good handle on the finances on campus there at the time and it was something we needed to do,” said Poshard, who retired in April. “[Association of Civil Service Employees] had every right to protest that and to put their case before the court, and apparently that’s what they did and they won and the university will have to pay them for that time they forfeited.”

IEA Uniserv Director Bret Seferian said negotiating with Dunn’s administration is much better because it actually tries to bargain with faculty. “It’s like night and day,” he said. “The attitude of the administration has changed a great deal. … The current administration gets it.” Jim Wall, president of the Non-Tenure Track Faculty Association, which represents more than 600 employees at the university, said furloughing teachers hurts the university as a whole, not just employees. “Imagine an undergraduate or graduate student going to class one day only to find our their professor has been furloughed and they have a sub for four days,” Wall said in an August interview. “It’s not just about us and our pocket books, it is also about the students.” See page 3 for a union breakdown

August 2014

Judge Colleen Harvey, of the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board, found the administration at the time “lacked an open mind and a sincere desire to reach agreement,” and “did not demonstrate any interest in working with the unions.”

Thursday

President Randy Dunn anticipates SIU spokeswoman Rae Goldsmith will make an announcement regarding the lawsuit.

Nov. 9, 2011 Agreement is reached.

2010

2015

July 2014

Nov. 3, 2011

Faculty Association begins strike.

Nov. 30, 2011

Faculty Association votes on contract agreement.

University must pay nearly $2 million to 1,500 employees for four unpaid furlough days in 2011.

December 2014 Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board unanimously agrees with 2011 ruling.


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.