NATIONAL CENTER
for the Study of Collective Bargaining in Higher Education and the Professions
E-Note
Follow Us on Twitter @HigherEd_CB for News from Around the Country
May 2019
The National Center E-Note is a monthly electronic newsletter containing research and analysis relevant to unionization and collective bargaining in higher education and the professions.

In this issue:

  1. National Center Regional Conference, December 6-7, CSU Long Beach
  2. Call for Papers: 2020 National Center Annual Conference
  3. Annual NYU Conference on Labor, June 13-14, 2019 in New York City
  4. Occidental College: SEIU Certified to Represent Faculty Unit
  5. Lake-Sumter State College: Adjunct Faculty Vote to Unionize
  6. Mercy College: Adjunct Faculty Vote in Favor of SEIU Representation
  7. South Florida State College: Adjunct Faculty Vote Against Unionization
  8. Univ. of New Mexico: Faculty Representation Elections to be Scheduled
  9. NLRB Announces Intent To Do Rulemaking for Student Employees
  10. Bloomsburg Univ.: Professor Reinstated after Relations with Students
National Center Regional Conference December 6-7, CSU Long Beach
Register Now

Regional Conference on Higher Education
Collective Bargaining and Labor Relations
 
T he National Center will be holding another regional conference in California on December 6-7, 2019 at California State University, Long Beach.

Keynote Speaker : Ruben J. Garcia , Assistant Dean for Faculty Development and Research at University of Nevada, Las Vegas, William S. Boyd School of Law. Professor Garcia is a specialist in labor and employment law, law and social change, immigration policy, and international human rights law.

Register now for the regional conference.

T he following is a preliminary list of subjects to be examined at the regional conference:
 
· Sexual Harassment in the Sciences: Developing Solutions
 
· Do Adjunct Faculty Have Academic Freedom?
 
· Academic Student Workers and Immigration Status
 
· Bargaining for the Common Good in Higher Education
 
· Negotiations Under Janus -Related Changes in California Law
 
· Best Practices in Bargaining Impasse Procedures
 
· Current Community College Labor-Management Issues

· Best Practices in Investigating and Defending Against Discipline

Call for Papers: 2020 National Center Annual Conference
The National Center has issued a Call for Papers for our 47th annual labor-management conference on March 29-31, 2020 in New York City.  
 
The theme of the conference will be Inequality, Collective Bargaining, and Higher Education.
 
We welcome proposals involving recent research as well as proposals by authors of recently published books relevant to higher education, inequality, collective bargaining, labor relations, or labor history. 
 
Those interested in proposing a panel or workshop should upload an abstract by September 6, 2019 to 2020 Abstract Dropbox that includes a title and description along with a list of invited participants including their title, affiliation, and contact information. Questions concerning the call for papers should be emailed to 2020 National Center Annual Conference . 

Proposed Topics for Papers and Presentations

We seek proposed papers and presentations on relevant and timely topics including but not limited to the following: 
 
The Financing of Higher Education 
 
Negotiating Over Student Debt 
 
Pell Grants, College Affordability, and Inequality   
 
Resolving Accommodation Issues for Faculty, Staff, and Students  
 
Diversity: Best Practices for Faculty and Administrators 
 
Affirmative Action in Higher Education in the 21st Century    
 
Recruitment and Retention of Latina/Latino Faculty and Administrators 
 
Collective Bargaining Over Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation 
 
Higher Education, Immigration Status, and Enforcement 
 
Bargaining Over Wage Disparities on Campus 
 
Community College Collective Bargaining Issues 
 
W.E.B. Du Bois, Higher Education, and Labor  
 
Investigating and Handling Cases Involving Discipline 
 
Processing and Determining Contract Grievances 
 
Health and Safety: Best Practices on Campus  
 
Bargaining Over School Consolidations and Closures 
 
Non-NLRB Procedures for Private Sector Representation
 
Contingent Faculty, Job Security, and Academic Freedom   
  
Graduate Student Employee Unionization and Collective Bargaining 
 
The Meaning and Implications of the Strike Wave of 2018-19 for Higher Ed 
 
The Duty of Fair Representation in Faculty and GSE Representation  
  
New Developments and Research in Online Learning 
 
Collective Bargaining and Professional Employees 

Labor-Management Relations Involving Public/Private Partnerships 
 
Free Speech, Activism, and Controversies on Campus 

Proposed Topics for Interactive Workshops

We seek interactive workshop proposals for the 2020 annual conference. The following are some proposed topics:
 
Collective Bargaining for Administrators with New Bargaining Units 
 
Digital Technology for Union Membership Mobilization
 
Best Practices for Handling Employee Sexual Harassment Claims  
 
Leadership Training for Campus and Union Leaders 
 
Preparing and Presenting Grievances in Arbitration 
 
Developing Student Debt Clinics on Campus 
Annual NYU Conference on Labor, June 13-14, 2019
Our friends at the NYU Center on Labor and Employment Law will be holding the 72nd Annual NYU Conference on Labor on June 13-14, 2019 in New York City. The title is
Artificial Intelligence & Automation: Impact on Work and Workers.

The NYU Labor Center has generously offered a special 60% conference discount to National Center annual conference attendees and related contacts. To receive the special discount use the promo code NATLCENTER when registering for the NYU conference.

The conference will be held at NYU School of Law, Lipton Hall, 108 West Third Street in Manhattan.
Occidental College: SEIU Certified to Represent Adjunct Unit
Occidental College, NLRB Case No. 31-RC-238837

On April 1, 2019, SEIU filed a petition with the NLRB seeking to represent a unit of 112 non-tenure track full-time and part-time faculty employed by Occidental College in Los Angeles.

On May 14, 2019, the NLRB conducted a tally of ballots, which demonstrated that 112 faculty voted in favor of SEIU representation and 16 voted against. As a result of the election, SEIU was certified to represent the faculty unit

The following is the new faculty bargaining unit at Occidental College:

Included : All non-tenure track full-time and part-time faculty in the following classifications: professor, associate professor, assistant professor, instructor, professor of practice, and adjunct professor.

Excluded: All other employees; department chairs; temporary employees; and managers, guards, and supervisors as defined by the Act.
Lake-Sumter State College: Adjunct Faculty Vote to Unionize
Lake-Sumter State College , FPERC Case No. RC-2018-042

On April 30, 2019, the Florida Public Employees Relations Commission conducted a tally of ballots concerning a representation petition by SEIU seeking to represent a unit of approximately 56 part-time adjunct faculty employed by Lake-Sumter State College. The tally demonstrated that 23 faculty members voted in favor of representation and 5 voted against.

The following is the at-issue faculty unit at Lake-Sumter State College:

Included: All part-time adjunct instructors employed at Lake-Sumter State College who teach at least one course at any of the following locations: Leesburg Campus, South Lake-Clermont Campus, or Sumter Campus.

Excluded: All tenured and tenure-track faculty, full time faculty, employees covered by an existing collective bargaining agreement, faculty who teach only online courses, full-time employees of the College who also teach a class as an adjunct instructor, administrators, guards, all supervisory, managerial, and confidential employees, and all other employees of Lake-Sumter State College.
Mercy College: Adjunct Faculty Vote in Favor of SEIU Representation
Mercy College, NLRB Case No. 02-RC-238065

On May 14, 2019, the National Labor Relation Board issued a tally of ballots in a representation case filed by SEIU seeking to represent a unit of 853 full-time and part-time adjunct faculty, lecturers, and tutors at Mercy College in New York. The tally demonstrated that 406 faculty voted in favor of representation and 100 voted against. As a result of the election, SEIU was certified to represent the unit on May 24, 2019.

The following is the new faculty unit at Mercy College:

Included: All full-time and part-time Adjunct Faculty, Lecturers, and Tutors, at all Mercy College locations, including any employees who may hold another position with the college but who also teach as adjuncts and are not excluded.

Excluded: All other employees, including managerial employees, guards and supervisors as defined by the Act.
South Florida State College: Adjunct Faculty Vote Against Unionization
South Florida State College Board of Trustees , FPERC Case No. RC-2018-044

On April 30, 2018, the Florida Public Employees Relations Commission conducted a tally of ballots concerning a representation petition by SEIU seeking to represent a unit of approximately 175 part-time adjunct faculty employed South Florida State College The tally demonstrated that 68 faculty members voted against having union representation and 37 voted in favor.

The following is the at-issue unit at South Florida State College:

Included: All part-time adjunct faculty employed by South Florida State College who teach at least one course at any of the following locations: Highlands Campus, DeSoto campus, Hardee campus, or Lake Placid Center.

Excluded: All tenured and tenure-track faculty, full time faculty, employees covered by an existing collective bargaining agreement, faculty who teach only online courses, instructors for trainings operated by the Southeastern Public Safety Institute, full-time employees of the College who also teach a class as an adjunct instructor, administrators, guards, all supervisory, managerial, and confidential employees, and all other employees of South Florida State College.
Univ. of New Mexico: Faculty Representation Elections to be Scheduled
According to a media report , an agreement has been reached between the University of New Mexico and AAUP-AFT for the scheduling of an election with respect to agreed-upon faculty units at the University of New Mexico. The election will take place during the Fall 2019 semester.

On May 13, 2019, the University of New Mexico posted a notice setting forth two agreed-upon faculty bargaining units that exclude many positions originally sought in the original representation petition . One bargaining unit is composed of full-time professors and other faculty but excludes department chairs. A second bargaining unit includes only adjunct faculty.

The following are the two agreed-upon faculty bargaining units at the University of New Mexico:

Faculty with the following titles: Professor; Professor of Practice; Assistant Professor; Associate Professor; Research Professor; Research Assistant Professor; Research Associate Professor; Lecturer I, II and III; Principle Lecturer I, II and III; Research Lecturer I, II and III; Research Lecturer I, II and III; Senior Instructor; and Instructor employed at the Main Campus in Albuquerque and the branch campuses in Gallup, Taos, Los Alamos and Valencia County, excluding Department/Division Chairs, Department Directors, all Visiting Faculty, Working Emeritus and all faculty positions at the Health Sciences Center.

Adjunct faculty employed at the Main Campus in Albuquerque and the branch campuses in Gallup, Taos, Los Alamos and Valencia County.
NLRB Announces Intent To Do Rulemaking for Student Employees
On May 22, 2019, the National Labor Relations Board issued a notice identifying four subject-matter priorities for future rulemaking including the status of student employees under the National Labor Relations Act.

The other three important subjects identified by the NLRB are: the representation case procedures that were instituted a few years ago; the current standards for blocking charges, voluntary recognition, and the formation of bargaining relationships in the construction industry; and the standards for union access to an employer's private property.

The recent notice sets forth the agency's intent for the future; it does not constitute the formal commencement of federal rulemaking. Notably, the announcement is consistent with NLRB Chairman John F. Ring's expressed desire to utilize rulemaking, instead of a case by case approach, to provide clarity and guidance concerning particular issues. In September 2018, the NLRB commenced the rulemaking process to determine the standard for determining a joint-employer relationship.
Bloomsburg Univ.: Professor Reinstated after Relations with Students
On May 16, 2019, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court issued a decision denying a petition by the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education seeking to vacate an arbitration award that reinstated Bloomsburg University professor John Barrett. Barrett was terminated after the university learned that he had had consensual sexual relationships with two former students.

Following a hearing on Barrett's grievance challenging the discharge, an arbitrator ruled that he should be reinstated because his conduct did not violate the university's policies. Specifically, the arbitrator found that the university did not prohibit consensual sexual or romantic relations between a professor and a former student.

On appeal, the court rejected the university's argument that the arbitration award should be vacated because it violated the public policy against sexual harassment. The court noted that consensual relationships between professors and former students were not prohibited by the school's policies. Furthermore, it was unpersuaded by the university's argument that some of Barrett's alleged conducted constituted criminal behavior.
National Center for the Study of Collective Bargaining
in Higher Education and the Professions
Hunter College, City University of New York
425 E 25th St.
Box 615
New York, NY 10010
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