Grievance Calling For 30 New Full Time Faculty This Year
Last month, January, 2014, your Durham College union representatives presented College management with a grievance demanding 30 new full-time teachers.
In 2012, a grievance calling for 100 new hires was presented to college management. After meetings with college managers, a compromise was reached, and the grievance was settled with some hiring gains. That agreement has now run its course.
While Durham College has grown in recent years (in terms of student enrollment), the number of full time teachers has been stagnant. Current full time numbers are around 320, almost identical to the number from five years ago. However, the number of contract teaching positions has grown exponentially.
The number of partial-load teachers (who are part of the union membership) has also grown dramatically, now numbering more than seventy. Durham’s union representatives are fighting with every method available to protect these partial load teachers, including fighting for their job security, benefits, and preference in applying for new full time positions.
The most upsetting and profoundly unfair aspect of the past few years is the growth in sessional and part time teaching. There are now OVER 400 PART TIME TEACHERS at Durham College!
All faculty should know that our union representatives are doing everything we can to fight this trend toward contract and in particular part time teachers.