The Laurentian University Faculty Association (LUFA) and Laurentian University have formally ratified a new collective agreement.
On Friday, LUFA members voted 98 per cent in favour of the three-year extension to the collective agreement which expired on June 30. Laurentian’s Board of Governors unanimously ratified the agreement today.
“This agreement is good news for our employees and the entire Laurentian community,” said Dr. Pierre Zundel, Laurentian University's interim president and vice-chancellor.
“I want to thank both the Laurentian University and the LUFA bargaining teams for their hard work and co-operation. This agreement will provide our faculty with the stability and supports to continue providing our students with a world-class education, and will provide organizational stability as we finalize the University’s 2018-2023 Strategic Plan.”
The three-year contract extension will remain in effect until June 30, 2020. Under the terms of the agreement, LUFA members will receive a normative annual salary increase, and both sides agreed to begin discussions with regard to pension and workload equity.
“I want to thank both negotiation teams for their hard work in seeing this very tough round of negotiations through,” said LUFA president Jim Ketchen.
“We believe that both the Laurentian board and the university administration have heard the concerns of faculty and that in responding to those concerns, this agreement positions Laurentian University in a quite positive way to move forward in providing quality education and the production of very important research.”
Laurentian University and LUFA said in the press release they want to thank members of the bargaining teams led by Denis Hurtubise for LUFA and Geoff Tierney for Laurentian University, for their commitment and dedication to achieving a mutually beneficial agreement.
Classes will resume on Wednesday, Oct. 11 for students who do not have a scheduled reading week. All other students will resume on Oct. 16.
LUFA represents 373 full-time and 304 part-time faculty members at Laurentian University in Sudbury and Barrie.
