Colleagues,

Last night, the State Senate approved the SEBAC agreement and our collective bargaining agreement. The vote was 18-18 along party lines with Lt. Governor Nancy Wyman casting the tie-breaking vote to approve the deal. This was the final step in the approval process and concludes nearly two years of negotiations. We commend the Lt. Governor and members of the Senate that voted “Yes”.

This has been a challenging process from the start given the historic nature of the negotiations but with the hard work, tenacity, and efforts of the UConn-AAUP Negotiation Team, Executive Committee, and other key stakeholders in the Chapter, we have secured an agreement that benefits all members for the foreseeable future and maintains members’ ability to have a voice in their working conditions.

Even though the Senate vote concludes these historic negotiations, we must turn our attention to the future. We must be on the forefront to advocate for a budget that supports UConn, maintains collective bargaining, and benefits all residents of the State. We must be on guard against outside influences in teaching, research, and service that undermines academic freedom and shared governance.  The need to be involved in the UConn-AAUP continues to be great, and we urge you to ask us how you can help going forward.

The new collective bargaining agreement can be viewed online here. We will follow-up with you through our newsletter in the Fall regarding implementing contractual additions and changes.

Thank you for your patience in this process and thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

Michael Bailey

Executive Director

UConn-AAUP

7.25.17

Colleagues,

As previously reported, you and your colleagues overwhelmingly voted for the SEBAC Agreement (Yes – 93.9%) and the UConn-AAUP Collective Bargaining Agreement ( Yes- 94.7%) with one of the largest voting turnouts for the Chapter in recent memory.

On July 18, amid the budget gridlock, it was reported that state employees voted to approve their local contracts and the SEBAC Agreement (Yes -83%). The agreements have now been sent to the Connecticut General Assembly. The House chamber approved the Agreement on July 24 by a slim margin and the Agreement is now before the Senate where its future is uncertain. Many special interest groups are pressuring legislators to vote down the agreement and instead vote for an alternative that ends binding arbitration, increases pay cuts far above what state employees agreed to in the SEBAC Agreement, and eliminates negotiations over pension and health care benefits. (Binding arbitration occurs when an impasse is reached in negotiations and both management and the union must submit their “last best offer” to a third party independent arbitrator who selects only one party’s proposal to resolve the impasse. The union members then forfeit voting to approve the final contract.)  The Senate vote is expected on Monday, July 31.

We are calling on members of the Chapter to contact their local State Senator to encourage them to support the SEBAC package. In speaking with your State Senator, discuss with them that supporting this agreement is in the best interest of the State for the following reasons:

• It will save the State $1.5 billion dollars over the two year budget.
• Independent actuarial analysis confirms it will save the State $24 billion dollars over two decades.
• The alternative would yield to mass layoffs ranging from 10,000 employees to 15,000 employees.
  • This mass exodus from employment would have an adverse effect on consumer spending and economic growth.
  • At UConn, these layoffs at the University level would affect UConn’s ability to fulfill its academic and community mission.
• Approval of the agreement would stabilize UConn recruitment and retention efforts in an internationally competitive labor market.
• With each passing day these agreements are not approved, the State will not realize the full savings of the agreement.  Delaying approval is costly.

Please call or email your legislator. Time is of the essence to get this agreement approved. You can contact your State Senator directly by Clicking Here.

Sincerely,

Michael Bailey

Executive Director

UConn-AAUP