Monthly Archives: November 2024

NFA: Fighting for Faculty, Supporting Our Students

On 11/22, NFA introduced 11 new proposals designed to increase support and protections for faculty. Highlights include defining Seniority, expanding Benefits to include Child Care, standardizing Substitute Pay, and increasing Union Rights. This brings our total proposals to 22. CSN Administration has countered two proposals—on Union Recognition and the Savings Clause—and has introduced no new proposals of their own. Over the past year, CSN Administration attempted to redefine the bargaining unit to exclude some faculty members from union protections. NFA remains committed to ensuring all full-time academic faculty members are included with protections. No agreement has been reached on these articles.

A huge thank-you to everyone who helped stock the Coyote Cupboard! According to ASCSN, NFA’s recent efforts contributed over 1,000 items, showing our dedication to supporting students.

The CSN-Administration team, now led by Dan Corsi, expressed a desire to make progress on Article 1 (Recognition), which defines the composition of the bargaining unit. Our CSN-NFA team wants to clarify that eligibility for CBA benefits begins on the first day of employment. We worked together all morning to create a near-final version of Article 1 for their team to review over lunch. However, they returned with a series of proposed changes. After we found compromises for each of their suggestions, they caucused and came back with an entirely new set of proposed changes. We will continue working with them on Article 1.

Additionally, we introduced our proposed revisions to Article 6 (Faculty Contracts and Engagement) to acknowledge the B3 contract type, which is already outlined in NSHE Code for nursing faculty. We also presented a revised Article 11 (Temporary Full-Time Hires), with a key change to protect faculty who start in January from being excluded from compensation increases and adjustments such as COLA. 

On November 8th, NFA and CSN Administration finalized their Rules of Engagement for the negotiation process. They set a timeline for all initial proposals to be presented by January 17, 2025, aiming to wrap up contract negotiations by mid-April.

NFA kicked things off with several initial proposals, revising articles on Recognition, Non-Discrimination, Safety, Academic Freedom, Savings Clause, Work Out of Title, and Faculty Infobook. NFA also introduced two new proposed articles on Department Protocols and Furloughs. CSN Administration has yet to present any proposals.

In our 2nd bargaining session, NFA continued to work with CSN Administration on Rules of Engagement for the Collective Bargaining process. We anticipate these being finalized soon and will update you once they are. Starting next Friday, 11/8, we expect that each side will present its first round of updated articles.