YUFA Updates & Reminders (October 17, 2024)

There are six (6) updates and reminders YUFA members should be aware of, covering the following issues:

  1. YUFA stands in solidarity with the more than 200,000 international student graduates in Canada facing deportation
  2. The Discover York Academics (DYA) initiative (formerly known as eCV)
  3. The Centre for Sexual Violence Response, Support & Education invites community members to join in hosting events during the 16 Days of Activism beginning November 10, 2024
  4. CAUT Survey of Indigenous academic staff members’ experiences at post-secondary institutions
  5. Faculty, Librarians/Archivists and PDVs are invited to complete an online survey for a study entitled “Queering the Academy: Experiences of 2SLGBTQ+ Academics in Canadian Higher Education.”
  6. October 30, 2024 YUFA Members’ Zoom drop-in session

 

1. YUFA stands in solidarity with the more than 200,000 international student graduates in Canada who face deportation because their post-graduation work permits (PGWPs) are expiring in 2024-25. They have been working at essential jobs for the last 5-7 years during COVID; federal immigration policy allowed international students to work and facilitated permanent residency for most graduates. Recently, the federal government suddenly changed eligibility criteria and closed pathways to permanent residency just as students graduated and became eligible. The government, so to speak, changed the rules of the game in the middle of the match. Many York students are among those affected.

Besides meeting with politicians and holding community meetings for months, PGWP organizers have begun a 24/7 protest and encampment at 295 Queen St. East in Brampton, with rallies every Sunday afternoon. Their activism is receiving international press and social media attention.

YUFA members and supporters from other unions have participated in the Sunday afternoon rallies and are always welcome to join.

 

2. The Discover York Academics initiative (DYA, formerly eCV) is a joint initiative between the Employer and faculty members (YUFA members). DYA is an electronic curriculum vitae (eCV) tool for faculty, librarians and archivists to centrally host their academic and professional accomplishments in one online profile. Five YUFA colleagues currently sit on the 2024/25 DYA Governance Advisory Committee.

The YUFA Collective Agreement includes this specific section, Art. 22.07:

The Employer shall be entitled to use in the course of its normal academic business data contained in the curricula vitae of employees, subject to the employee’s agreement as to those portions of their curriculum vitae which may be so used. It is agreed that the employee’s agreement is not required for the Employer to use aggregate data to track and analyze trends in research and teaching. For the purpose of this Article, aggregate data will comprise the CV data of no fewer than nine employees. Employees shall, at the request of the Dean/Principal or designate, update and provide to the Dean/Principal or designate annually their curricula vitae, which shall include a statement of current research interests. The failure to do so by 1 May in a given academic year may result in the withholding of Progress-through-the-Ranks under Article 25.04 until such time as an updated curriculum vitae is submitted.

That’s the only requirement that YUFA members need to comply with regarding sharing their resume or CV. 

In other words, participation in Discover York Academics (DYA, formerly eCV) is entirely the prerogative of faculty members.We are under no obligation to use it. At the time of writing, there are 114 public profiles on Discover York Academics (DYA). Of these, at least a dozen are from Deans. The adoption rate for YUFA members is less than 6% at this stage.

One of the main concerns we have heard from members relates to data privacy. There were extensive discussions about that specific aspect between YUFA and the DYA team over the summer of 2024, through JCOAA (the Joint Committee for the Administration of the Collective Agreement). A meeting has been scheduled for the DYA team to come and discuss this with YUFA at the JCOAA table. This meeting will take place on Nov. 26th. 

For the time being, relevant information can be found in the FAQs section on the  DYA YU Link webpage (PPY credentials required). If you have specific questions or concerns that are not covered in the posted DYA information and documents, please let our JCOAA representatives know by writing to [email protected].

During the last round of Collective Agreement negotiations, YUFA and the Employer agreed to establish a Joint Working Group on Data Privacy to discuss policies related to the collection, usage, retention, and destruction of employees’ personal information. The working group will report to JCOAA. If you are interested in being part of this working group, please email [email protected].

 

3. The Centre for Sexual Violence Response, Support & Education at York University is inviting York departments and community members to join in hosting events for the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, an international campaign running from November 25 (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to December 10 (Human Rights Day). This campaign raises awareness and advocates for change to combat violence against women. If you're interested in hosting an event, please let the Centre know by Monday, October 21. They will add your event to their campaign calendar and market it to the entire community. [This information comes from a York centre, not from YUFA.]

 

4. The Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) is conducting a survey of Indigenous academic staff members’ experiences at post-secondary institutions. This survey aims to understand Indigenous academic staff members’ academic pathways and experiences on campuses across Canada. More information can be found here.

 

5. Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan are recruiting post-secondary instructors, researchers, and staff to complete an online survey for a study entitled “Queering the Academy: Experiences of 2SLGBTQ+ Academics in Canadian Higher Education.” The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences of 2SLGBTQ+ post-secondary instructors and researchers in Canada. In particular, the researchers are looking to recruit current instructors/researchers who identify as gender and/or sexually diverse (e.g., trans, nonbinary, Two Spirit, lesbian, queer).

If you are eligible to participate and interested in participating, you would be asked to complete an online survey containing both demographic questions and questions related to your experience as a 2SLGBTQ+ person working in a higher education setting. All survey data will be recorded anonymously and reported in aggregate form.

The survey can be accessed here: https://www.surveymonkey.ca/r/QLIG 

 

6. The next YUFA Members’ Zoom drop-in session is Wednesday, October 30, from 12:00 noon to 1:00pm. The topic for the session is “Teaching Stream and Special Renewable Contact (SRC) colleagues’ issues.” All members are invited to attend. The Zoom link can be found in the YUFA-M message sent October 17, with subject line YUFA updates and reminders (October 17, 2024)