Contract Block Party
Category Archives: Union Strong
Chapter Election Candidate Bios
To better inform our membership, candidates for the 2023-2025 election cycle were offered the opportunity to provide a short paragraph or two about themself and why they think they would best fit the role they are running for.
President and Delegate
Brendan McGovern
Vice President for Academics and Delegate
Benita Roth
Vice President for Professionals and Delegate
Claire L. Kovacs
Treasurer
Alan Wang (Write in candidate)
Officer for Contingents
Renee C. Andrews
Byron Gittens
Academic Delegate Candidate Bios
Carl Gelderloos
Professional Delegate Candidate Bios
William Bellingham
Patrick Doyle
Lisa Gallagher
Courtney Ignarri
Donald Kunkel
Stuart L’Hommedieu
Troy Norton
Andy Morris (Write in candidate)
Casey Slocum
Alan Wang
Membership Organizing Institute
Membership Organizing Institute – the UUP Worksite Organizing Institute (WOI) in February 2023. UUP has worked closely with NYSUT to develop an opportunity for member organizers to receive tools and training to recruit new UUP members on campus. Member organizers participating in this one-semester opportunity will be paid a stipend for this work.
Participants will be trained on how to have effective organizing conversations with new hires and provided with worksite lists so they can contact non-members and give them a chance to join our union. Training will tentatively take place at the following locations on the following dates (we are in the process of securing exact locations within these regions):
Binghamton: Feb. 6 – 7
Albany: Feb. 8 – 9
Stony Brook: Feb. 15 – 16
Buffalo: Feb. 15 – 16
The training, technology, and guidance will be provided by NYSUT regional organizers and supported by UUP Organizers. You can sign up today by clicking here.
This program will support 25 UUP member organizers statewide and will run through April 16th. The member organizers will have the opportunity to visit colleagues at their own campus and colleagues at other SUNY campuses (except for Buffalo Center, which will only be visited by Buffalo Center members). To assist with proper Article 24 notification, Chapter Presidents and Labor Relation Specialists (LRSs) will be provided with the names of any members visiting non-members at the campus before their visit.
Space is limited! Registration will close on Dec. 16. Let me know if you have any questions.
Department Representatives
The UUP’s Binghamton Chapter is looking to expand its Department Representatives (Reps). As we prepare for contract negotiations, we must have an active and engaged Department Rep System to communicate essential information to and from our union members. It’s a simple way to take an active role in supporting your Union. Please consider becoming a Representative for your department.
Department Reps serve as the “face” of UUP to members they represent and are the Chapter’s “heart and soul.” Some other responsibilities include:
- Become better informed on contractional obligations
- Improve your working conditions by alerting UUP Chapter Officers of concerns regarding contract violations or other problems in your department.
- Facilitate two-way communication between members and chapter leaders.
- Attend Department Rep and General membership meetings to raise concerns, request information, and bring information back to your leaders.
- Have conversations with non-members about becoming union members and encourage members to become active in UUP.
- Help to ensure UUP signage on campus in every building/department.
To become a Department Rep., complete the Department Rep Contact Information Form.
In solidarity,
Alan
Unions + Contracts 101: a UUP lunchtime reading group
Interested in learning more about what unions are? Curious about the Contract as we move into negotiations this spring? Join us for Unions + Contracts 101, a lunchtime reading group.
This lunchtime book club will first focus on what unions are, how we can organize to build member-based power in UUP as we move into contract negotiations. The second part will focus on what our union contract is and why it is so important. Many of our members have likely meant to crack its pages to understand their rights as workers, but perhaps felt daunted by its legal jargon and length. Many aspects of our daily work lives are dictated by this contract, and we are on the verge of entering a new round of negotiations between UUP and New York State, so it is important for UUP members to have familiarity with this document in order to advocate for ourselves in the workplace and in upcoming negotiations.
It has three goals:
1) We can protect ourselves and our colleagues better when we know our current rights.
2) We are better able to gain wins in contract negotiations when our members have read and understand their current contract.
3) It is a chance for us to gather, break bread, and share social time with one another over lunch.
Please fill out this form no later than 2/9 to sign up to reserve your lunches and allow time to place orders for books. This program is only available to UUP members. Questions? Contact Claire Kovacs.
All meetings will take place from noon-1 pm (location TBD). All participants will be provided lunch, a paper copy of the current Contract, and copies of the three books generously provided by UUP.
SCHEDULE
February 16: Michael Yates, Why Unions Matter, Chapters 1 + 4
March 2: Jane McAlevey, No Shortcuts: Organizing for Power in the New Gilded Age, Chapters 1 + 2
March 30: Drescher, Scheuerman, and Steen, United University Professions: Pioneering in Higher Education Unionism, Chapter 6 + Introduction and Overview of the UUP/NYS Contract (with Chris Sielaff, Labor Relation Specialist)
April 20: Drescher et al, Chapter 7 + Conversation about Selected Contract Sections (with Chris Sielaff, LRS; exact sections TBD by participants)
May 18: McAlevey, Chapters 4 + 7