UPEI Labour Relations Update: Conciliation continues with UPEI FA; conciliation requested by IBEW
The following update was also sent by email to faculty and staff on December 6, 2022.
The University of Prince Edward Island is committed to negotiating collective agreements that serve the broad interests of students and the University community for the long term.
UPEI Faculty Association
The University and the UPEI Faculty Association bargaining committees met with the assistance of a provincially appointed conciliator for two days on November 23 and 24, bringing the total number of conciliation meetings to seven. Some progress was made on key issues, such as EDI, but a number of issues still need to be addressed.
The University’s goal is to achieve a negotiated renewal collective agreement that reflects commitment to our academic mission.
The University continues to strongly believe that the best opportunity to achieve this goal is if the parties continue to meet with the conciliator. Further meetings with the conciliator are scheduled for December 8, 9, 14, 15, and 19.
IBEW 1928
The bargaining teams for the University and the IBEW local 1928, the union representing our more than 60 employees in the Department of Facilities Management, have been meeting since May 2022.
The union’s bargaining team recently advised the University that they have requested conciliation. In a letter received by University’s chief negotiator Brian Johnston on Monday, December 5, the Minister advised that a conciliator would be assigned effective December 14, 2022. Meetings are expected to begin in Winter 2023.
The University looks forward to the conciliation process and remains committed to achieving negotiated collective agreements with our outstanding employees, who are represented by five bargaining units in four unions: the University of Prince Edward Island Faculty Association, CUPE 1870, CUPE 501, and IBEW 1928.
We will continue to share information with the UPEI community by email. To see this and previous updates, please visit upei.ca/labour. If anyone has questions, please email labour@upei.ca.
