Faculty Rights Tip: Lecturers and Work Assignment During the Year

At the beginning of each new term during the academic year, teaching assignments for lecturers are often in flux until the last minute. It can be a challenging time for both lecturers and department chairs, and the uncertainties we face in relation to our still ongoing COVID-19 public health crisis only exacerbate lecturers’ precarious experiences.

Article 12.29b of our Collective Bargaining Agreement  governs the assignment of classes for faculty with temporary appointments during the academic year. (that is, after the fall term has begun).  

This article provides protection for long-term lecturers. The administration must follow the order of appointments specified in this article.

If you are a lecturer who has been told you may be losing classes in the Winter or Spring term or if you are a department chair making last-minute class assignments of available work, we urge you to review Article 12.29b of our CBA and contact your campus CFA chapter faculty rights representative if you have questions.

The primary difference between 12.29a and 12.29b is that lecturers on one-year appointments in spring terms have a higher preference for work than do term-appointed lecturers, which means that their entitlement base must be met before providing careful consideration to term-appointed lecturers. 

It is useful to know that lecturers with a three-year or one-year time-base entitlement have enforceable contractual rights. They must have their time-base entitlements met before any work is assigned to incumbent lecturers who are lower in the preference-for-work order.

With fluctuating enrollments and uncertain budgets upon us, be a vigilant guardian of your entitlement rights, and contact your campus CFA faculty rights representative if you have questions about your entitlement rights for Winter or Spring 2023.

Want to learn more about these new provisions in the CFA? Become active with your local CFA chapter Faculty Rights team. Find your representative here.

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