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 due to the post-but-not-really-post-pandemic era of fluctuating student enrollments only exacerbate lecturers’ precarious experiences.

Article 12.29b of our Collective Bargaining Agreement  governs the assignment of classes during the academic year (that is, in terms other than fall).  

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 coming term or if you are a department chair making class assignments of available work for this coming Fall 2023 term, we urge you to review Article 12.29 and contact your campus CFA chapter faculty rights representative if you have questions.

The primary difference between 12.29b and 12.29a (which governs fall terms) 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.

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 Fall 2023. On many campuses, department chairs are currently submitting course schedules for Fall 2023, so it is not too soon to make sure your entitlement is going to be met next term. 

Finally, be proactive!  Send your department chair an email with a listing of all the courses you are qualified and willing to teach and be gentle yet persistent if you don’t receive a reply.

Want to learn more? Become active with your local CFA chapter Faculty Rights team. Find your representative here.

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