First Collective Agreement - At Marianopolis, the beginning of a new chapter for teaching faculty

MONTREAL, May 6, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - The teaching faculty at Marianopolis College unanimously approved their first collective agreement at last night's General Assembly meeting.  Just two years after successfully unionizing in April 2014, this new contract represents historic gains for the teaching faculty of this more than 100-year-old private anglophone college situated in the Westmount neighbourhood of Montreal.

Among the gains approved by the union's members :

• clear, non-arbitrary rules for evaluating teachers ;
• an improved pathway to the status of regular professor ;
• a reduced workload for Math and Science teachers matching that of public CÉGEP professors ;
• faculty representatives on the college's Board of Governors elected by union members ;
• existing course releases for department and program coordinators were maintained and, in some cases, added ;
• rules governing disciplinary measures and a dispute resolution procedure in line with those found in other contracts in the FNEEQ's private sector ;
• clauses that assure parity with the public sector with respect to salaries, evaluation of teachers' schooling, and parental leave ;
• recognition of the union's rights and union representation.

For Elizabeth Arnot, president of the Marianopolis College Teachers' Union, the contract will have positive benefits for the entire college community.  "This is the beginning of a new chapter for our faculty. Thanks to the efforts of our members and our bargaining team, we'll start the new school year with an important improvement in our working conditions. And better working conditions for us are better learning conditions for our students."  

"There is a clear advantage to joining forces," said Caroline Quesnel, vice-president responsable for the private sector at the Fédération nationale des enseignantes et enseignants du Québec (FNEEQ-CSN). "In the private sector alone, we have added more than a dozen new unions in the past four years. It's due to the fact that teachers realise that we can negotiate better working conditions collectively.  This agreement at Marianopolis College is a perfect example of our ability to move the profession forward."

The union and the college's administration held 33 negotiating sessions, 12 of which took place in the presence of a conciliator appointed by the ministère du Travail. The contract will expire in three years.

The Marianopolis College Teachers' Union is affiliated with the Fédération des enseignantes et enseignants du Québec (FNEEQ-CSN), the Conseil central du Montréal métropolitain (CCMM-CSN), and the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN).

À propos de la FNEEQ-CSN
The Fédération nationale des enseignantes et des enseignants du Québec (FNEEQ-CSN) brings together 33 000 membres, in CÉGEPs, private institutions, and universities. The private institution sector includes 39 unions with more than 2300 members. The FNEEQ-CSN is affiliated with the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN).

À propos du CCMM-CSN 
A regional organisation affiliated with the CSN, the Conseil central du Montréal métropolitain-CSN brings together more than 100 000 members, in both the private and public sectors, from more than 400 unions in Montreal, Laval and the far north of Quebec.

À propos la CSN
Founded in 1921, the CSN is a labour organization that works to promote solidarity, democracy, equity and sustainability in our society. To those ends, the CSN actively participates in public debates of interest to Quebec society. It is made up of nearly 2,000 labour unions and brings together more than 300,000 workers who are represented by sector or profession by eight federations, and regionally by thirteen central councils, mainly in the territory of Quebec.

SOURCE Fédération nationale des enseignantes et des enseignants du Québec (FNEEQ-CSN)

Richard Hink, Conseiller, Service des communications de la CSN, Tél. [phone]