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We believe that responding to the provincial budget cuts by doing away with course lecturer positions is destructive to the educational mission of the university. It is sadly what we’ve come to expect from an administration that has increasingly shown itself to be penny wise and pound foolish, cutting programs that contribute to McGill’s growth and prosperity while adding layer upon layer of upper administration and management.

Course lecturers are teaching professionals that have consistently provided high-quality education and diversity to this university. Unfortunately, our role in the life of the university has yet to be recognized, particularly by this present administration which prefers a top-down approach. Our members are on the ground every day, and thus know the reality of the university. It is high time that we be invited to participate in the decision making process.

For example, our union only found out about the recently announced cuts in the Faculty of Arts indirectly, and after they were made. As Dean Manfredi has clearly indicated, these cuts will primarily affect course lecturers. Of course, we needn’t mention that students in the Arts will have less course offerings, and full-time faculty, who are already over-burdened, will have a heavier teaching load. If we had been consulted, we could have worked with Dean Manfredi to find a more sustainable and less destructive solution to his budgetary problems.

What is most infuriating about this recent news is that VP Finance Michael Di Grappa had promised AGSEM that he would consult with us and the other unions on campus before implementing any cuts. These recent events have confirmed for us that this consultation process is merely a means for McGill’s upper administration to save face, to provide the illusion that they are interested in building consensus on campus.  We will not participate in their dangerous charade, nor will we sit idly by as this administration hurts our members and harms our university.

“Après avoir annoncé aux universités des compressions de 250 millions $ sur deux ans, Québec leur permet de faire des déficits et leur donne cinq ans pour les résorber.

À deux semaines de la tenue du Sommet sur l’enseignement supérieur, le gouvernement Marois permet aux universités de déroger à certaines règles budgétaires auxquelles elles sont usuellement assujetties.”

Voilà l’article au complet.

Dear Members,

We would like to invite you to participate in a labour conference at McGill.  The inter-union council, a broad-based organization of labour and student unions at McGill, of which AGSEM is a part, is hosting a conference entitled Education at Work: Rethinking Labour in the Academy.

This conference explores critical questions relating to the intersection of labour and education in the university, questions that are particularly relevant to us, course lecturers and instructors. Details on the submissions can be found here: Education at Work: Rethinking Labour in the Academy.

Vous pouvez trouver la version française ici.