Hello to all our UW staff, and Happy Friday - it's pay day! I am still very grateful that our employer has largely been able to keep us all employed and paid while so many others are needing to navigate the supports being made available from our federal and provincial governments. I also understand that the scheduled pay increases set for May 1st are in progress and will be happening.
As you saw from the announcement this week from our President, Dr. Hamdullahpur, we are still contemplating an online course offering for the Fall. The UWSA and the Faculty Association are working together with the University administration to better understand how that will be implemented. We are looking for your input on any ideas or concerns you may have. Please send them to me at uwsapres@uwaterloo.ca and I will bring your ideas to our discussions.
I know that many of you are struggling with the challenges of child care, family duties and ageing parents while working from home. All three employee groups (UWSA, FAUW, CUPE) have been raising these concerns and it has been a topic of active discussion. For now, our best advice is to work with your supervisor to work out reasonable accomodations for your individual situation. We understand that supervisors have been very understanding in these times.
One of the issues we are also working on is access to the University for when you do need to work on-site. We agreed on a procedure that would allow more distributed handling of on-site requests - letting unit heads make those decisions, rather than putting demands on our police officers. We will also need to better understand procedures when we eventually ramp back up to working on campus. We are also concerned about the health implications of those working on-site.
With
regards
to
vacation
carry-over,
just
a
reminder
that
there
is
a
form that
should
be
submitted
by
May
1st
(next
Friday).
Try
to
take
days
that
you
can
to
get
down
to
10
but,
if
your
work
schedule
will
not
allow
that
right
now,
work
with
your
supervisor
to
document
your
situation.
Otherwise,
do
your
best
to
take
some
days
and
give
yourself
a
break
from
the
demands
of
work.
Thank
you
to
all
UWSA
volunteers
as
we
near
the
end
of
National
Volunteer
Week,
April
19
to
25.
This
organization
does
not
run
without
its
volunteers.
UWSA
has
over
100
(I
count
109)
dedicated
volunteers
serving
on
the
UWSA
Board
of
Directors,
as
well
as
38
UW
and
UWSA
committees.
UWSA
has
traditionally
recognized
its
volunteer
annually
at
an
Appreciation
Luncheon
in
June.
This
year,
we
may
have
to
find
another
time
or
way
of
getting
together
and
expressing
our
gratitude.
Many
UWSA
committees
are
meeting
virtually
during
Covid-time
and
continuing
to
do
the
work
for
members.
Bravo
to
them
and
thanks
to
IST
for
keeping
Teams
accessible
and
up
to
date
for
these
vital
meetings.
We
have
been
reaching
out
to
our
colleagues
at
other
U15
universities
across
Canada
to
connect
with
them
and
finds
ways
to
communicate
what
is
happening
at
their
institutions
and
look
for
topics
of
common
interest
and
concern.
On a more personal note, I understand how difficult in can be if you have a family member in the hospital or long-term care facility. My mother ended up in the hospital last week (not-Covid related) and it is very challenging when you can't visit and even calling can be difficult as the staff are very busy. I do have to say, though, that the staff at Guelph General Hospital have been excellent and very caring!
I hope you are all safe and well and have a well-deserved break this weekend. Looks like the weather is warming up!
Lawrence Folland, President