December 1, 2009

At the General Meeting last week I mentioned that the university budget is likely to be a real challenge for 2010-2011 and 2011-2012. The current projection is that the government will freeze all post-secondary budget grants for that period. Considering inflation and other incremental pressures on the university budget (grid movement and benefit cost changes), and tuition rate increases tied to the rate of inflation, the message from senior administration continues to be that we will need to make budget cuts across the board of 5% next year and 3% the following year. Senior admin has practiced a high level of budget transparency and consultation in recent years, and there is every indication that will continue.

Still, cuts of this magnitude are significant and will have real effects. The budget development process based on these projections has already begun, and in the academic delivery areas a number of strategies may be proposed. These might include pressures on average class sizes, course fill rates, number of course offerings, full-time hiring plans, part-time faculty ratios, program admissions, student services, and faculty workload. On this last point, faculty work is measured by Scheduled Instructional Contact Hours (or SICH) normally on a 1:1 basis for lectures; there is also a contractual limit on the total number of students a faculty member may be required to teach in a year. There seems to be an acceptance by senior admin that average class size should be protected, but that will mean other factors will come into play more often. We have strong protection in the agreement for overall workload and student numbers, so if you feel pressure in these areas in particular please let me or another Exec member know the details. In a meeting last Friday I made it clear to admin that the MRFA will be monitoring the collective agreement implications of the budget closely and that we're prepared to protect those collective rights. Those academic decisions that fall outside the agreement may need to be fought at the department, faculty council and General Faculties Council level if they threaten the integrity of programs.

On a happier note, please join me for the Three Presidents' Christmas Party on the 21st (hosted by Dave Marshall, Maureen Bedard of the MRSSA, and me). And once the wave of marking ends, hope the holidays are a warm, joyful and restful time for you and yours.

David