Unit 5 is comprised of Instructors in the Faculty of Education. The group overwhelmingly voted to unionize with CUPE on February 13, 2025.
Bargaining Update #3: August 16
Your Bargaining Team met with the employer for the 5th day on August 15.
There was agreement on a single article: Management Rights. The parties are quite close to agreement on the Leaves of Absence article.
Future bargaining dates are scheduled for September 15 and 17 at the International Centre at Brock. More bargaining dates will be needed in the Fall months.
Bargaining Update #2 – July 27, 2025
The Unit 5 Bargaining Committee met with the Employer for three days last week (July 23 -25). There has been agreement on additional articles such as Arbitration, Probationary Period, Holidays, and Health and Safety.
The union was successful in securing a Letter of Understanding that recommends that the Burlington Campus Joint Health & Safety Committee revises their Terms of Reference to allow for a Unit 5 rep on the committee (An Instructor who works out of Burlington).
The employer noted that their priority proposal is Preference in Instructor Hiring for full-time Ph. D. students. The Employer has also indicated that the proposal includes any FT Brock Ph. D. student who is qualified to teach in the Faculty (ex: Ph. D. students from the Department of Child and Youth Studies).
Conversely, the union has made it clear that we are not interested in Instructor Preference in Hiring. We are interested in having current members do Instructor work in the Faculty of Education.
Four future bargaining dates have been scheduled:
August 15, Sept. 15 / 17 / 22.
In Solidarity,
Phil Wachel, CUPE 4207 President (on behalf of the U5 Bargaining Committee)
Unit 5 Bargaining Update #1 – July 14th 2025
The Unit 5 Bargaining Committee (representing Instructors in the Faculty of Education at Brock) met with the Employer on July 11 to begin bargaining an initial collective agreement.
Both teams exchanged proposals and were able to agree on a number of articles on the first day of bargaining. For example, there is tentative agreement on:
– Seniority
– Duration
– The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
Unit 5 Seniority will be recognized based on first day worked as a FOE Instructor (ex: 2020 for an instructor who started working in 2020). As well, a Unit 5 member can have an absence from Unit 5 work for a total of 24 months before losing Seniority (also known as break in service).
As for Duration, the parties have agreed that this initial contract will be a relatively short one (2.5 years with the deal expiring on August 31 of 2027).
A Letter of Understanding was agreed re: The National Day of Truth and Reconciliation. A member would be able to request release from any work duties to participate in the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation.
Similar to what exists in the Unit 1 contract, the Employer has proposed Preference in Hiring for FT Faculty of Education Grad Students for Instructor positions. Preference in Hiring is a type of super seniority that places those people ahead of a member with a better seniority date. The Unit 5 membership will be consulted regarding this proposal so that the Unit 5 bargaining team has direction on how to proceed with this employer proposal.
There are four additional bargaining dates scheduled during the summer (July 23, 24, 25 and August 15). Fall bargaining for Unit 5 will happen on September 15, 17 and 22 with more dates being added as needed.
Bargaining:
The group is currently in bargaining for their first collective agreement.
Who is on the Unit 5 Bargaining Committee?
Phil Wachel (CUPE 4207 President)
Phil (in the middle of photo) has worked in the Faculty of Education as a Teaching Assistant since 2012. Phil has served on bargaining committees for Units 1, 2, 3 and 4. He is very excited about being on the Unit 5 bargaining team that is negotiating a first collective agreement for Faculty of Education Instructors.
Diane Newman (Instructor from EDBE)
I have been both an EDUC and EDBE instructor at Brock for the past 10 years. I have taught several courses as well as being a Practicum Instructor in the Faculty of Education.
My early teaching career was with the Niagara Catholic School Board where I was active with our local OECTA union. I then worked with the Ministry of Education coordinating Curriculum Summer Institutes which gave me the full picture of the needs of teachers in Ontario. In my last 12 years I was with our Provincial Teacher’s union, OECTA, where I gained more experience in the bargaining process, both from a provincial and local level.
I look forward to representing Unit 5 in bargaining for our first contract and will do my best to bring your collective needs to the table.
Dr. Neivin M. Shalabi
Dr. Neivin M. Shalabi served in the Faculty of Education for nearly nine years in the MEd program as well as several certificate programs, including the Master Preparation Certificate in Education, Cultural Fluency and Community Building, and Leadership in Community-Based Education.
Drawing on her academic expertise in experiential learning, she championed the pedagogy of service-learning, cultivating opportunities for her students to apply their learning in real-life contexts while addressing identified gaps in the community. Dr. Shalabi’s pedagogical approach not only fostered leadership development but also empowered students to showcase their talents in tangible ways.
Neivin’s unwavering dedication for teaching and the profound influence she had on her students were formally recognized through Excellence in Teaching awards, both at the Faculty level and university-wide through the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation.
Leveraging her passion for instructional methods, Dr. Shalabi collaborated with the Center for Continuing Teacher Education in developing and delivering pedagogical training programs to international educators from the University of Minjiang in China broadening the global reach of Brock University’s Faculty of Education and strengthening its partnerships with foreign universities.
Currently, Dr. Shalabi is leading a research team focused on exploring the impact of precarious employment on the well-being of contract-based faculty. She hopes to support the bargaining committee members, offering both lived experiences and theoretical insights to advance the pursuit of fair and equitable working conditions for this faculty group.