Teaching Assistants' Association
UW- Madison
Current Campaigns
Bargaining
TAA bargaining unit members are currently working under an extension of the 2005-2007 contract, which expired on June 30th, 2007. This means that TAs and PAs still are working under contract, but the extension may be voided by either the state or the TAA at any time with 10 days' notice.
The TAA submitted its initial proposal for bargaining with the state in June 2007 based upon member bargaining priorities. The biennial state budget ran through June 30th, 2007 as did the TAA '05-'07 contract. After more than 100 days of operating without a state budget the State Senate and Assembly agreed upon a budget and it was signed into effect by Governor Doyle on October 26, 2007. The delay in passing a budget has affected the bargaining timeline for the TAA and many other public employee unions.
The TAA bargains directly with the state of Wisconsin, not UW-Madison, to determine the terms of employment. This situation has its disadvantages and advantages. On the plus side, the TAA and our parent federation, AFT-Wisconsin are able to exert political influence and lobbying pressure on state elected officials who have the ultimate control over the contract. One of the disadvantages of the bargaining with the state is that elected officials do not always understand the important roles that TAs and PAs hold at the university, or for that matter, don't fully appreciate the importance of UW-Madison to the state.
Once bargaining begins, members can have a direct impact upon negotiations by attending bargaining sessions or by taking part in actions such as grade-ins that raise awareness amongst the public and state officials of the situation. Furthermore, the ultimate decision of whether or not to accept the contract bargained by the TAA bargaining team and the state lies with the membership of the union.
Overwork Issues
Overwork Issues? Learn more about your rights and how to protect them!
Are you feeling overworked? Read on below for an excerpt from the TAA Contract on overwork issues. Before reading, note that it is understood that hours worked may vary above and below the hours appointed via appointment. The total appointed hours are for the semester, and if you feel that your work hours will exceed your appointment level over the course of the semester, this next bit is for you.
TAA Contract Article V Section 8.E
"...An employee who finds that the assigned duties appear to require more time than is allocated should immediately notify, and consult with, the supervisor or Department Chair (or designee), who shall reconsider the factors used to determine the amount of time expected. The supervisor and the department may direct either an adjustment in the duties or, pending approval of funding, an adjustment in the appointment level.
"An employee may submit to the supervisor or Department Chair (or designee) a written request that the duties required be revised. A response shall be made within one (1) week of the written request unless the employee and the department mutually agree to a longer period. If the employee is dissatisfied with the response or no response is forthcoming, the employee may file a grievance under Article IV of this Agreement. No such grievance will be considered unless there has been a prior written request to make an adjustment."
If you have further questions about overwork, contact the office.
Politics
The TAA Political Education Committee (PEC) is supported by member donations and works to educate members about and support pro-labor and pro-education candidates and issues. TAA members have also approved a general ideological framework in the form of the TAA Political Platform.
The spring 2008 elections are fast approaching. Not only will the presidential primary be occurring, but a very important State Supreme Court seat will be contested along with Dane County Supervisor races. To learn more about how you can help, visit the TAA PEC spring 2008 clearinghouse.
Union Solidarity
Madison and Wisconsin are steeped in union history and the labor community in the greater Madison area continues to be vibrant. The TAA is partnered with various labor organizations, from AFL-CIO to AFT to the Wisconsin AFT chapter, to the South Central Federation of Labor (the local AFL-CIO federation). With these groups, the TAA and its members work to advance pro-labor candidates and issues and support union and union organizing efforts in the area. If you are interested in becoming involved or learning more about the TAA's labor solidarity efforts, please contact the office.
University Policy
The University of Wisconsin - Madison works not only because the TAA does, but because the many different individuals and groups that make up the UW community work together and for the betterment of the university. There are many university policies that affect TAA members and the UW community and TAA activists are often members of various university committees examining new issues and policies. If you would like to become active on university policy issues, contact the office.
One university policy in particular has a direct and deleterious impact on the TAA bargaining unit, the tuition remission surcharge. The TAA won full tuition remission for all bargaining members in 1997. TA's and PA's also took a pay cut to receive tuition remission, which has worked out well in the long run as in-state tuition has more than doubled during that time, and of course, our stipends haven't gone up quite that much. The UW administration's attempts to solve its financial problems (related to graduate employee tuition remission) include making it very expensive for departments to hire PAs and RAs: departments are now paying $8000 per year for each PA or RA they hire, with guaranteed increases in the coming years as tuition rises. This move has resulted in the loss of 16% of PA jobs already (and an undetermined amount of RA-ships too), and is expected to result in even more job losses this year. It's bad not only for grad employees, but for the UW's research, and especially for departments that rely on PA-ships for graduate student support. So TAA members, along with faculty and other interested organizations, have joined together to fight this plan as part of the Coalition for Affordable Public Education (CAPE). CAPE is a collaboration between undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and other UW community members who are working to address the issues arising from the new fee. To learn more and to get involved, visit the CAPE website.