November 6, 2014
Dear members of AFT Local 3535 (TAUWP),
Regardless of the results of this week’s election, we must remain resilient. Our union must continue to grow in order to better support the needs of faculty and academic staff. It is more critical than ever that we work together to counteract the anti-education policies of Scott Walker and the GOP-dominated state legislature. We can only accomplish this through ORGANIZATION AND ACTION. It is no longer feasible for us to sit by and wait for someone else to fix the problems that face higher education in Wisconsin. We need to stand up for ourselves.
We owe our thanks to all members of Local 3535 who volunteered time over the past month to canvas, phone bank, drive voters to the polls, or staff voter information / registration tables. These include Ty Bender, Peter Blewett, Pat Goldstein, Mauricio-Kilwein Guevara, Carol Lord, Kristin Sziarto, and AFT organizer John Fleissner, among others.
This newsletter includes the following:
1. AFT Local 3535 News
2. Get involved: upcoming opportunities for action and participation
3. Summary of remaining events and dates for the Fall 2014 semester
1. AFT Local 3535 News
· Through the advocacy of 3535 member Adam Andrews, the English Department recently voted to increase the number of Academic Staff Senior Lecturer positions. This is a victory for retaining quality undergraduate educators at UWM and ensuring greater job security for this contingent of our instructional staff. Let us know of any updates regarding academic staff in your department!
· On Thursday, October 30, a meeting was held at the Riverwest Public House to discuss the bylaws for “3535 PAC,” the union’s new Political Action Committee. The bylaws will be finalized by the union’s executive board officers at the AFT-Wisconsin convention to be held in Green Bay over November 15-16.
· The second poster for this fall’s poster campaign will appear shortly. Following the first poster’s general introduction to the union, this poster will treat GPR. I will send a pdf of the poster out over e-mail and examples will also be available at the general meeting.
2. Get involved: upcoming opportunities for action and participation
· Our next general membership meeting is Thursday, November 20, from 6-8 pm. We will meet in Bolton B95, from 6-8 PM. At our September meeting, we challenged everyone present to bring at least one AFT 3535 member who was not present. We want to DOUBLE OUR ATTENDANCE at the November meeting. In order for our union to be successful its membership must be active, present, and engaged. Ideally, we should all be volunteering a minimum of 10 to 20 hours of service to the union (attending general membership meetings, representing 3535 at the Chancellor’s “listening sessions,” organizing through office visits, etc.) per academic year. Come to the November 20 meeting to learn more.
In addition to usual business matters, we will discuss the upcoming interviews for the position of UWM Chancellor. We had strong representation at the initial “listening sessions” held by the Search and Screen Committee. The finalists for the position will be announced around November 19, after which campus interviews will be scheduled. We need to organize in order to make sure that our voice is heard at the finalist interviews. The new Chancellor will be announced in mid-December.
“YOUR TURN” Op-Ed: Secretary Mauricio Kilwein-Guevara and I would like to announce a rotating section of our local’s newsletter, provisionally entitled “YOUR TURN.” This would essentially be an Op-Ed column. We’re looking for individual members who are willing to pen a 250-500 word mini-essay related to workplace issues, equity, safety, union building, education, etc. Please contact me if you are interested in penning a contribution. Photography / visuals would be most welcome!
3. Summary of remaining AFT Local 3535 events and dates for the Fall 2014 semester
· Second Fall 2014 General Membership Meeting:
DATE: Thursday, November 20
TIME: 6-8 pm
PLACE: Bolton B95, from 6-8 PM
· End-of-semester social at the Riverwest Public House
DATE: Friday, December 12
TIME: 4-6 pm
PLACE: Riverwest Public House
In solidarity,
Richard
*My thanks to Local 3535 Secretary Mauricio Kilwein-Guevara for his contributions to this newsletter.