Details about the recently-signed tentative agreement reached by faculty and administration at Acadia University will not be publicized after ratification.

The Acadia University Faculty Association (AUFA) had been dealing for months with snail’s pace ‘negotiations’, and little interest from the employer in addressing concerns of frontline academics. As ‘talks’ dragged on, AUFA leadership sought and received membership support for job action to assist their efforts at the bargaining table to reach a fair settlement. AUFA mobilized the membership with frequent negotiation updates, set a strike deadline of Monday, November 27, contacted each member, staffed information tables across campus, organized strike committees, and rented strike headquarters. After two rounds of conciliation where AUFA moved on some of its issues, the employer remained intransigent.

The Friday before the settlement, AUFA advised its members that the strike was “ON for Monday” and to show up for picket shifts. Following a 20 hour marathon bargaining session that went into the early hours of Monday, a tentative agreement was reached in time to avert job action.

Like AUFA, USFA is a member of the CAUT Defence fund, which provides a cushion for scholars across the country against this kind of bargaining brinkmanship.

We have sent our greetings to our colleagues of AUFA, and, in turn, they have committed to walking with us anytime we call.