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Grant-Funded Positions and Union Representation
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any non-union UVM employees work in positions that are funded by external grants. This is especially the case for Laboratory Research Technicians and Biomedical Equipment Technicians. Collective bargaining with UVM will give you and your co-workers the ability to strengthen both your individual employment position and your department’s or laboratory’s role in the University. Throughout the United States, there are unionized public workers in health care, medical research and higher education who are grant funded. They have specific provisions in their contract and other agreements negotiated between employees and the employer to meet the needs of their profession. In Vermont, a large population of state employees work in positions that are funded by grants from the federal government and the salary, benefits and working conditions of these employees fall within the scope of collective bargaining. A Union is an organization of you and your co-workers coming together to ensure you keep what you like and are able to make needed improvements in all aspects of your working life. As grant-funded employees represented by a Union and working under a collective bargaining agreement, you and your co-workers would have the ability to be recognized as legally binding decision makers in the following key areas of your work:
Bargaining with UVM management over your pay and benefits
While your position may be grant funded, UVM is your employer and funding for your position flows through UVM. Currently, UVM management unilaterally decides your pay and benefits, including your retirement security and health care. In forming a Union, you and your co-workers will have the legal right to bargain with UVM on your compensation. Recent cuts and cost-sharing proposals have demonstrated that UVM is willing to lower the pay and benefits it offers to unrepresented employees, even while employee workloads increase. This has created increased turnover, department instability and a challenging work environment. Both the grantors and UVM benefit from well-trained, highly-skilled, long-term technicians to effectively and efficiently produce meaningful results. A collective bargaining agreement is a proven way to stabilize the workforce, foster good management practices, and increase recruitment and retention.
“As a technician, I have directly benefited in a number of ways from having a union. The most notable benefit was having my job in the Agency of Natural Resources changed from a 9-month “temporary” status to F/T. When my position was changed to F/T, it was funded 95% by a federal grant, but by having a union contract I have the same RIF rights as someone who is on hard money. I have the same footing regardless of the funding source as anyone else. When budget decisions point to layoffs or RIFs, with a union you can write specific language in your contract that removes arbitrary decisions of whose position is eliminated.” -Heather Pembrook, Lab Technician, 27 years, Agency of Natural Resources, VSEA Member
A stronger voice for your department and/or lab
Forming a Union with your colleagues provides you the opportunity to strengthen your department’s and/or lab’s position within the larger UVM community. The recently announced name change of Fletcher Allen Health Care to “The University of Vermont Medical Center” demonstrates that health care and medical research is a top priority for UVM and will play an increasingly important role in the University’s portfolio. While it is hoped that these changes will result in improvements, the transition process could create instability and stress for departments in the health care and medical research fields, as we have seen at other institutions. Having a Union will give you and your co-workers a voice in this process to advocate for each other as well as your department and/or lab, rather than merely being treated as a suggestion box, to improve efficiencies around such transitions.
Working conditions and employee health and safety
Working conditions in medical, agricultural, environmental and health care research are an important concern to many of your co-workers. These include the proper function of your building’s infrastructure, the environmental health of your workplace, access to quality equipment, and the establishment and enforcement of safety provisions. With a Union, these are issues that can be bargained with management, creating a productive and transparent process to ensure you work in a safe and updated environment. In Vermont state government, VSEA members work with management on a health and safety committee to ensure problems are addressed promptly and to develop strategies to prevent health and safety issues.
Professional development and training
Coming together to build a Union provides you and your co-workers the opportunity to identify and bargain ways to improve the training resources available to you. Unionized Vermont state employees work with management to ensure proper training is available, resulting in improved productivity and employee satisfaction. You are the experts in your field and your input and involvement in professional development is a crucial component to create a productive work environment and quality outcomes.
Recall Rights and layoff process
All VSEA collective bargaining agreements contain recall rights for employees who are laid off. Recall rights give employees first priority in being interviewed for jobs where they meet the minimum requirements and they preserve your years of service as an employee. Having a Union will allow you and your co-workers to develop contract provisions to address issues like expiration and/or cancellation of a grant, as well as ways to best position UVM to receive more grants to fund your work.
Legislative and community engagement
VSEA members are active in engaging the community and their legislators on issues vital to their working lives. As health care, medical research, and higher education take on a greater role in Vermont’s economy, it is crucial that employees work together to pool their votes, resources, and collective expertise to influence decision makers and engage the larger community. By joining VSEA, employees at UVM will increase not only your bargaining power but also your influence when it comes to prioritizing the issues that are impacting your work.
Ensuring public work for the public good
Vermont’s privatization statute and clauses in various collective bargaining agreements can help prevent grants from being diverted from the public sector to the private sector. Many collective bargaining agreements contain provisions that strictly regulate the privatization of bargaining unit work. In other words, contract language demands that the employer has to sit down with you and your colleagues to discuss the options before any jobs or departments are outsourced. VSEA members feel strongly that state services are of a higher quality when performed by qualified, trained and experienced professionals. UVM staff, faculty and students deserve the same assurance of high quality work performed by qualified, trained and experienced professionals and while all of Vermont benefits from the retention of good paying jobs.
“I am a Microbiologist for the Department of Health, as well as a VSEA member. My connection to both has spanned over 12 years, and I have appreciated the union’s many positive attributes throughout time. Many of the positions within the Public Health Laboratory, and others across state government, are funded on grant money. Even within this reality, our benefits, salary advancements and work policies are consistent across funding streams. I am especially grateful for the ability to negotiate my health care benefits. Over the years, our union has maintained a level of coverage through collective bargaining that is vital to my family’s health issues and my ability to remain secure in the profession that I enjoy.” -Laura Kamhi, Microbiologist for the Department of Health, 12 years, Agency of Natural Resources, VSEA Member
Ver mont State Employees’ Association “Your Choice For An Independent Voice”
155 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05602 Phone: (802) 338-6052 Fax: (802) 223-4035 Email:
[email protected] Website: www.vsea.org
