Persistent activism and collective efforts paid off for postdoctoral scholars at Queen’s.
After a year of negotiations and a potential No Board Report that could have locked out postdoctoral scholars, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) announced on Nov. 13 that PSAC 901, Unit 2, representing postdoctoral scholars at Queen’s, has voted to ratify a new tentative agreement, pending final approval. PSAC 901—the union of graduate teaching assistants, teaching fellows, and postdoctoral scholars at Queen’s—is a local branch under PSAC, where Unit 1 represents over 240,000 workers nationwide.
READ MORE: Negotiations on thin ice as postdocs face potential lockout
The changes to the postdoc’s agreements address many of the postdocs’ demands. For example, the minimum base salary for postdocs will increase to $50,000, a rise from the current $35,958, representing a 39 per cent increase. This makes PSAC 901 only the second local union in Ontario to achieve this minimum, following the University of Toronto’s implementation of a $50,000 minimum salary starting in March 2024.
READ MORE: Postdoctoral fellows still fighting for fair pay after a year of bargaining delays
“The threat that Queen’s issued had what I imagine is being felt as a backlash effect. What we saw that threat do, which was an attempt to bully and scare postdocs galvanized the community in a huge way. We also saw solidarity from across the country come in, across Queen’s, across the Kingston community, across Ontario, and across the country,” PSAC 901 President, Jake Morrow said in an interview with The Journal.
In addition to the increased salary, postdocs will be receiving an additional $1,000 lump sum payment on Jan. 1, 2025, according to PSAC 901’s Instagram post. Additionally, the Childcare Fund, designed to provide financial assistance to eligible employees for childcare expenses, was increased from $50,000 to $67,500 per year, and the maximum reimbursable amount for childcare expenses per child per year was raised to $2,250, according to a PSAC 901 Instagram post.
The post states the University has agreed to contribute to a new Postdoctoral Professional Development and Travel Fund on Sept. 1, 2024, for $100,000 and another $100,000 on Sept. 1, 2025. Additionally, the employer has agreed to pilot a New Telemedicine Service for Employees and their family , providing primary care and health-related services. The pilot project is expected to be implemented by April 1, 2025.
“I’m so proud of the community for showing up. I’m so proud of postdocs for fighting for what they deserve. And I’m so excited to see how much further all of us can push. It’s going to be a big year for unionized workers on campus,” Morrow said.
Unit 1 will begin bargaining for new agreements on Nov. 18.
Tags
All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s) in Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be ed, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to [email protected].