M E M O R A N D U M

     May 16, 2006

     TO:  MUFA Librarians

     FROM:  Mike Veall, Chair, Remuneration Committee 

     RE:  Librarians Remuneration Agreement 
Attached you will find a copy of the Agreement negotiated in the Librarians Negotiating Committee, dated April 28, 2006.  The representatives of MUFA were Barbara McDonald and Nora Gaskin of the Library and Mike Veall (Department of Economics and Chair of the Remuneration Committee).

The Agreement is governed by the Librarian Policy on Salary and Benefits Negotiations approved by the Board of Governors on October 25, 2001. That agreement helps to “translate” the Joint Committee Agreement ratified by faculty on April 5, 2006 to an agreement covering librarians.  Hence salary increases and benefit changes in the Agreement are the same as those in the faculty agreement.

There were six remaining items:

  1. The faculty agreement specifies a 3.5% increase in floors and breakpoints but says nothing about ceilings.  It was agreed that given the increase in pension rate contributions in the agreement, a ceiling increase of 4.25% was appropriate.

  2. Previously, the merit pool for librarians was calculated at 2.43% of payroll less an adjustment for promotions.  There was provision for changing this 2.43% through the Joint Committee but agreement was never achieved.  This agreement leaves the adjustment for promotions unchanged but changes the 2.43% to 2.5% for the term of this Agreement.  With the adjustment for promotions, the number for the initial year of the Agreement is 2.3%.

  3. The increase in the Librarian Professional Development Allowance is $50 per year for each of the two years.

  4. An anomaly was corrected in vacation policy so that Librarians with exactly 17 years of service receive 24 days of vacation rather than 23.

  5. Flex time provisions were made somewhat more flexible, changing the plus or minus 10% provision to plus or minus 15%.

  6. There were a number of improvements to the Research Leave Policy designed to make it more accessible and effective.
The negotiations were very collegial.  The MUFA Librarians Remuneration Committee unanimously supports the resulting Agreement, which we believe adjusts the faculty agreement in useful ways.  We recommend it to the membership without hesitation and encourage you to attend the Information Meeting on Tuesday, May 23 at 2:00 pm in the Multipurpose Room of Mills Memorial Library (L303).