Media Release: For Immediate Release, March 7, 2024
Following a well-attended rally on Wednesday, and a members meeting that same night in which members were consulted on the latest offer from Memorial University, the Lecturers Union of Memorial University has set a strike deadline of Sunday 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, March 10, 2024.
“LUMUN has clearly expressed to the Employer our willingness to continue bargaining if the Employer comes back to the table with a respectful wage offer,” says Alison Coffin of LUMUN. “We care about the education students receive, and fundamentally that’s what this is about. Will the university put money towards student education? Or is the top administration concerned primarily with their own wages and throwing expensive parties.”
The Union says the capacity to pay Lecturers fairly clearly exists and is evidenced by the recent Auditor General’s report on the University. Memorial University has the highest administrators’ salaries per student in Canada, far above the next highest administrative wages-per-student at a university, and thus far above the Canadian average. Yet despite this high administrative spending many of the basic foundations of the University, like education and infrastructure, remain unprioritized.
LUMUN has contrasted findings on administrative spending from the Auditor General’s report with the current pay of lecturers: These included an “Employee Service Award Dinner for employees and their guests … at a cost of $6,936, including alcohol” versus a Per Course Instructor’s salary, which is $5,000 – $5,875 for teaching an entire course.
LUMUN is additionally fighting for basic respect for members they say. They have also taken issue with claims being made by the Employer in the media about what is being offered.
“Claims expressed to the media that Memorial is offering a wage that represents an Atlantic Canadian average are extremely misleading. Firstly, we know that LUMUN Lecturers are being paid far below the average pay for a course at Memorial University and that when you account for the hours necessary to effectively teach a course the pay can be near minimum wage. LUMUN has also seen the data for the Atlantic universities, and the Employer’s claim isn’t substantiated by the published wage rates,” adds Coffin.
Both Memorial students’ union, MUNSU, and the full-time faculty association, MUNFA, have expressed support for LUMUN. The union says the public can find out more and read further facts about a potential strike at LUMUN.ca – the union’s new website.
LUMUN states they don’t want a strike and don’t want to disrupt students’ learning, they just want the proper funding of student education and that Memorial has the power well within its means to avert a strike.
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Lecturers' Union of Memorial University 