Agreement on Union Elections for Non-Tenure-Track Faculty

Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to share news of an agreement on union elections that we believe will benefit our non-tenure-track faculty colleagues.

As you are aware, some of our non-tenure-track faculty colleagues have sought a vote on joining the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). Representatives for the College and SEIU have worked out an agreement with the approval of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) as follows:

• The elections will be held in September when most, if not all, of our colleagues have returned to campus;
• The full-time non-tenure-track faculty and part-time non-tenure-track faculty will vote separately in two simultaneous elections;
• The elections will be conducted by mail ballot, with ballots being mailed out by the NLRB to each voter’s home address on Sept. 12 and completed ballots due via return mail by Sept. 26.

As part of this agreement, the College stipulated that our full-time non-tenure-track faculty would be eligible to vote, despite their inclusion in Skidmore’s governance system, and the SEIU agreed to separate the two voting groups and to forego an election during the summer recess. We are particularly pleased about the timing of the election, as we feel this gives all of our non-tenure-track faculty colleagues the opportunity to participate fully in this process and for our entire community to have the time to thoroughly study and understand its implications. 

We have pledged to protect the rights of all of our colleagues by helping to ensure a free and fair election process for everyone concerned. We will continue to uphold this commitment, and we feel this agreement is in keeping with that commitment.   

If you have questions or concerns at any time, please feel free to contact me. We will strive to keep our community informed leading up to the fall elections.

Sincerely,
Michael Orr
Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs