March 2, 2017

Dear Faculty,

This afternoon I attended a meeting on campus with a group of self-organized non-tenure track faculty to discuss the petition filed by the Service Employees International Union Local 205 on Feb. 16. The questions on the ongoing process were constructive and I truly appreciated the opportunity to meet. These faculty also submitted questions, and we have openly posted the answers on the Faculty Unionization website, as well as answers to additional questions received over the past several days about collective bargaining, benefits and eligibility to unionize.

The university respects the rights of our faculty members to decide whether to seek union representation or not. Importantly, regardless of one’s position on this issue, the university will not tolerate intimidation or retaliation against any member of the Vanderbilt community who voices their views concerning unionization, including those who invoke their right to organize. Our goal is to provide information and to ensure an appropriate bargaining unit is proposed.

The hearing before the regional office of the NRLB has continued as we seek resolution on the proposed bargaining unit. We believe the proposed bargaining unit is problematic because as currently constructed, the group does not share an appropriate community of interest, and it includes faculty that share in the management and governance of the university. We believe that the full time non-tenure track faculty do not share an appropriate community of interest with the adjunct and part-time non-tenure track faculty. In addition, the proposed bargaining unit includes faculty from four different schools/colleges that each have distinctive missions; Arts and Science, Divinity, Peabody, and Blair. We have asked the SEIU to limit the proposed unit to adjunct and part time non-tenure track faculty but they have refused and continue to seek the broader unit.

In addition, the bargaining unit as currently structured would prohibit some full-time non-tenure track faculty who would be directly affected from participating in a vote. For example, faculty not currently teaching could not vote in a union election, but would be represented by the union if they teach a course in subsequent semesters. Or faculty currently serving in a designated leadership role could not vote, but would be represented by the union when they cycle out of that leadership role.

I appreciate all of our faculty continuing to ask questions and I encourage you to read this information and to contact me or Vice Provost John Geer if you have questions or comments.

Sincerely,
Susan R. Wente
Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs