United Academics Committees
The United Academics constitution (Article 7) and by-laws (Article 5) detail the responsibilities for each UNAC committee. Representative Assembly members normally serve on one or more committees, and all dues-paying members should join one or more of our committees. Committees normally meet during the 9-month academic year.
Joining one of your union’s committees is a great way to lend your skills toward your union. Contact your Org VP or our Organizing Manager, Kate Quick, if you’d like to join a committee.
Standing Committees
Collective Bargaining Committee
- Solicits nominations for Negotiation Team members
- Helps determine membership priorities ahead of negotiations
- May coordinate with the Contract Action Team during negotiations
Organizing, Membership, and Communications Committee
- Plans events at different locations in the UA system
- Conducts membership drives to encourage additional dues payers
- Suggests or prepares topic-specific outreach materials
- Participates in 1-1 conversations with bargaining unit members about relevant current topics
Finance, Budget, and Audit Committee
- Prepares annual UNAC budget for RA approval
- Ensures that UNAC financial practices are followed, updated, and in compliance with relevant rules
- Addresses all finance-related issues as they arise
Legislative Relations Committee
- Advocates for faculty interests at the state (and sometimes federal) level
- Ensures that Alaskan legislators are familiar with UA faculty as well as administration
- Participates in inter-union statewide and national meetings on issues of concern to the workforce, especially higher education public employees
Elections Committee
- Runs all UNAC elections (officers, RA, CBA ratification, & constitution changes) from nominations to vote tallying
- Ensures that UNAC is in compliance with all relevant federal, state, and union election rules
- Members of this committee may not be currently serving in any elected capacity within UNAC
Committee on Non-Tenure Track Members
- Focuses on amplifying issues experienced by UNAC’s non-tenure track faculty and post-docs
- Seeks solutions to issues unique to non-tenure track faculty
- Represents 40% of UNAC’s bargaining unit, which is non-tenure track
By-Laws and Constitution Committee
- Updates UNAC’s founding documents
- Is activated as needed when UNAC leadership or RA notes a compliance or other issue needing updated
Contract Action Team (active during negotiations)
- Helps to rally rank-and-file UNAC members to support negotiations
- Ensures that UNAC power is felt and seen by UA management in order to strengthen our position at the negotiation table
- Brings together faculty and post-docs to show our strength in numbers as we support our next negotiation team’s proposals during the next round of negotiations
- Shows UA administration and the public that we have a strike-ready unit that is willing and ready to fight for what we deserve in the workplace
Negotiation Team
- Composed of UNAC’s President, one UNAC member from UAA, UAF, and UAS, plus UNAC’s Contract Manager
- Responsible for negotiating each successive CBA
- Present proposals for new or updated CBA articles to UA administration
- Spend many hours preparing proposals to improve your working conditions and compensation
- Fights for your rights in the workplace through CBA improvements
- Will win a stronger CBA is they have visible support of the UNAC masses behind their proposals
University of Alaska Joint Health Care Committee (JHCC)
United Academics, Local 6070, Fairbanks Fire Fighters, CAUSE & Staff Council (pending), and University administration participate in the Joint Health Care Committee (JHCC) to review health benefits and to investigate, study, and design possible solutions to rising health care costs and other mutual problems. This committee meets at least monthly.
Mission Statement of the committee:
Topics may include, but are not limited to:
- wellness programs
- plan design
- preferred provider programs
- eligibility cost
- plan competitiveness
- standardization of benefits
- cost containment
- number and quality of benefits provided
- promotion and utilization
- Deductibles
- prior years’ under and over collections
- enhanced benefit options
UNAC Representatives on the JHCC:
- Jill Dumesnil (JHCC chair, UNAC President)
- Melanie Arthur (JHCC member, UNAC Contract Manager)
- Tim Hinterberger (JHCC member, UNAC RA member)
- Richie Berndt (JHCC alternate, UNAC Secretary)
