Defence Fund President's Report to CAUT Council
Fall 2010

The 2010 annual meeting brings my tenure as President of the CAUT Defence Fund to a close. It has been a tremendous honour to serve in this capacity for the past four years.

I am particularly proud of two accomplishments. The first one is simply surviving the period of June 2007 to October 2008, during which seven member unions experienced job action. During this time, there were 19 flying picket events, of which I managed to get to 10 (and I again thank those trustees who led the ones I couldn't get to), with nearly three million dollars in strike benefits being disbursed. The Fund was able to consistently stand firm with our member unions during an unprecedented period of assault from employers. Most certainly, those 16 months were "our finest hour".

I am also very pleased that, together with the other members of the 2009 and 2010 incarnations of the Planning and Policy Committee, we were able to revise and retool the governing documents of the Defence Fund into instruments that are much more clear and practical. It sure didn't hurt that this period was almost entirely free of strikes or lockouts, as it allowed the Committee to focus on the tasks at hand.

The quality of my time as President has been shaped by two important groups of people; the staff of CAUT, and the members of the Board of Trustees. The folks at CAUT do so much to keep things going, from managing the money, to planning the meetings, and more. I must make special mention of Peter Simpson, with whom it has been a distinct pleasure to work closely with. His deep knowledge of collective bargaining is a tremendous asset for the Fund. The members of the Board have carried out their responsibilities with enthusiasm and dedication. It takes a special type to walk up and down a sidewalk in Fredericton in the dead of winter, but walk we did. No conference call went wanting for a quorum, every annual meeting was spirited. Well done, all of you.

But enough about the past. On to the future.

As I pass off the title of President to another worthy Trustee, I am pleased to report that the Defence Fund is doing well. The assets are significant, and the number of member unions continues to grow. If the Board continues to be mindful of the need to maintain sufficient resources to cover extended periods of aggressive action by employers, our member unions will be able to count on having a very big "bargaining chip" behind them for some time to come.

One rather worrisome thing is the attempt by the Government of Ontario in late July to circumvent free collective bargaining for academic staff in that province. It has been a key factor in the strike by the staff unit of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine Faculty Association, which continues as I write this report. As one of our secondary purposes is to defend the right of our member unions to free collective bargaining, we may well be called on to support a challenge to the action by the government. I truly hope that the Defence Fund would be able to partner with CAUT and OCUFA to present a unified front in opposition to these unjust shenanigans should it become necessary.

Thanks, everyone. It's been a slice. See you on the picket line.

Peace,

Lawrence Hale
President, CAUT Defence Fund
September 10, 2010