<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META content="text/html; charset=utf-8" http-equiv=Content-Type>
<META name=GENERATOR content="MSHTML 8.00.6001.19222">
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff><FONT size=2 face=Tahoma>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fff; FONT-FAMILY: HelveticaNeue, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif; COLOR: #000; FONT-SIZE: 16px">
<DIV id=yiv7032183171>
<DIV id=yui_3_16_0_1_1425821747249_219399>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fff; FONT-FAMILY: HelveticaNeue, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif; COLOR: #000; FONT-SIZE: 16px"
id=yui_3_16_0_1_1425821747249_219398>--------------------------------------------------------------------------<BR><BR>Dear
President Mamdouh Shoukri,<BR><BR><BR>I am writing in strong support of the
Teaching Assistants on strike at York<BR>University. I urge you to bargain in
good faith to establish a new<BR>contract. These often underpaid and exploited
members of the academic<BR>community are vital to the education of students. I
have forwarded news of<BR>this struggle widely within the U.S. and many are
watching the outcome.<BR>Below is the resolution by the City University of New
York - Professional<BR>Staff Caucus faculty/staff union, and I endorse its
substance. I will be<BR>bringing this issue to the attention of my own faculty
union, the AFT,<BR>which is the collective bargaining unit for the nine state
public colleges<BR>in New Jersey.<BR><BR><BR>Sincerely,<BR><BR>Patricia Keeton,
PhD<BR><BR>Professor of Communication Arts<BR><BR>School of Contemporary
Arts<BR><BR>Ramapo College of New Jersey 07430<BR><BR><A
class=yiv7032183171moz-txt-link-abbreviated
onclick="return checkLinkHref(this.href);" href="mailto:pkeeton@ramapo.edu"
shape=rect rel=nofollow target=_blank
ymailto="mailto:pkeeton@ramapo.edu">pkeeton@ramapo.edu</A><BR><BR><BR>-------------------------------------------------------------<BR><BR>CUNY-PSC
resolution:<BR><BR><BR>RESOLUTION ON BEHALF OF CANADIAN UNION OF PUBLIC
EMPLOYEES (CUPE) 3903<BR>REPRESENTING CONTRACT FACULTY, TEACHING
ASSISTANTS, GRADUATE ASSISTANTS<BR>AND RESEARCH ASSISTANTS AT YORK
UNIVERSITY, TORONTO, CANADA<BR><BR><BR> Whereas bargaining and mediation
efforts for a new contract to replace<BR>the one that expired on August31,
2014 with the York University<BR>administration under President Mamdouh Shoukri
have failed; and<BR><BR><BR>Whereas CUPE local 3903,representing 3700 members,
has been on strike since<BR>March 3, 2015 for increases to graduate financial
assistance, a wage hike,<BR>tenure conversions, more long service teaching
appointments, capped class<BR>sizes, and a childcare fund;
and<BR><BR><BR>Whereas members of the York University Faculty Association
(YUFA) have<BR>expressed solidarity with CUPE 3903 in its strike;
and<BR><BR><BR>Whereas precarity of educational workers is a world-wide
phenomenon that<BR>deserves the strongest condemnation and political
resistance;<BR><BR><BR> Therefore be it resolved that PSC-CUNY send a
message of solidarity<BR>support to CUPE 3903 and a message to York
University President Mamdough<BR>Shoukri urging him to resume good faith
bargaining with the union local.<BR><BR></DIV><BR clear=none><BR
clear=none><BR clear=none><BR clear=none></DIV></DIV></DIV></FONT></BODY></HTML>