Colleagues,
A reminder and other items of interest follow:
1. Open-Topic Zoom – Thursday, Nov. 3rd (7:00 pm to 8:00 pm)
Members are encouraged to participate in Thursday’s open-topic Zoom meet-up which will provide an opportunity to connect and discuss issues affecting our work.
Members have been sent the zoom link in an email. Please contact the TUFA office if you did not receive one.
2. TUFA Survey Results
The Executive Committee wishes to thank TUFA members for responding to the survey circulated on October 18th. Attached is a summary of the responses received. The last question yielded a lot of useful insights into members’ experiences of the pandemic; however, to preserve anonymity we will not circulate the responses to that question. Overall, the survey confirmed the range of views that members hold on COVID mitigation measures going forward, as well as the impact of the virus looking back. Whatever your views, be assured that you are not alone! The Executive Committee has now had an opportunity to discuss the results of the survey in light of our other sources of information on the pandemic.
We are mindful that despite the community’s continuing high risk measure, Peterborough Public Health considers Trent a low risk site due, in part, to the vaccination rate documented earlier in the pandemic. TUFA will clarify through the Employer whether it is still reasonable to consider Trent a low risk site given the time that has passed since such data were last gathered. In the meantime, we echo the call for voluntary compliance with the well-known suite of measures – masking, vaccination, and distancing when ill. Please note, the University has arranged mobile vaccination services on the Symons campus for November 3rd and 24th. TUFA members may register in advance or drop in for a booster (subject to availability). Finally, we would remind members concerned about in-class masking, that you can “require” masks in class if you choose to do so and – although you cannot enforce such a requirement on any students who do not wish to comply – articulating the expectation will likely increase masking in class.
3. Solidarity with Education Workers
Further to yesterday’s message regarding CUPE-OSBCU and Ontario’s Bill 28, Keeping Students in Class Act, protests in support of the 55,000 workers at direct risk from Bill 28 will be staged across the Province on Friday. TUFA members in Peterborough wishing to show support can join members of CUPE Locals 1543 and 5555 outside Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith’s office anytime between 7:30 am and 3:00 pm this Friday (November 4th). CUPE health care workers are expected to reinforce the line beginning at 2:00 pm and so, if you’re picking a time for maximum impact, that would be it.
In Solidarity,
Moira and Marcus