May 11, 2021

We are very pleased to inform you that Loyola University Chicago and SEIU Local 73 have reached a Tentative Agreement (TA) for a four-year collective bargaining agreement with our full- and part-time non-tenure-track (NTT) faculty in the College. The parties met on Tuesday, May 11 for our tenth College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) bargaining session and that is where the TA was reached.

We would like to thank the negotiating team from SEIU Local 73 for their time, energy and cooperative, good-faith approach to bargaining. Loyola’s goal from the start has been to reach a fair and reasonable agreement that is consistent with our commitment to social justice and our Jesuit values. Yesterday’s TA achieves this goal and reflects not only Loyola’s appreciation for the many contributions of our NTT faculty, but also our core mission of providing a high-quality, affordable education to all of our students. The TA is subject to ratification from all SEIU-represented NTT faculty and approval by Loyola University Chicago’s Board of Trustees. We hope all SEIU-represented NTT faculty will vote in favor of the agreement.

At Tuesday’s session, the parties reached three Tentative Agreements:

Article 20-Workload – The parties agreed to several amendments to Article 20, including:

• Article 20.1(F)-Large Course Enrollments: The parties agreed that any courses with a minimum enrollment of one hundred (100) students without any discussion sections will count as the equivalent of two (2) standard three-credit hour courses if the course meets the minimum number of students enrolled at least three (3) weeks before the start of the semester when it will be taught. If the course fails to meet the minimum enrollment threshold by the deadline, the Dean or their designee and the departmental chairperson will meet with the affected Unionized Faculty member to discuss how to address the low enrollment in the course in one of two ways:
  • If the Unionized Faculty member elects to teach an additional course in that same semester and enrollment in the original course reaches at least one hundred (100) students between the three (3) week deadline and the end of the first week of classes, the Unionized Faculty member will receive either a one course release the following semester, or they will not have to teach the additional course.
  • If the Unionized Faculty member elects to teach an additional course in the following semester and enrollment in the original course reaches at least one hundred (100) students between the three- (3) week deadline and the end of the first week of classes, the Unionized Faculty member will not be required to teach the additional course in the following semester.

The parties also agreed that courses with at least three (3) discussion sections taught by the same Unionized Faculty member will count as the equivalent of two (2) standard three-credit hour courses and that courses with two (2) discussion sections taught by the same Unionized Faculty member will count as one and one-half (1.5) of one (1) standard three-credit hour course.

• Article 20.5(F): The parties agreed that a full-time Unionized Faculty member in the Department of Fine and Performing Arts can request either a one- (1) course release or additional compensation if they engage in any of the following academic activities during an academic year in addition to what would otherwise be their regular full-time workload:
  • Team-teaching an additional course.
  • Involvement in theatre, dance, or music productions that are not credit-bearing or related to a specific credit-bearing course, including a production class.
  • Engaging in substantial pre-production activities, including creative work, that occur before the semester begins.
• Article 20.5(G): The parties agreed if a full-time Unionized Faculty member is assigned seven (7) or more writing intensive and composition classes or seven (7) or more engaged learning and composition classes in a single academic year, the Unionized Faculty member can request either a one- (1) course release or additional compensation that academic year.

Article 23-Compensation – The parties agreed to two amendments to Article 23, including:

• Article 23.1(B)(1)-Minimum Pay Rates Per Credit Hour: The parties agreed to increase the standard pay rates per credit hour for part-time Unionized Faculty members to:
  • With a Terminal Degree or Equivalency: $2,225
  • Without a Terminal Degree or Equivalency: $2,010
• Article 23.1(B)(4)-Adjunct Instructors: The parties agreed to increase the minimum pay rate per credit hour for part-time Unionized Faculty members who have achieved the status of “Adjunct Instructors” to $2,440 or $80.33 per hour for “Adjunct Instructors” who are paid on an hourly basis.

Article 24-Term of Agreement – The parties agreed the term of the new CBA will be from July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2025.

What’s Next?

The final steps in the process are for SEIU-represented CAS faculty to vote on ratifying the TA followed by approval of the new agreement by the University’s Board of Trustees at its meeting during the first week of June. The union ratification process is expected to take a few days. In the meantime, please visit LUC.edu/bargaining for additional information.