Full and part-time faculty at Eastern Washington University have voted overwhelmingly for formal representation by their union, the United Faculty of Eastern. The election was the second to be held since the state Legislature in 2002 cleared the way for faculty bargaining in the four-year state university system. Faculty at Central Washington University voted for union representation in June.

When the mail ballot vote was counted on Nov. 19, the tally was 338 voting yes and 46 voting no. UFE president Anthony Flinn says while the outcome seemed inevitable, the size of the yes vote--88 percent--speaks to the strength of the union culture at Eastern. Under voluntary recognition, the UFE has been representing faculty for 10 years. Last April, the administration made a move to terminate the UFE contract, which was due to expire in June. When the union filed for a certification election in May, this prevented any change to the faculty's contract status.  The administration's meddling with the contract helped cement faculty views about the need for a union.

"We're really rooted now," says Flinn. The union is also larger than the voluntarily recognized unit was because the state Public Employment Relations Commission ruled that the state university units should include adjunct faculty, which number about 100. The unit also includes about 100 part-time faculty, who are those faculty working more than 50 percent time and thus qualify for some benefits.

The next step for the union is building maximum membership and holding campus forums to determine priorities for bargaining the next contract. In the coming weeks, Flinn also plans to address faculty at Western Washington where a union card drive is under way.

Both UFE and the local at Central Washington University are affiliated with United Faculty of Washington State, which is affiliated with AFT Washington, the Washington Education Association and their two national affiliates, the NEA and AFT. [Barbara McKenna]

November 22, 2004