Welcome Back LEOs

“This is not a time for cheering on others from the sidelines; this is one of those moments when everyone needs to pitch in and do their part.”

Dear Lecturers:

Welcome to Fall 2020! The emotions associated with the start of the semester are more complicated than usual this year. There is still the excitement and anticipation associated with a new academic year. But now those feelings are overlaid with Zoom fatigue, concern for our students’ wellbeing, and anxiety about teaching our students (and, in some cases, our children at home too). We worry about our own physical and mental health and everyone else’s too. For months now, we’ve been either too far from or a little too close to our dearest friends/family. Despite all of this...indeed, because of all of this...there has never been a better time to be a part of a union.

As COVID shines a bright light on racial injustice, corporate greed in our healthcare system, and precarious working conditions impacting people in all sectors of our society, including higher education, it underscores how vital our union is to each of us. Our collective efforts over the years, building community among lecturers and winning great contracts, now offers each of us both protection against Administration unilateralism -- unlike fellow UM workers who had no union, we kept our Fall raises -- and the capacity to make the Administration take seriously our views on policies affecting our pedagogy and our safety at work during the pandemic. Beyond possessing the power to be taken seriously, our union also connects us to each other for help, humor, and moral support during these dark times.

So, welcome to an uncertain, unsettling semester AND to the organization that you and your predecessors built to be there for us in tough times even more than good ones. There’s a lot to look forward to and take part in -- read on!

If you are a new lecturer, attend your LEO orientation through your department or learn about us at a Welcome to LEO meeting on September 10th, from 3:30-4 pm, immediately followed by our virtual social. Whether you are new, a long-serving lecturer, or somewhere in between, join us at upcoming virtual and distanced in-person social events, or better yet, join a committee. You can also download some virtual LEO swag, such as Zoom backgrounds and logos to include in your syllabus or Canvas page.

If you have been waiting for a “better time” in your life to get more active in LEO, we can unequivocally say that NOW is that time. We are all busy, but our union is strong because hundreds of dedicated instructors (who may not see themselves as “union activists”) show up to lend their minds, hearts, voices, and a handful of hours when it counts. We are preparing now for what will be an incredibly challenging Fall semester, followed by the start of contract negotiations in January 2021.

This is not a time for cheering on others from the sidelines; this is one of those moments when everyone needs to pitch in and do their part. We are asking every Lecturer in the LEO bargaining unit to take each of the actions listed below. Altogether, they will require less than 6 hours of your time over the semester; yet if everyone takes these basic steps, we will be much better able to protect your job, your dignity, and your safety at work than we can without these kinds of membership commitment.

Join your union and sign your membership card electronically. High union membership will help YOU win a strong contract.
Complete the bargaining survey when it goes out on Tuesday, September 8. If you want to have a say in what we fight for in negotiations, fill out this survey. This year, there will only be 1 survey, so plan to spend about 15 minutes completing it. This is time well spent.
Attend your General Membership Meeting (GMM) via Zoom. GMMs happen once per semester on each campus. Hear updates about your campus and about bargaining preparations. Fall 2020 GMMs: Flint, 10/1 5:00-6:30pm; Ann Arbor, 10/1 7:00-8:30pm, Dearborn, 10/2 12:00-1:30pm.
Annual Member Convention is Sat. Nov. 14th 2-5pm via Zoom. This is an annual gathering of lecturers from all campuses to vote to approve our budget and bargaining platform.
Attend LEO department meetings. Your stewards will plan meetings this term, and we’ve seen how crucial department-level organizing is during the COVID crisis. Ask your steward for more information. If you don’t know who your steward is, email your campus chair for more information: Ann Arbor Co-Chairs Jimmy Brancho & Erin Lavin; Dearborn Chair Erik Marshall; Flint Chair Steven Toth
Join our brand new Facebook Group, LEO LecBook! This will be a social space to connect with other lecturers, ask questions, and find out what's happening in your union. And follow LEO on Facebook (@LEOLecturersEmployeeOrganization), and Twitter & Instagram (@LEOUnionUmich).
Update your contact information with LEO - we need to be able to communicate quickly with lecturers using non-umich email addresses and cell phone numbers. Did you change your email address or phone number? Are you receiving this email to your umich dot edu email address? Send us a quick message with a non-umich email so we can update your contact information: office@leounion.org.
Make Election Day classes asynchronous. Let’s make time on November 3 to vote in person or volunteer at the polls. Please consider signing this student-driven petition to declare your commitment.
We have seen how deeply remote work and education is affecting parents and caregivers across the University, including lecturers. If you are interested in organizing together to create stronger support for parents and caregivers, please email Alice Mishkin at alice.mishkin@gmail.com. We gather virtually Fridays at noon and would be happy to have you join us.
Join your colleagues @ Social events:
a. Virtual Welcome Back Social, Thursday September 10th, 4-6pm (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85773970001)
b. New hire orientation directly before the 9/10 Virtual Social at 3:30pm (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82677656477)
c. Donuts and Dogs in the Park- In-person but socially distant at Riverside Park in Ypsilanti, Saturday, September 12th, 11am-1pm

We know what we can do when we stick together and show up for ourselves and each other. Despite our physical distance and the seemingly endless challenges that await us this term, know that you are united with a group of 1600+ fellow lecturers who have your back. Welcome to whatever this semester brings our way, and remember that we’re together in all of these challenges, so let’s do our part to stay #unionstrong.

Resources, TeachingLEO Communications CommitteeAugust 27, 2020