November 18, 2021
Dear Pitt Faculty Members,
As many of you know, the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board (PLRB) announced the results of the faculty unionization election last month. A majority of those who voted chose to be represented by the United Steelworkers union (USW), and the PLRB certified these election results on October 28.
While the formation of a faculty union may change some aspects of how our community works together, it will not change our longstanding commitment to partner with you to advance your pursuit of excellence in teaching, scholarship, and research.
As a top research institution, excellence has been—and will continue to be—what defines Pitt.
We are incredibly fortunate to be part of a university with a distinguished history of supporting transformative education, discovery and innovation. Our new institutional strategic plan, the Plan for Pitt, outlines ambitious goals that will support the University’s continued evolution and success in these areas.
At present, we are preparing for constructive discussions with USW about terms and conditions of employment for the new bargaining unit. This process will require patience, as negotiating a collective bargaining agreement for a group of approximately 3,300 faculty members takes time.
In recent weeks, many of you have asked me to identify which faculty positions are—and are not—included in the bargaining unit. As a reminder: The collective bargaining agreement covers full-time and regular part-time tenure-stream and appointment-stream faculty and librarians across all Pitt campuses. Roles not covered by the collective bargaining agreement include:
- all School of Medicine faculty,
- research and postdoctoral associates,
- department chairs and vice chairs,
- deans, vice deans, associate deans and assistant deans
- vice chancellors,
- vice provosts,
- various library administrators, and
- administrators of specific centers, programs, laboratories, and institutes.
As the negotiations begin and evolve, we will do our best to answer your questions and provide periodic updates to keep you informed. I look forward to working together to continue realizing our highest aspirations for Pitt and the students we serve.
Hail to Pitt!
Ann E. Cudd
Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor