October 17th: Update to Membership
Section 36: Workload and CCH
What programs and courses are included in Section 36?
First, to understand workload you should understand the type of course you teach. In the last round of negotiations, SAIT requested that we update the definition of course/program types. In the past, a mixture of descriptors for mode (distance education, continuing education, on-campus/in-person) and funding source (credit vs. non-credit) were used together. But not all courses fit into these combinations (not all online courses are distance, not all on on-campus courses are credit courses).
In the new Collective Agreement, we have re-categorized programs by Approved and Non-Approved courses based on credentials (see table below). Section 36 applies to instructors in permanent salaried, temporary salaried, and casual instructor positions who are teaching within the approved programming areas.
How is workload assigned?
Faculty workload is assigned by the Dean or their designee (most often the Academic Chair) in accordance with the new Faculty Workload Guidelines. This document came into use on July 1, 2022, so your current workload should follow these guidelines. The document not only outlines the three components of workload (Class Contact Hours, Class Management Activities, and Professional Duties), but also includes a process for an instructor to register a formal complaint if they feel their workload does not align with the guidelines. More information about the guidelines and complaint process will be presented in the upcoming town hall session.
What is a CCH?
A Class Contact Hour is a 50-minute period of synchronous or asynchronous instruction to students. The addition of asynchronous is new to this Collective Agreement in recognition of the increase in this mode of instruction.
The new Faculty Workload Guidelines emphasize the fact that CCH is not just traditional classroom instruction, but rather any instructional work with students. For example, SAFA has won grievances that confirm that instructors earn CCH for overseeing returning student competency reviews and overseeing exams for incoming and returning students.
How was the CCH table created?
The Class Contact Hours table lists the maximum number of hours a full-time salaried instructor can be loaded in an academic year. Part-time salaried instructors will have their CCH prorated based on their full time equivalent (i.e., if the contract is .7 position, CCH should be prorated to .7). Temporary salaried instructors will have their CCH prorated for the appointment length and/or full time equivalent (i.e., if the contract is 10 months and .5 position, CCH is prorated based on both of those limits.)
The CCH table, in some form, has existed since SAFA’s first collective agreement in 1982. Unfortunately, the documentation from that time has been lost and we do not know how these numbers were originally calculated. There have been adjustments to the table over the years, but the fundamental question of how programs are assigned to columns 1, 2, or 3 is still unanswered. SAFA will be completing an analysis of the CCH table this academic year in preparation for negotiations.
Are there limits on CCH assignment?
Yes, Section 36 includes the following:
- Workload for salaried instructors is only assigned during the instructor’s normal workday (Monday-Friday before 6pm). Instruction after 6pm or on a weekend requires the mutual agreement of the instructor. Instructors can also decline to do this within their standard workload and instead work under a separate adjunct contract.
- Unless an instructor agrees to the increase, they cannot be assigned:
- More than 6 CCH hours in a given day,
- More than 4 consecutive CCH hours in a given day, or
- More than a) 20 hours OR b) 3% of their annual CCH in a given week (averaged over 15 weeks)
I can be “underloaded” for CCH?
An instructor can be assigned CCH that is less than the maximum listed in the CCH table. This is typically done when the Academic Chair recognizes that there are other projects or activities that cause the class management activities and/or professional duties hours to be higher than usual. In the past, this reduction in CCH has been referred to as “underloading” or “off-loading”. SAFA is working to change this language, as these terms imply that the CCH are just being removed, when in reality, that time is already committed to other work.