Mind the Hours: Managing Your Full Faculty Workload
Hours of work can be a tricky thing for faculty. Instructors know how many Class Contact Hours (CCH) they are assigned, but many struggle to keep Class Management Activities (CMA) and Professional Duties (PD) within a 37.5-hour workweek. It’s true that the Collective Agreement allows for averaging the workweek hours over the month; however, too many faculty are reporting to SAFA that they are consistently working 50-hour weeks without compensation.
Beyond the Classroom: The Unseen Hours
An instructor with 20 CCH per week has just 17.5 hours left for class prep, marking, student engagement, committee work, and special projects. A single week with a grading-heavy project can add 10+ hours of extra work. What then?
Use the Collective Agreement to Your Advantage
If your workload occasionallyexceeds 37.5 hours in a week, use the averaging language in the Collective Agreement, in consultation with your Academic Chair, as it was intended—take some time off the following week. This averaging is intended to help with workload balance, not to justify ongoing overwork.
Don’t Wait: Raise Concerns Early
However, if it’s clear that you will consistently exceed 37.5 hours per week for the entire semester, act early:
- Keep a detailed log of the hours spent on prep, marking, emails, student meetings, and other duties.
- Talk to your AC early in the semester and bring your detailed log.
- Request a Mutual Agreement form be completed to document your overtime.
This may prompt solutions to reduce your workload, or lead to paid overtime. Just remember – end of semester is too late to ask for support. Modifications aren’t retroactive, and overtime must be pre-approved. It’s too late to seek compensation at the end of a semester, even if you can prove that you’ve been working well beyond 37.5 hours per week.
Need Support? SAFA is Here to Help
SAFA has worked with faculty to help alleviate workload issues with creative solutions. If you’re unsure how to begin the conversation with your AC—or if it’s not going well—contact your SAFA representative. We’re here to support fair, reasonable, and respectful workload practices.
In Solidarity,
Craig Coolahan
SAFA Labour Relations Officer
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SAFA Continues Partnership with ARTA for Retiree Benefits
SAFA continues to partner with the Alberta Retired Teachers’ Association (ARTA), so that previous SAFA members and surviving spouses can apply for extended health care, emergency travel, and dental care coverage. Learn more about the benefits plans at the ARTA website.
These benefits are just one of the special offers and discounts available to SAFA members. The full list of resources can be found on the SAFA Members Portal. (The password for the portal is SAFAUnited)