In the first General Assembly of 2008, the Association of Graduate Students Employed at McGill debated bargaining techniques for a new collective agreement with the university and held a vote on a new pressure tactics mandate last Wednesday at Thomson House.
The vote was a majority in favour, with one abstention, thus passing the motion to approve the resolution on the mandate for pressure tactics. The motion was moved by Rami Hourani, Ph.D. Chemistry and seconded by Steven Miscione, a graduate student in Mathematics.
"The university has no intrinsic incentive to give us our demands. It's a game of chess: we have to show that we can shove as hard as they can," Miscione said. "[The pressure tactics mandate] is a good first step for getting them to listen to us more. It will improve our chances. It's the only first step, really; gradual escalation is the way to go. There might have to be more action later."
Present at the meeting were the AGSEM Executive and Bargaining Committee members, as well as Students' Society Vice-President External Max Silverman and a mobilization advisor from the Confédération des syndicats nationaux.
"We had the highest turnout yet for a GA in the last year…people are getting more involved," said AGSEM Vice-President External Natalie Kouri-Towe. "Our debate on pressure tactics also went well; there was a wide variety of perspectives and ideas expressed and in the end we were able to unite around a mandate, which was passed [Wednesday] night."
AGSEM's collective agreement with the university expired on Jun. 30, 2007, and as a result, the association and the administration are now entangled in deliberations over a new agreement with what AGSEM hopes to be better working conditions.
According to their information pamphlet, AGSEM argues that "teaching is the most basic service that the university offers to its students…if a university cannot afford to adequately pay its teaching staff, then it cannot afford to function."
2008 Woodie Awards
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