The General Meeting was held online on Thursday, August 27, with approximately 120 members in attendance. The slides presented at the meeting are available here. A synopsis of the meeting is provided below.
President’s Welcome – Francine Smith, President
Francine welcomed attendees and provided a high-level overview of the Association’s activities and responsibilities as the collective voice of over 2,600 members. She introduced TUCFA’s 2026 Strategic Plan, highlighted the Association’s strong financial position, and described new initiatives to strengthen member engagement, communications, and grievance processes. She also highlighted TUCFA’s increased collaboration with the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) and renewed engagement with the University through the Joint Liaison Committee.
Keynote Speaker – Sarah Eaton, Werklund School of Education
Sarah presented “Academic Labour in the Postplagiarism Era: Integrity Means Accountability.” Sarah examined how generative AI and emerging technologies are reshaping academic integrity, teaching, assessment, and academic labour. A central message was that responding to AI and academic misconduct cannot be left to individual academic staff; institutions need clear, consistent policies and processes, and accountability must be understood as both an individual and an institutional responsibility.
Grievances and Arbitrations: Year in Review – Tavis Campbell, Grievance Advisor
Tavis provided a year-in-review update on TUCFA’s grievance and arbitration work. Member demand for labour-relations assistance is more than twice the historical average, with 188 cases opened in 2026 and 80 still open as of August 25. He emphasized that most concerns are resolved through advice, advocacy, and informal problem-solving rather than formal grievances. Tavis also outlined improvements to TUCFA’s grievance processes, including a new Grievance Policy and Grievance Appeal Procedure, a new Grievance Committee, and more proactive engagement with Academic Labour Relations.
Results of the 2026 Membership Survey – Chris Sears, Executive Member-at-Large (Communications)
Chris presented results from TUCFA’s 2026 Membership Survey (see the slides for details). The survey was sent to 2604 members and yielded 703 responses. Members’ top priority was improving compensation and benefits, followed by protecting rights under the Collective Agreement and negotiating fair workload protections. The results showed that members generally feel comfortable turning to TUCFA for advice and support, and that there are opportunities to strengthen perceptions of the Association’s effectiveness as an advocate and representative of members’ interests.
Concluding Remarks – Francine Smith, President
Francine closed the meeting by reflecting on the key themes that emerged throughout the presentations and discussion. She emphasized TUCFA’s commitment to strengthening member engagement, providing effective representation and support, improving communication with members, and advancing the priorities identified in the new Strategic Plan and Membership Survey.
