Graduate Student Assistantship Cllective Agreement Infrmatin Sheet fr Graduate Students (September 1, 2018) The Cllective Agreement is a binding cntract between the Bard f Gvernrs and the Graduate Students Assciatin. Please nte that as negtiatins fr the next Graduate Student Assistantship Cllective Agreement (CA) are still nging, the current CA remains in effect until a new agreement is cncluded. The Cllective Agreement describes the terms and cnditins that apply t the academic emplyment f graduate students. Graduate students wh have cncerns r questins shuld cntact the Graduate Students Assciatin. Beth Richardsn Vice-President Labur email: gsa.vplabur@ualberta.ca Julie Tanguay Assciate Directr email: gsaad@ualberta.ca Departments wh have cncerns r questins shuld cntact Faculty and Staff Relatins, Office f the Prvst and Vice-President (Academic). Susan Buchsdruecker Faculty Relatins Officer susan.buchsdruecker@ualberta.ca Fr cmplete infrmatin in all cases refer t the Cllective Agreement. www.ualberta.ca/graduatestudents-assciatin The University f Alberta has a Cllective Agreement gverning the Graduate Assistantships. Under Alberta s Labur Relatins Cde (Sect 58.4 (1)(c)), the Graduate Students Assciatin (GSA) has the exclusive authrity t act in representing graduate students in negtiating an agreement with the Bard regarding the emplyment f graduate students. The Office f the Prvst and Vice-President (Academic), tgether with the Faculty f Graduate Studies and Research, are respnsible fr negtiating the terms f the Cllective Agreement with the Graduate Students Assciatin. Faculty Relatins in the Office f the Prvst and Vice- President (Academic) prvides supprt in the interpretatin and applicatin f the prvisins f the Cllective Agreement. Resurces: Graduate Student Assistantship Cllective Agreement: http://www.hrs.ualberta.ca/myemplyment/agreements.aspx Graduate Students Assciatin: http://www.gsa.ualberta.ca Semi-Mnthly Pay Schedule: http://www.hrs.ualberta.ca/hiringandmanaging/payadmin GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIPS Graduate assistantship duties are t help prepare the graduate assistant fr further academic and prfessinal pprtunities. They cannt include administrative, clerical r technical wrk, r persnal services fr the assistantship supervisr. There are 3 types f Graduate Assistantships: 1) Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA) which includes Principal Instructrs (GTA-PI), 2) Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA), and 3) Graduate Research Assistantship Fellwships (GRAF). Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTA) The duties f a Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) are primarily in supprt f teaching and teaching related duties. Such duties may include, but are nt limited t: preparing and cnducting seminars; discussin grups and labratry sessins t supplement lectures; maintaining regular ffice hurs t meet with students; assisting in the preparatin and administratin f examinatins; and grading examinatins, term papers, and labratry reprts. The relatinship between the Graduate Assistantship Supervisr and the GTA is an emplyment relatinship. Graduate Teaching Assistantship Principal Instructr (GTA-PI) GTA-PIs are appinted as GTAs but are the primary instructr fr a curse. Duties may include lecturing, curse and lecture planning, preparing assignments and examinatins, grading/marking, and ther related wrk. T reflect these respnsibilities GTA-PIs are paid at a higher rate (see Cllective Agreement Appendix B). Graduate Research Assistantship (GRA) The duties f a Graduate Research Assistant (GRA) are primarily in supprt f a faculty member s academic research. Such duties may include, but are nt limited t: cllecting/cding/analyzing data; literature reviews; library research; writing reprts; designing cnference presentatins; and preparing materials fr submissin t funding agencies. The relatinship between the Graduate Assistantship Supervisr and the GRA is an emplyment relatinship. Graduate Research Assistantship Fellwship (GRAF) A Graduate Research Assistantship Fellwship (GRAF) is a frm f financial assistance prvided t graduate students t allw them t fcus n their educatin and training, as it relates t their wn thesis r directed research prject. The relatinship between the Assistantship Supervisr and GRAF is nt an emplyment relatinship. The GRAF is nrmally funded thrugh restricted funds (supervisr s research grant) and may frm part f a funding package t supprt the graduate student in their graduate studies. The value f the fellwship may vary by discipline and by the requirements f the restricted funds supprting the GRAF. There is a minimum stipend if it is t be cnsidered a fully-funded GRAF (see Cllective Agreement Appendix B). Prepared by Faculty Relatins, Office f the Prvst & GSA
HOURS OF WORK! A graduate student registered full-time may hld a GTA (including a GTA-PI) fr up t a maximum average f 12 hurs per week. A graduate student registered part-time may hld up t a 6 hur per week GTA.! A graduate student registered full-time may hld a GRA fr a maximum average f 12 hurs per week. A graduate student registered part-time may hld up t a 6 hur per week GRA.! There are n wrking hurs attached t a GRAF as it is nt cnsidered emplyment.! The ttal numbers f hurs in cmbined appintments including a GRA and GTA (GTA-PI) shall nrmally nt exceed 12 hurs. Exceptins require agreement f the Graduate Assistant, the Graduate Supervisr, Appinting Officer, the GSA Vice-President Labur (when apprpriate), and apprval f the Prvst (r designate). A graduate student can hld a GRAF and als be appinted as a GRA and/r GTA up t a maximum f 12 hurs per week. REMUNERATION AND INCOME TAX! Fr a GTA and GRA, the stipend cnsists f tw cmpnents: 1) award and 2) salary. The salary cmpnent is treated as emplyment incme and is subject t Incme Tax, Canada Pensin Plan, and Emplyment Insurance deductins. The award cmpnent is nt treated as emplyment incme and is nt subject t Incme Tax, Canada Pensin Plan, and Emplyment Insurance deductins. The stipend rates are set ut in Appendix B f the Agreement.! Fr a GRAF, the stipend cnsists f a fellwship. Since the payment is treated as a fellwship, the incme is nt cnsidered emplyment and is nt subject t Incme Tax, Canada Pensin Plan, and Emplyment Insurance deductins. ANNUAL PERFORMANCE INCREASE A GTA r GRA whse wrk in the previus academic year was satisfactry and is receiving an appintment in a subsequent year is entitled t a 5% increase t the salary cmpnent. This is in additin t the annual negtiated salary increase. VACATION A graduate assistant is entitled t ne week f vacatin leave withut a reductin in pay fr each fur-mnth University term. Vacatin leave is in additin t days when the University is clsed. There is n vacatin pay at the end f a cntract r terminatin in lieu f vacatin time nt taken. Graduate assistants may nt carry frward unused vacatin time frm ne fur-mnth University term t anther, withut the advance written cnsent f the Appinting Officer, Graduate Supervisr, and all relevant Graduate Assistantship Supervisrs. In sme cases, vacatin carry frward may nt be allwed based n the funding surces. DEPARTMENT AND GRADUATE ASSISTANT RESPONSIBILITIES! Letter f Appintment The Department must prepare a Letter f Appintment set ut in the Cllective Agreement Appendix A. The Letter f Appintment must be signed by the Appinting Officer (Dean/Chair/Assciate Chair) and must be acknwledged and signed by the graduate student. If a student is being appinted as a GRA and/r GRAF and supprted frm restricted funds, the Letter f Appintment must als be signed by the faculty member hlding the funds. Graduate students shuld ensure they receive and keep a cpy f their Letter f Appintment.! Valid Study Permit (and Wrk Permit if applicable) Internatinal graduate students must ensure they have a valid permit t wrk in Canada and prvide it t their department. Graduate students wh are registered fulltime in a graduate prgram and hlding a valid Study Permit are eligible t wrk n campus. Graduate students wh are registered part-time must hld a valid Study Permit and Wrk Permit t wrk n campus.! Payment Departments must submit an HR Smart Frm t Human Resurce Services (and attach the Appintment Letter) by the scheduled payrll deadlines in rder t ensure Prepared by Faculty Relatins, Office f the Prvst & GSA
n-time payment t graduate assistants. Fr internatinal graduate students, departments must attach a cpy f the Study Permit/Wrk Permit (if applicable). Payrll Operatins will nt prcess a payment withut a cpy f the Appintment Letter and apprpriate Study/Wrk Permit.! Scial Insurance Number (SIN) All graduate students wh wish t wrk in Canada need t btain a Scial Insurance Number. Departments must require graduate students t infrm them f their SIN within three business days f when they start wrk. A nn-canadian r Permanent Resident will have a SIN number that begins with the number 9.! Time Use Guidelines At the beginning f each University term, the Assistantship Supervisr and the GTA, GTA-PI, r GRA must meet and cmplete an Assistantship Time Use Guideline as set ut in Appendix C f the Cllective Agreement. The Time Use Guideline ensures that bth the GTA/GRA and Assistantship Supervisr are in agreement with the assistantship respnsibilities and expectatins. It is recmmended that academic supervisrs discuss expected tasks fr each term with a GRAF. Departments must ensure GTAs/GRAs are trained fr the duties t be perfrmed and must include training as part f the assistantship. The Assistantship Supervisr must ensure that the GTA/GRA receives apprpriate supervisin ver the term f the assistantship. A cpy f the cmpleted Time Use Guideline (Appendix C) will be held in the GTA s/gra s persnnel file.! Amendments t Terms and Cnditins Any subsequent amendments t the Letter f Appintment must be made in writing and signed by the Appinting Officer, Assistantship Supervisr (if applicable), and the graduate assistant. Any changes t duties and respnsibilities must be made n later than the end f the first week f the term and agreed t by the graduate assistant. TERMINATION OF GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIP A graduate assistantship cannt be terminated withut just cause and written justificatin. In cases where the graduate assistantship can n lnger be funded thrugh restricted funds, the Department will be respnsible fr prviding funding t the graduate assistant at a level equivalent t the riginal graduate assistantship appintment. LEAVES AND DEFERRALS An impending r current leave cannt be used as the basis fr denying an ffer f a graduate assistantship fr a future Academic Term Paid Maternity and Parental Leave Benefits Graduate students wh have held assistantships fr ne fur-mnth University term are entitled t six weeks f maternity leave at 100% f stipend and 10 weeks f parental leave at 75% f stipend. Graduate students nt eligible fr maternity leave may take up t 16 weeks f parental leave at 75% f stipend. T activate the leave, the graduate student must cmplete a Paid Maternity and/r Parental Leave and/r Deferral f Assistantship Frm as set ut in Appendix D f the Cllective Agreement. Graduate students hlding assistantships which are three hurs r less a week are nt eligible fr paid maternity and parental leave benefits. Medical Leave Graduate students hlding assistantships are entitled t up t three weeks f paid medical leave at 100% f stipend. T qualify fr such leave, a graduate student must submit a medical certificate t the Assistantship Supervisr. Graduate students hlding assistantships which are three hurs r less a week are nt eligible fr paid medical leave. Cmpassinate Leave and Bereavement Leave Graduate assistants are entitled t up t three weeks paid Cmpassinate Leave t address an immediate family medical emergency, which places primary respnsibility fr care and supprt n the graduate assistant. Graduate assistants are entitled t up t ne week f Bereavement Leave. A cmbinatin f Cmpassinate Leave and Bereavement Leave will nt exceed a maximum f three weeks. The Dean, FGSR, may apprve a Cmpassinate Leave fr a graduate assistant wh can demnstrate that they have primary respnsibility fr the care and supprt f a persn wh is nt a Prepared by Faculty Relatins, Office f the Prvst & GSA
member f the Graduate assistant s immediate family, r Bereavement Leave fllwing the lss f such a persn. The leave is nrmally paid by the same funding surce paying the assistantship stipend. Graduate assistants whse appintments are three hurs r less a week are nt eligible fr paid Cmpassinate and Bereavement Leave. Jury Duty Leave Graduate students hlding assistantships wh have received a summns t appear in curt fr the purpses f jury selectin r service will be granted paid leave frm their scheduled duties prvided that upn return t wrk, they prvide written cnfirmatin f the date(s) and time(s) n which they appeared and/r were served by an apprpriate fficial f the curt. The leave with pay will be reduced by any amunts received by the graduate assistant fr jury duty. Deferral f Assistantship A graduate student may request a deferral f an assistantship due t medical, cmpassinate, maternity/parental reasns by cmpleting the Paid Maternity and/r Parental Leave and/r Deferral f Assistantship Frm as set ut in Appendix D f the Cllective Agreement. Requests fr deferrals will als be cnsidered fr graduate students hlding assistantships wh are als serving as GSA President, r a Vice- President. SAFETY, HEALTH and WELLNESS It is the University s respnsibility t develp a safe wrk envirnment. A Graduate assistant can reasnably expect t pursue their wrk in a safe and respectful envirnment. The University and each graduate assistant need t recgnize and accept their respnsibilities t maintain a safe wrk envirnment thrugh cmpliance with applicable health and safety legislatin and regulatins. Departments will prvide graduate assistants with training, rientatin and infrmatin needed t perfrm their wrk duties in a safe manner. If a graduate assistant cnsiders their wrkplace t be unsafe r that anther persn is perfrming wrk in an unsafe manner, they need t immediately reprt the cnditin t the authrity in charge f safety, the Graduate Assistantship Supervisr, and/r Department Chair. If the Department Chair and Graduate Assistantship Supervisr deem the cnditins unsafe, the graduate assistant will nt be required t perfrm their duties, pending an investigatin f the safety cncerns. Graduate assistants have the right t cntact the Office f Envirnment, Health and Safety and the Office f Safe Disclsure and Human Rights, if their cncerns are nt being addressed by the Department Chair t their satisfactin. A graduate assistant wh in gd faith exercises their rights will nt be subject t the withhlding f pay, applying discipline r terminating a Graduate Assistantship. DISPUTE RESOLUTION The purpse f the dispute reslutin prcess in the Cllective Agreement is t reslve issues, prblems, cmplaints and grievances in a timely and effective manner and strive t maintain harmnius and cllegial wrking relatins. Thse invlved in a dispute shuld first make reasnable effrts t reslve the dispute thrugh infrmal, face-t-face prblem-slving. Graduate assistantship payments are initiated by the Department paying the graduate student. Departments must fllw published University deadlines fr prcessing pay infrmatin. It is the Appinting Officer s respnsibility t ensure that graduate students hlding assistantships are paid in a timely manner and respnd prmptly t address any deficiencies. Payrll Operatins lcated in the University s Human Resurce Services receives this departmental pay infrmatin/ authrizatin and prcesses the pay. ASSISTANTSHIP PAY and TUITION DEDUCTIONS Graduate students must set up direct depsit in Bear Tracks befre their first payment date. Graduate assistants are paid semi-mnthly (twice a mnth), in arrears. Fr example, graduate students being paid fr the September 1 15 perid, shuld expect t receive their pay, via direct depsit, n September 25. Refer t the University s Human Resurces website fr the semi-mnthly pay perids and pay dates. All payments are made by direct depsit t the graduate student's persnal bank accunt. The University autmatically deducts 80% f any remaining tuitin and nninstructinal fees wing frm a graduate student s assistantship pay (including a GRAF). This includes any Internatinal Differential Fees. Any Fall term tuitin and fees wing as f Octber 1 will be deducted frm the graduate student's semi-mnthly Octber, Nvember, and December pay, divided int six installments. (Keep in mind that the first Octber pay is fr earnings frm September 15 t September 30.) Prepared by Faculty Relatins, Office f the Prvst & GSA
Graduate students with questins abut their assistantship pay shuld first refer t their Department graduate administratr. Similarly, any Winter term tuitin and fees wing as f February 1 will be autmatically deducted frm the graduate student's semimnthly February, March, and April pay, divided int six installments. (Keep in mind that the first February pay is fr earnings frm January 15 t January 31.) Fr Spring Term, tuitin and fees wing are deducted in May and June, and in Summer Term, in July and August. GTAs and GRAs: On Bear Tracks>My Paycheque, assistantship pay is listed in the Hurs and Earnings bx and is brken dwn int tw lines, Regular Salary cmpnent and Bursary cmpnent. Fr GRAFs, pay is listed in the Hurs and Earnings bx as Bursary. Any tuitin and fees deducted are listed in the After-Tax Deductins bx as Teaching/Research Assistant. Graduate students wh have assistantships cannt exempt themselves frm this payrll deductin. In rder t have n tuitin and fees deducted frm graduate student assistantship pay, the full tuitin and fees fr the Fall, Winter, Spring, r Summer terms must be paid by the respective fee payment deadlines. Autmatic payrll deductin is nly taken frm assistantship funding. Installments are nt withdrawn frm any schlarship r ther types f funding graduate students may be receiving. Graduate students are respnsible fr any utstanding balance wing t the University fr tuitin r ther assessed fees. The University des nt print r mail tax slips (T4/T4A); they are available thrugh Bear Tracks in February f the year fllwing emplyment. Graduate students must cnsent t receive their tax slips nline thrugh Bear Tracks. Cnsent is nly required nce. Prepared by Faculty Relatins, Office f the Prvst & GSA