Adjunct faculty who teach at University of La Verne’s regional campuses are now included in the bargaining table for unionization.
As the most recent response to the Service Employees International Union’s petition to represent ULV’s adjunct faculty, administration presented its position of inclusion to the National Labor Relations Board on Nov. 14.
Approximately 294 adjunct faculty members teach on main campus and approximately 223 teach on the regional campuses, depending on the school term.
“We respect the rights and opinions of the Adjunct Professors and all University employees, including the right to decide for themselves whether union representation is right for them,” Jody Bomba, chief human resource officer, said in an email this week. “Excluding our regional campuses is counter to the University’s culture and position of greater inclusion,” Bomba said.
University spokeswoman Judy Smith Asbury said the ULV’s lawyers approached the NLRB with the issue of “community of interest.”
“If you look at how the adjuncts apparently are hired, how they’re evaluated, how they’re compensated [and] all sorts of touch points about how the administration interacts with them. It is virtually the same for them whether they are teaching regionally or they’re teaching on the main campus,” Asbury said.
At this point, the NLRB is waiting for the lawyers of both parties – SEIU and the University – to finish writing briefs for the board to consider.
After the NLRB reviews the briefs, the board will issue a decision on what the collective bargaining unit will be, Asbury said.
—Mariela Patron
