Academic staff at the University of Prince Edward Island now have protection for their intellectual property arising from externally-funded research projects as a result of a grievance settlement between the faculty association and the university.

The university has agreed to use a template agreement, developed jointly by the association and the university, for all future third-party-funded research contracts and grants that could lead to the development of intellectual property. In addition to protecting the interests of academic staff members in issues of intellectual property, the agreement also recognizes the faculty association as the “sole and exclusive” bargaining agent and will require, in each instance, the approval of the faculty member involved, the university and the association.

The association filed the grievance in 2005 when the university attempted to assume ownership of intellectual property generated by a group of UPEI researchers by requesting assignment of the rights to the university through a “sub-agreement” with the faculty members, claiming ownership was necessary to honour its commercialization agreement with the third party collaborator.

The settlement also requires the university to inform the association of all third-party research contracts and grants in place since 2004 — the time of its first collective agreement — and those academic staff members involved in each, where intellectual property is declared by the university to be owned either entirely by the university, or jointly by the university and one or more third parties, or entirely by one or more third parties.

In these cases, says faculty association president Wayne Peters, the ownership declared by the university excludes faculty members, which conflicts with their intellectual property ownership rights under the collective agreement.

“We’re now in the process of contacting those union members affected by the settlement to confirm their agreement or disagreement with the continuation of the university’s declaration of the ownership of intellectual property as stated,” Peters said.

Should any member disagree, the university is required to seek the consent of the third party collaborator to amend its agreement with the university to reflect the interests of the member involved.

“This is an important win for our members,” Peters said. “IP policy is properly a subject of labour-management negotiations and the outcome of the settlement is a very strong recognition that the union is the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for its members in all areas addressed in the collective agreement.

“Additionally, we can now ensure our members’ rights are protected in future situations and that we can exercise our duty to fair representation to all members affected by intellectual property assignment agreements executed in the past.”