Classes at Acadia University are back to normal this month after a three-week strike by members of the faculty union that ended Nov. 5.

On Nov. 6, members of the Acadia University Faculty Association agreed to a three-year contract which brings compensation close to national averages and incorporates precedent-setting equity provisions.

According to AUFA chief negotiator Jim Sacouman, the association “achieved a contract that makes Acadia a more equitable workplace and produces significant improvements for our most disadvantaged members.”

Following the precedent of the 2006 Winkler award at the University of Toronto, Sacouman said both bargaining teams agreed to the principle that salaries should be consistent with Acadia’s reputation and competitive in its relevant market.

AUFA president Peter Williams stressed the importance of having sound information about the university’s priorities, historically and in its current context. “We first examined the university’s priorities with a longitudinal analysis of spending. We then compared the results with the priorities of comparable universities. The data we received from CAUT was instrumental in negotiations,” he said.

The centerpiece of the agreement is an integrated and more equitable salary structure that narrows the gaps among all categories and ranks of academic staff, has equal grid steps for all, significantly reduces the numbers of steps and substantially increases the floors.

Compensation for part-time faculty is now pegged at 10 per cent of the lecturer floor, with a starting rate by July 1, 2009 of $5,400 per three-hour course and a maximum based on seniority of $5,600. Part-timers also have improved access to computers, library privileges and e-mail services and full integration into the same grievance and arbitration procedures as full-time academics.

Salaries for librarians, which were among the lowest in Canada, have been dramatically increased.

Instructors now have a new half-sabbatical after six years of service and parity with faculty and librarians for professional development accounts of $1,800 by year three of the agreement.

Renewal, tenure and promotion procedures are now firmly rooted in departmental committees, with a process that has greater transparency and accountability.

A new joint employment equity committee will identify discriminatory barriers to employment equity.

A key gain on health benefits for this round has been met, with the establishment of a dental plan for all full-time and continuing members.

There is funding for daycare, at a minimum of $75,000 in year two and $100,000 in year three, to pay for new spaces with existing providers and to subsidize the cost of using the spaces for university employees and students.

Academic freedom has become much stronger and includes a commitment to “scrup-ulously adhere to and protect these principles against threats from inside and outside the university.”

Language on librarians’ complement and job security for long-term contract academic staff are now written into the agreement.

“These historic achievements are a mark of our members’ remarkable solidarity and commitment to equity,” Williams said in summarizing the contract. “This strike demonstrates what can be accomplished when union members stand together.”