Article 16 - Appointment

Consistent with the provisions of Article 14, the applicant for a vacancy who possesses the right of first refusal in relation to a particular course and priority (see 16.02) shall be offered an appointment to teach the course when it is offered on a sessional basis. A qualified applicant with priority may apply for and be assigned up to twelve (12) credit units in the Fall and Winter Session. Such applicants are entitled to be appointed for up to twelve (12) credit units before another applicant is appointed.

If more than one applicant has a right of first refusal in relation to the same course, priority shall be given to the applicant who has the most priority points in the department. In the case of a non-departmentalized college, priority shall be given to the applicant who has the most priority points in the college. Where possible, location and time preferences will be respected. If two or more applicants have accumulated the same number of priority points, priority will be given to the applicant who has accumulated the most priority points in the department or non-departmentalized college within the past four (4) years. Credit units for determining priority will include courses that are currently being taught.

Updated priority lists will be made available to departments in the months of August, October and February. The priority list for a department or non-departmentalized college will show the accumulated priority points for each sessional lecturer who has the right of first refusal for a course offered by that department or non-departmentalized college. Each priority point represents six (6) credit units taught for the department or non-departmentalized college or the equivalent amount of teaching as an applied music instructor. (See Article 16.04.) It does not include courses taught for another department or non-departmentalized college.

All applicants will receive written notification of the decision within twenty-one (21) days of the closing of the seven (7) day posting period. If there are no applications from persons who have the right of first refusal, the Employer may decide to repost the vacancy prior to notifying applicants. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure their contact information is updated regularly on PAWS and with their department.

Candidates will inform the Employer, in writing, within one (1) week of receipt of the offer whether or not they accept the offer.

No individual shall, through right of first refusal or otherwise, secure more than twelve (12) credit units in the Fall and Winter Session unless the Vice-President (Academic) has approved the teaching assignment and the Employer has provided notification to the Union, confirming that no applicant with right of first refusal, nor any applicant who has applied and taught the course previously as a sessional, is being displaced. (Agreed June 20, 2007.)

An employee who has been assigned eighteen (18) credit units within the twelve (12) month period between September 1 and August 31 shall not be appointed to teach an additional course during the same twelve (12) month period if there is any other applicant possessing the right of first refusal for that course or failing that, any other applicant who has previously taught the course as a sessional lecturer and whom the University wishes to hire. The exception to this provision would be in the case of a course cancellation as described in Article 17.04.

For the purpose of determining the maximum teaching assignment for an Applied Music Instructor, two (2) hours of instruction per week will be considered comparable to a one (1) credit unit assigned to a sessional lecturer. Thus, the maximum teaching assignment during the Fall and Winter Session will be twenty-four (24) hours of applied music instruction per week for the period from September to April.

Recognizing there may be situations outside of Saskatoon in which it would be beneficial to appoint a person who resides in the location where a course will be taught, the Union and Employer agree that the normal provisions of right of first refusal may be superseded to give preference to a person residing in the location where the course will be taught, provided the location is outside of Saskatoon and the person appointed has taught the course as a member of the bargaining unit within the past three (3) years.

In accordance with the objectives of SUNTEP as set out in the Agreement between the Gabriel Dumont Institute, the Province of Saskatchewan, and the University of Saskatchewan and the affirmative action initiatives of the Gabriel Dumont Institute, the parties agree that there may be special considerations in selecting sessional lecturers to teach courses for SUNTEP, providing the applicants selected have qualifications comparable to those required to teach the same courses as part of the regular program or special qualifications required to teach the courses in that program. Accordingly, the Employer shall retain the right to override the normal right of first refusal provisions in order to appoint Indigenous persons to teach courses for SUNTEP. The Employer will advise the Union any time an appointment is made under this program.

In exceptional cases when a highly acclaimed scholar in an area of specialization or an individual publicly renowned in a particular field of endeavour is available for a brief period of time, right of first refusal of an applicant may be set aside once in order to appoint the scholar or celebrity. The Employer shall forward to the Union at least thirty (30) days before the course begins the applicant's name, an outline of those qualifications which render that person a specialist and the rationale for the appointment. Appointment of the specialist shall not exceed one (1) course. The applicant with right of first refusal who would otherwise have taught the course will receive a priority point at the appropriate rates.

In the case where a course is directed specifically to a target group identified by The Saskatchewan Human Rights Code, and the sessional lecturer appointment requires special background or training to teach the course effectively, the Employer may ask that the normal provisions of right of first refusal be superseded to give preference to a person who has the special background or training deemed necessary. The request will include an explanation of the special background or training required. Such request will be made as soon as possible and may be made before the course offering is finalized. Renewal of the request must be made annually to continue the arrangement. The Union will respond within one (1) month of the request for new requests, and within two (2) weeks for continuation or renewal of previously agreed to instances.

Occasionally, very similar courses are taught concurrently. Sessional lecturers appointed to teach more than one course at the same time and in the same location will be remunerated for teaching a single course if the posting has specified that this will be a concurrent teaching assignment. When a second course is added to a sessional lecturer's teaching assignment following the acceptance of any appointment to teach a single course, supplementary remuneration may be appropriate under certain circumstances. For example, if the addition of the second course requires more than minimal further preparation on the part of the sessional lecturer or if the combined enrolment of the concurrent courses exceeds the limit posted for the single course. Supplementary remuneration will be arranged through Human Resources and will be subject to the agreement of the Union.

Per the terms and conditions of Article 15 and Article 16, should a department (or college in non-departmentalized colleges) deem it beneficial to utilize a Continuing Sessional Lecturer, the following terms and conditions would apply:

1. Continuing Sessional Lecturers are term appointments made within academic departments (or in colleges in the case of non-departmentalized colleges). A Continuing Sessional Lecturer appointment is one in which a sessional lecturer is appointed to and responsible for a specific course for up to a three (3) year term renewable upon agreement by the parties.
2. Appointees are remunerated on a per course basis.
3. Candidates must possess the appropriate academic and or professional qualifications.
4. Formal teaching assessments shall be conducted as per Article 18.
5. Renewal of a Continuing Sessional Lecturer term position shall be determined in the last year of the term position, and by departmental needs, and recommended by the department head to the Dean for approval.
6. If a Continuing Sessional Lecturer term position is to be discontinued prior to the end of the stated term, written notice must be given three (3) months in advance. The appointees are required to give three (3) months' notice in the event of resignation from the position.
7. If at any time during this appointment the course offering is to be cancelled for that academic term, the Course Cancellation Clause as per Article 17.01 will apply.