The Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU) at Simon Fraser University is seeking a Member Representative to commence work in January 2022 with an application deadline of September 15, 2021. The Member Representative reports to the Executive of the Union and works cooperatively with the elected Chief Stewards and current Member Representative to advocate on behalf of TSSU members. Essential Qualifications: Effective labour advocacy skills and experience handling grievances at all stages of the grievance procedure Experience interpreting and applying Labour Law Experience using advocacy skills to assist in mobilizing members around bargaining and grievances Comfortable working in a non-hierarchical and directly-democratic workplace alongside elected officers and rank-and-file members Has community-oriented and feminist values and is experienced in applying them effectively

TA/TM Day is SFU’s most comprehensive orientation event for both new and veteran teaching assistants and tutor-markers. Meet your peers and get information and advice from experienced TAs and other members of SFU’s academic community. You will gain knowledge, skills and confidence for your teaching support roles. All workshops for the Fall 2021 TA/TM Day will be offered virtually on Zoom. You can find out full details on the SFU website. Register here to access the opening plenary session, the TSSU lunch event, the medical benefits information session, and sessions 1.1, 2.1, 3.1 and 4.1.

Having a hard time focusing on your work alone at home? Come work with other RAs virtually! We are hosting a weekly “RA & Play ♫” for members to come together and work on their projects on Zoom. These sessions will take place every Wednesday between 10am-4pm! You don’t have to attend the entire time. Just pop in when you want to feel connected with people while you work! You can register for this week’s session here

The UVic Faculty in collaboration with faculty members at UBC and SFU have drafted a petition calling on the Provincial and Federal Government to require that all individuals who come to campus are vaccinated or undergo regular rapid testing, and that masks be mandated in all public indoor spaces, including classrooms. Ontario Universities including Waterloo and the University of Ottawa announced similar requirements yesterday, so we know it is possible!  You can sign the petition here!

Sign the letter here Post-secondary unions, faculty associations, and community members are calling on the BC government to implement stronger campus public health measures in advance of September. “The BC COVID-19 Return-to-Campus guidelines are not consistent with the best-available evidence, do not follow the precautionary principle, and disregard the layers of protection that could prevent COVID-19 transmission in post-secondary environments. We are requesting that the Ministry publish new guidelines that correct these deficiencies,” said TSSU Chief Steward Katie Gravestock. “Even in highly vaccinated countries, the extremely infectious Delta variant has proven to be a game-changer. We need both vaccination and public health measures in order to protect students, staff, and faculty as well as the wider community from infection. The

The Solidarity and Social Justic Committee (SSJC) at the Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU) condemns the displacement ordered by the Israeli Courts of those Palestinian families who lived in Sheikh Jarrah. As a union largely made up of settlers on stolen land, we know that our existence here began with the displacement of the Indigenous peoples who were here first. In both cases, this displacement is considered “legal” by the court systems, even though they sanction violence and injustice. Further, we condemn any Islamophobia and antisemitism that has manifested in conversations about this ongoing struggle. As a Union, we know how important it is to respect individuals while criticising power structures that individuals exist within.  SSJC calls on the Canadian