Below are the candidate statements for the Fall 2017 Election Cycle. If you are a TSSU member, you should now have received a voting token by email, and will be able to cast your vote until Wednesday 8th November at 5.30pm. If you have not received a voting token, please contact coordinator@tssu.ca

Chair - Alicia Massie

Hello TSSU members!

I’m Alicia Massie—though please call me Alli—and I am running for the position of Chair.
I am a 2 nd year PhD student in the School of Communication. I’ve been a TSSU member since I
began my degree, and have been TA-ing as a graduate student since I started my graduate
education 4 years ago. I’m currently working as a TA and steward in the School of
Communication and hoping to make the move to sessional-ing next year.

My involvement with the TSSU has increased exponentially over the last year and a half,
largely because of the wonderful and welcoming people in executive positions now, but also
because of my deep respect and appreciation for the union’s democratic, feminist, and non-
hierarchical structure. Over the past year, I’ve served on the Anti-Harassment Committee, the
Social Justice and Solidarity Committee, the Membership Mobilization Committee, and have
recently joined the Internal Relations and Grievance Committees. I’ve joined these groups not
only because I’m a sucker for committee work and great snacks, but because I’ve loved learning
more about the organizational workings of the TSSU, and the admirable ways in which a union
dedicated to its members actually manages to live up to its goals.

Through my work on these committees, but also through my time spent navigating
other aspects of University politics, I’ve realized I really want to devote my energy to
somewhere productive – and that place is the TSSU. I’m running for Chair because, other having
a loud voice when I need it, I am quite familiar with how meetings are structured as well as the
union’s bylaws and policies. I’m confident I will be able to run efficient, collaborative, and
respectful meetings. I admire consistency, initiative, and organization in my Chairs—and would
be sure to bring those qualities to the position. I would continue my work on all committees,
and would look forward to bringing my growing breadth of knowledge about the TSSU and
labour organizing more generally to my role.

Thank you for your consideration and taking the time to read this.
In solidarity,
Alli Massie

Chief Steward (By-election) - Scott Yano

My name is Scott Yano, and I am running for the position of Chief Steward. It has been my pleasure and
honour to have worked with ten different Chief Stewards over the last thirteen years, in my position on
three contract committees over three rounds of bargaining, and as Shop Steward for the English
Language and Culture and Interpretation and Translation programs at Harbour Centre. I have also
worked on a number of grievances, both as a Shop Steward, and current member of the Grievance
Committee, and I think I have a solid grounding in the language of the Collective Agreement. I believe
this experience with the agreement, and the people enforcing it, has given me a foundation in the skills,
knowledge, and ability necessary to represent the TSSU in grievances, in preparation for and execution
of the next round of bargaining, and in other duties and responsibilities associated with the Chief
Steward position.

Coordinator - Adam Dyck

Greetings everyone!

My name is Adam Dyck (he/him pronouns), and I am a recent Master of Science in Mathematics, now
working as a TA in the Department of Mathematics. I have been the TSSU Chair since December 2015,
and I now seek your support in my run for the position of Coordinator.

I got involved with the TSSU during the 2014-2015 strike period, at which time I worked polling stations
and shared information with members about the lengthy bargaining process. This morphed into a
position on the Executive as Chair, and since then I have been variously involved with the Membership
Mobilization and Internal Relations Committees.

With my graduate studies behind me (for now), my focus is on education and activism. I have seen the
many benefits of union work in the families and communities around me, and serving as the TSSU
Coordinator is another way for me to learn about this work while engaging in it. I am also physically
coordinated: I successfully balanced tutoring, TA work, and other part-time jobs to support myself
through seven years of university, and my mathematical background lends itself to a high degree of
personal organisation (to the occasional befuddlement of my roommate).

I'd be honoured to serve as the TSSU Coordinator; thank you for your consideration!

In solidarity,
Adam

Occupational Health And Safety Commissioner - Ukoabasi (Uko) Isip

My name is Uko and I am running for Occupational Health and Safety Commissioner. I
am an MSc student in the Faculty of Health Sciences and I also TA a foundational
course in Health Sciences. I have been actively involved with the OH & S committee
since the Spring of 2016 working actively in about two SFU local joint safety committees
in conjunction with other union and non-union SFU staff.

One of the goals of the OH & S committee is to get TSSU input into safety issues in all
three SFU campuses. The OH & S committee is also actively involved in safety
inspections and creating safety awareness among TAs and other staff/students.
One of my goals as the OH & S commissioner will be to ensure adequate
representation of TSSU on all safety committees on campus, ensure that the safety of
TAs is protected, particularly those whose jobs put them at greater risk (e.g. in labs). I
will also make effort to ensure that necessary information on safety training for TAs and
safety committee members is properly disseminated. I also hope to render other
services to the union as may be required during my proposed tenure as the OH & S
commissioner.

Organizer - Zachary Williams:

Dear fellow members of the TSSU,

My name is Zachary Williams, and I am running as a candidate for Organizer of our union. I
have been a member of the TSSU since September 2015, during the last strike. On my first
day, I arrived for picket duty and had the privilege of sharing the picket line with many
fellow members who I have come to consider close friends and comrades. Soon after I
became a steward in the School of Communication, a position I held until this year. I was
inspired by the commitment and diligence of so many member during the strike, just as I
have continued to be encouraged by the hard work that has gone into making good on the
vital sessional instructor seniority protections and other victories we won as part of the
current Collective Agreement. I believe it is vitally important to continue fighting to ensure
that the employer abides by the rules governing their conduct as set out in our contract. It
is also important to look ahead to the coming year, which will present its own unique set of
challenges and opportunities, both on- and off-campus. The TSSU has been a tireless
advocate for all of us—not only the membership, but our students, as well as our colleagues
and fellow workers with whom we share in the struggle to make SFU a more equitable and
just place to work and live. I hope for the chance to do my part in building on this
foundation with all of you.

In solidarity,
Zachary Williams

Trustee - George Temple:

I'm George Temple, and I'm hoping to serve the TSSU as Trustee, helping to interpret the bylaws of our union. Our bylaws govern the union's internal operations and delimit many of the ways we engage with outside groups, which in turn enable us to commit to larger efforts for social justice. In this role, I hope to use my experience to improve the union's internal communication as much as possible, building on my experience as: faculty outreach committee member and contract committee member for TSSU, steward for our members in the English department at SFU, and (alongside Reagan Belan and Derek Sahota) one of the spokespeople for our last strike. I've served in a variety of roles outside the union as well, including PhD representative for my caucus and volunteer organizer with Unite Here Local 40; I'm hoping that the skills I've learned from the rad people I've been surrounded by can be useful to our collective, and that through my role as steward I can help the members continue to connect with others at SFU and in the greater Vancouver area and continue their own radical (and rad) work to change our society so that it works for all of us.

If this sounds like someone you'd want interpreting your bylaws, then vote for me! If not, vote against me!