Abstract

This thesis examines the influence that unionized faculty associations have had on the management and governance structures of Canadian universities by exploring the reasons that led to certification, the certification process, and the collective bargaining history at three research level Anglophone universities. Since the 1940s Canadian labour legislation has permitted unionization and collective bargaining in the private sector, but it was only in the mid 1960s that changes in the legislation, at both the federal and provincial levels, allowed individuals in the public sector to unionize. The certification of professionals in the public sector gave Canadian university faculty associations the model they needed to consider unionization and collective bargaining as a viable means by which they might ensure academic freedom, increase faculty autonomy and improve compensation. The three universities--the University of Manitoba, Dalhousie University and Queen's University--were studied using case study methodology, which included interviews, examination of primary and secondary documentation, and textual analysis of collective agreements. In each case, the conditions under which unionization occurred have been examined, the reasons for certification analysed, and the results discussed. This study shows that unionization led in fundamental ways to changes in the governance and management structure of the universities, with authority relating to faculty personnel matters shifting from the senate to direct negotiations between the board of governors and faculty associations. As a result, significant management powers have devolved from the senior academic administrators to academic peers. The gentlemen's agreements, formerly forged during senate debates, have been replaced by negotiated collective agreements. The overall implications of these changes on the governance and management of Canadian Anglophone universities have generally been positive, but only time will tell whether they will continue to be so.