Membership and Dues

How do I become a member?

All full-time and part-time employ­ees, oth­er than those exclud­ed by the cer­ti­fi­ca­tion orders from the Saskatchewan Labour Rela­tions Board, are auto­mat­i­cal­ly mem­bers of the local (URFA), the provin­cial (SAUT) and nation­al (CAUT) asso­ci­a­tions. Mem­ber­ship and pay­ment of fees is manda­to­ry and com­prised of all those cov­ered by a col­lec­tive agree­ment between the Uni­ver­si­ty of Regi­na Fac­ul­ty Asso­ci­a­tion and any one of: Cam­pi­on Col­lege, the First Nations Uni­ver­si­ty of Cana­da, Luther Col­lege and the Uni­ver­si­ty of Regina.

What are the ben­e­fits of being an URFA member?

The ben­e­fits you are enti­tled to as an URFA mem­ber are the result of decades of nego­ti­a­tions on behalf of URFA mem­bers. The biggest dif­fer­ence between a union­ized and a non-union­ized work­place is nego­ti­at­ed col­lec­tive agree­ments ver­sus the exclu­sive use of employ­er poli­cies. Nego­ti­at­ed col­lec­tive agree­ments set out your salary and ben­e­fits and estab­lish mech­a­nisms to deal with day-to-day issues in the workplace. 

URFA’s nego­ti­at­ed col­lec­tive agree­ments help to ensure: 

• A safe and healthy workplace
• Fair wages and benefits
• Job secu­ri­ty
• Dig­ni­ty and respect for all members
• Equi­ty and fairness
• Oppor­tu­ni­ties for pro­fes­sion­al devel­op­ment and career advancement 

How much are dues?

URFA is mem­ber-fund­ed through the pay­ment of dues at a rate decid­ed by the membership. 

The amount of union dues you pay is based on your salary. Dues are paid month­ly at a rate of 1.35% of each member’s month­ly salary, which includes all stipends and supplements.

Union dues are tax deductible and pro­vide all mem­bers with a range of ben­e­fits, including: 

• Assis­tance when deal­ing with work­place-relat­ed issues, ques­tions, con­cerns, appeals and grievances
• Nego­ti­at­ing col­lec­tive agree­ments to ensure that mem­bers get the best pos­si­ble salaries and benefits
• Lob­by­ing for improve­ments to your workplace
• Com­mu­ni­ca­tions to raise the pro­file and aware­ness of URFA and the work that its mem­bers do
• Mem­ber­ship in affil­i­ate orga­ni­za­tions includ­ing the Cana­di­an Asso­ci­a­tion of Uni­ver­si­ty Teach­ers (CAUT) and the Saskatchewan Fed­er­a­tion of Labour
  
• Access to oth­er URFA ser­vices includ­ing notary pub­lic and mem­ber emer­gency fund (see Emer­gency Fund Policy)
  

How can URFA help me?

Our team of mem­ber ser­vices offi­cers are here to help you with: 

• Work­place com­plaints and grievances
• Rep­re­sen­ta­tion in meet­ings between your­self and the employer
• Resolv­ing mem­ber conflicts
• Assis­tance with work­place accommodations
• Mem­ber appeals
• Pro­vid­ing guid­ance and advice for per­for­mance reviews
• Pro­vid­ing guid­ance, advice and sup­port dur­ing work­place investigations
• Assis­tance with return to work fol­low­ing a leave

If you’d like to speak with one of our Mem­ber Ser­vices Offi­cers, send our office an email anytime.