Legal action prompted the University of Maine System on Nov. 20 to pause its plans to shift retirees to a new health-care insurance regime starting Jan. 1, 2021. Bangor Daily News story: https://bangordailynews.com/2020/11/19/news/umaine-system-halts-switch-to-new-retiree-health-plan-after-lawsuit/?order=9
All part-time faculty members in the University of Maine System are invited to participate in PATFA’s Annual Meeting on Saturday, Oct. 24. We will gather via Zoom.
The meeting will begin at 10:30 a.m. and is likely to last no more than 90 minutes. This year, you must RSVP at the email patfa@maine.edu if you plan to attend.
The University of Maine System announced fall reopening plans on July 1. The pdf containing them is here. The document is long on rhetoric and short on details.https://www.maine.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/1/2020/07/Together-for-Maine-Principles-DISTRIBUTE-JULY-1-2020.pdf
And here is another pdf that has some details:
Dear colleagues: Finals Week is just the beginning. So your Part-time Faculty Association of Maine (PATFA) offers this update on issues affecting all of us in May 2020 – as well as the months ahead.
First, the University of Maine System is still calculating its Fiscal Year 2020 costs, and the vice chancellor for finance told university union leaders April 23 that the July state revenue forecasts for the Legislature should be watched closely for clues to how the System’s funding will be affected in the new fiscal year. Until then, lots of questions remain unanswered.
The American Federation of Teachers reports that an alarming number of adjunct faculty members are scraping by on poverty wages: Nearly 25 percent rely on public assistance to survive, and a whopping 40 percent have trouble covering basic household expenses.
