Explanation:

As of April 17, 2000, the GTFF has only received information on 220 of approximately 1200 GTFs. In addition to the information requests that have yet to be answered, many GTFs have called and stopped by the GTFF office to tell us that they have received insurance cancellation notices despite the fact that there has been no change in their status as GTFs. Because the GTFF does not have accurate records of current GTFs, the GTFF cannot be sure that all GTFs eligible for insurance benefits have been informed of their eligibility. Students are being denied medical coverage because of the university policy. This sudden change in policy has not only denied the GTFF information that was critical to the pursuit of negotiations and in the future, determining violations of the contract, but the change in policy has created undue hardship and confusion for GTFs.

As a labor union, the GTFF is legally entitled to information regarding members, or potential members in order to fulfill representative duties. The actions by the University Administration have denied the GTFF this right and made it difficult for the GTFF to administer the health insurance plan and fulfill obligations to GTFF membership. The University Administration has contractually agreed to provide us with membership lists at specific intervals and on specific dates. Since March 17, we have not received the membership lists according to the contract between the GTFF and the University of Oregon.

The GTFF asks the University Administration to immediately comply with the contract between the University and the GTFF. Even though no University has ever faced monetary sanctions for the violations feared because of 26-year old FERPA regulations, University Administrators nevertheless continue to withhold this said information. However, contractual obligations should not to be dismissed so easily.

The remedy presented by the University of Oregon officials is to require each GTF to fill out a release of information waiver. In addition to this solution's contradiction to labor law and the University's contractual obligation, the method of dissemination and collection has proven to be inadequate. Not all GTFs have received copies of the waiver, and many are under the assumption that the GTFF is distributing them. Also, the GTFF may require information on graduate students that are not GTFs to ensure that the contract are not being violated and to collect information on graduate students who may be excluded from the bargaining unit (graduate students on training grants for example).

Here is the wording, please feel free to contact me if changes areneeded. Thanks as always, Jereme Grzybowski

Although the GTFF correctly points out that the Univ is required under Article 3, Section 2 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement Provisions to release GTF directory information, that requirement appears to be in error.  Even though the article exempts the Univ from liability, in fact, the University is liable as has been demonstrated in numerous court decisions over the past decade.  The Collective Bargaining Agreement cannot simply wipe away the Univ's responsiblity in this matter.