NMU faculty union heads back to bargaining table

MARQUETTE (WJMN) -- Northern Michigan University faculty are staffing informational tables, displaying union posters and buttons and gathering online support as negotiators prepare to return to the bargaining table Friday, Oct. 16.

“We want Northern students and the larger community to understand the importance of the principles we’re fighting for,” said Ron Sundell, president of the NMU chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), the faculty union.

Dissatisfaction over those issues and others led faculty on Sept. 23 to reject a tentative agreement that union and administration representatives had negotiated over the summer. The 132-107 vote marked the first time faculty at the 110-year old institution had failed to ratify a contract.

Union chief negotiator Lesley Putman is optimistic that resumed talks will yield a better agreement. “Hopefully, we can get something agreeable to both sides that will ultimately increase the quality of education for NMU students,” Putman said.

The American Association of University Professors represents the 297 full time professors at NMU's campus.