Brief August Updates

Layoffs
Since last month’s newsletter, two additional APSA members have been laid off, bringing the total number of members laid off to 87.

Police Incident on July 31, 2025
The University has reached out to APSA and the other employee groups for feedback regarding the police incident that occurred two weeks ago on Burnaby campus. In the coming weeks, APSA and SFU will meet to discuss the incident and to provide our feedback and recommendations for how the process could be improved moving forward.

Communication gaps were very apparent, with an SFU campus-wide e-mail not being sent until late in the day, after the situation had already been resolved. Given the significant layoffs among SFU’s communications staff in recent years, we are concerned about the University’s ability to communicate effectively during emergencies. Please continue to share your feedback on both the incident and SFU’s handling of it.

Salary & Benefits Committee (S&BC) and Bargaining 2025
As you will see in this month’s newsletter, the bargaining survey for this year has now closed, and the data has been collated. Thank you to the 906 of you who were able to submit your Survey responses. This data will help shape the bargaining priorities of the Salary & Benefits Committee.

The Board has confirmed David Harvey, our long-time consultant, as APSA’s lead negotiator. The rest of the bargaining team will be appointed in the coming weeks. SFU and APSA have agreed to begin bargaining in November.

Board Elections
Elections for the APSA Board will be held in the coming months. Five of the current ten directors will see their terms end after the AGM in late November. If you have the passion and energy to contribute during these unprecedented times, we encourage you to apply when nominations open (likely in September or October).

Ongoing Items
Due to strategic matters, vacations and capacity issues, there has been limited progress on the AGM Motion to investigate unionisation, Strategic Plan 2025-30, Joint Compensation Review Committee Impasse and the SFU Academic Plan Feedback since the last newsletter.

If you have any comments or suggestions for the Board, or if you're interested in learning more about what volunteering with APSA involves, feel free to reach out to me directly at president@apsacentral.ca.

Cheers,

Ben