Dear McGill Community,

We, the undersigned McGill union representatives, condemn in the strongest possible terms McGill Senior Administration’s recent announcement of layoffs and broader policy of austerity in the face of supposed budget shortfalls. 

McGill seeks to push the consequences of budget shortfalls onto its already overworked staff while seeking to insulate their extremely well-paid Senior Administration. McGill Senior Administration has claimed that they have a budget shortfall of $45 million projected for 2025-26 and that staffing accounts for 80% of overall university expenses. What they fail to mention is that over 17%  of McGill’s salary budget was spent on executive and management staff as of the 2023-24 financial year. In 2013-14, this figure was 9%. If McGill’s executive and managerial salary mass had risen at the same rate as all other job classes at the university, the university would be saving $71 million dollars. 

Initially, McGill Senior Administration said a loss of 350-500 jobs would be necessary. Now they are announcing 99 initial layoffs. Conveniently, 99 is exactly the threshold for the minimum 8 weeks of notice under Quebec law regulating collective dismissal. For the dismissal of 100-299 workers, a notice period of 12 weeks is required; for over 300, a notice period of 16 weeks is required. How can we trust that there will be no further layoffs?

Despite supposed concern for budgetary deficits, the McGill University Senior Administration decided to hire NousCubane, a group of consultants associated with commencing layoffs at other universities in Canada. NousCubane was paid $372,500 by McGill Senior Administration to send surveys to all full-time employees. McGill Senior Administration did this « consultation” without the unions, before announcing the cuts at the February 7th town hall. In doing so, the unions contend that McGill Administration infringed on Article 12 of the Quebec Labour Code which states that “No employer, or person acting for an employer or an association of employers, shall in any manner seek to dominate, hinder or finance the formation or the activities of any association of employees, or to participate therein.” This clear mismanagement of funds not only targets the workers at McGill, but the larger McGill community who will be directly harmed by cuts to services and departments.

Why does McGill insist that a $45 million shortfall requires cutting up to 500 staff? Are McGill’s executives and managers taking any salary cuts to do their part in keeping the university solvent? Are they reviewing their own positions and compensation packages with the same scrutiny they offer to the rest of us?  Why do they judge themselves more necessary than the employees doing the on-the-ground work vital to the continued operations of our university? McGill’s global profile and prestige does not come from its executives. It comes from the achievements of workers, students, and alumni. 

We call on McGill’s Senior Administration to acknowledge their role in McGill’s current budgetary crisis and take action accordingly. We call for a moratorium on job cuts until there is a freeze and cut on executive salaries.

Signed by:

MUNACA Executive Committee

AMUSE Executive Committee

AGSEM Executive Committee

AMURE Executive Committee

SEU Executive Committee

References & Sources

https://www.datawrapper.de/_/rJ9Hy

Salary mass by job class and year 2013-2023.xlsx

McGill Annual Reports to National Assembly

Important Member Townhall: Horizon McGill, Layoffs, Fight back!

Dear Members,

There has been an outpouring of anger about the recent layoffs announced by McGill.  You are rightfully anxious and angry. On March 31st from 12:00 to 1:oopm there will be a virtual members’ Town Hall to discuss the crisis and how you can fight back against cuts, reorganizations, and increased workloads.  

Topics will include

• Nous Group / Horizon McGill
• Members’ Fight Back Campaign
• Member Rights

Register in advance, once your membership has been verified, you will receive the meeting link.  Send your questions in advance so they can be prioritized. See you there! 

In solidarity,

MUNACA

Dear MUNACA Members,

We have looked into the UniForum questionnaire. The questions may appear innocuous and even legitimate, but the context reveals that they are not.

At the University’s Town Hall on February 7th, it was announced that the “salary mass” of administrative personnel would be reduced due to financial difficulties. In clear terms, they are threatening to lay off administrative personnel in the near future.

The employer intends to use this survey to justify laying us off, abolishing our jobs, and reorganizing our workplace, all while the compensation for those making these decisions continues to balloon. The employer has the gall to ask for the support of those whose livelihoods are in jeopardy, to help to determine which positions should be cut first! 

We urge our fellow union members to use this template to respond to this so-called “survey.”

Instructions:

• For all multiple-choice or rating questions regarding professional staff and services, select high satisfaction responses.
  
• For any written response sections, use the following statement:

“I am very satisfied with the dedication and hard work of my colleagues at McGill, who consistently strive to provide essential services despite years of hiring freezes. This survey fails to distinguish between the decisions made by senior administration’s policies and processes versus the actual performance of frontline staff.

Our frontline workforce holds irreplaceable institutional knowledge and expertise, essential to the university’s daily operations. We will not allow this data to be weaponized through surveys to rationalize the destruction of our jobs and livelihoods.

We are ready and willing to have a genuine conversation about how this university can be better managed, but this survey is not the forum. It is a tool designed to justify cuts, not a meaningful dialogue. We believe that all McGill staff deserve respect, security, and the resources to do their jobs effectively.”

On February 7th, 2025, the University surprisingly announced, during their Townhall, some disturbing news that MUNACA was surprised to learn, especially considering the magnitude of what was being disclosed. 

Considering the Employer’s failure to contact the Union prior to this announcement, we have requested a meeting with the Employer as soon as possible. The purpose of this meeting is to address all of the current and upcoming reorganizations, restructurings and their consequences, including abolitions and potential layoffs. Our intention is to mitigate the upcoming ‘Project Horizon’.

We will keep you updated as the situation evolves.

We strongly recommend that you:

Verify that your Seniority is Correct 

●     by going into Workday and the November 2024 Seniority list and ensuring these are reflective of your time at McGill. If it is incorrect, contact HR to have it corrected and CC reception@munaca.com. 

●     If you suspect you are on soft/research funds please make sure that you have your letters ofhire/appointments and verify if indeed you belong to some research group (as of what date) as these groups may or may not have job security.If you are unsure please contact us. 

Let us know about any Reorganizations, Restructuring or Shuffling of personnel so we can take a look into it 

Have questions or concerns about seniority, reorganizations or anything else? 

Contact your nearest Steward or the MUNACA office 

(email reception@munaca.com; Tel 514-371-2222)