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Norene Pupo (Sociology, Arts) and Harry Smaller (Education) will represent YUFA at the founding Convention of the National Union of the Canadian Association of University Teachers (NUCAUT) and the subsequent Canadian Labour Congress Convention, both to be held in Vancouver in June.

The YUFA Executive has submitted a set of four constitutional resolutions to the NUCAUT Convention. The resolutions are aimed at making NUCAUT more than just a "shell" structure for authorising membership in the Canadian Labour Congress, as it was originally conceived.

The Executive believes that the National Union can grow and be a vital contributor to the Canadian labour movement only if it takes a broader view of its role and is structured to be more active and democratic.

The most important of YUFA's proposals are those for expanding NUCAUT's objectives. While the NUCAUT Constitution as originally drafted sets very narrow objectives, the YUFA Executive believes that NUCAUT's purposes should be in accord with its status as a national organisation representing the interests of more than 10 000 diverse, unionised academic employees.

YUFA's proposed objectives include: promoting and protecting the social role of academics; working with student groups and other allies to promote accessible, well-funded public education; and opposing harassment and discrimination in all their forms. In drafting these amendments, YUFA consulted the constitutions of many national and provincial unions, including CUPE, CAW, CEP, PSAC, CFNU, CUPW, OSSTF, and OPSEU.

YUFA also proposes to make the National Executive Board - the group that runs the Union - more active and representative. YUFA is especially concerned that the Executive Board include an officer responsible for taking on equity initiatives, an important aspect of the struggles of oppressed groups within trade unions for many years now.

In addition to Constitutional reform, the June Convention agenda includes discussions of growth, financing NUCAUT's activities, NUCAUT's role in the Canadian Labour Congress, and elections to the National Executive Board.

NUCAUT was chartered by the Canadian Labour Congress in April 2002, two years after being formed by CAUT Council. It now has over 10000 individual members from 13 affiliated unions and from Newfoundland to BC.