REAPPOINTMENT LETTER
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If you are an NYU adjunct with reappointment rights you must submit a reappointment letter every year by December 15 to keep your union-won job security.
Important Points
More About Your Reappointment Rights Q: How do I qualify for Article X reappointment rights? A: Article X in our contract guarantees eligible adjuncts the right to reappointment or termination pay. You are qualified if you have taught at least two semesters in two consecutive years, or at least four semesters over four consecutive years. This means any semesters -- fall, spring, summer, and or winter sessions -- in consecutive academic years. Q: Why is this so important? A: Article X gives eligible adjuncts the right to termination pay if they are not reappointed to classes they have taught over consecutive years. Article X does not guarantee reappointment, but was designed to present a strong financial disincentive for your dismissal. If you send in your reappointment letter before December 15, NYU is expected to pay you the full value of your lost classes for one year if you are dismissed or if your classes are reduced. (This does not include classes cancelled for low enrollment or curriculum change.) But if you don’t send in your reappointment letter you can not collect, and you could be more vulnerable to dismissal. Q: Then what happens? A: On or before May 21 of the following year, NYU must send you a teaching schedule for fall, winter, and spring semesters in the upcoming academic year. Summer reappointment notification is confirmed later, on March 21. If you are not reappointed to your courses or not notified by May 21, please contact the union immediately. Q: What do I do? A: Click this link and use our reappointment letter template.
Q: What changed in the 2022 contract? A: The union worked hard to rewrite Article X. The most significant change is most adjuncts will now get reappointment rights after teaching two courses for two years, instead of three, and those who teach only one course per year will be protected after four consecutive years, instead of six. We tried to permanently get rid of the required annual December 15 letter; instead, we weakened it. Starting in 2024, NYU will agree reappointment rights are automatic. But, in order to be paid out for termination or course reduction, adjuncts must either continue to send in the annual December 15 letter, or accept May 21 or March 21 reappointments within 30 days. We recommend adjuncts continue to send the December 15 reappointment letter. There's more: We also defined low enrollment and curriculum change; both were used as loopholes to let go of adjuncts. Now low enrollment is defined as less than 50 percent of scheduled enrollment, or 5 or fewer students enrolled, whichever is higher. Curriculum change is mostly defined by what it is not; please read the contract or contact an adjunct rep for a longer explanation. And in case an adjunct is terminated, or a course is reduced, the 2022 contract adds 25 percent to the payout for those who have taught consecutively for more than 10 years. Finally, we also changed the name of the article to Re-Appointment, Continued Service, and Unpaid Time-Off in order to let adjuncts know they can take unpaid time off, and we shortened the amount of time it takes to accrue this right. Some Common Myths About Your Job Security Article X rights are not protected by:
Myth: “I’ve already been notified of my upcoming appointments. I don’t need to send the letter.” Fact: You must send the letter regardless of your department’s actions or notifications. Myth: “I don’t have to worry. My reappointment is automatic.” Fact: There is no such thing as automatic reappointment. You must follow the reappointment procedure to protect your rights. Myth: “I am assured of my class because I have seniority and I’ve been teaching it for years and years.” Fact: There is no “seniority” provision for adjuncts in our contract with NYU. You are never assured of your class, regardless of your long-term service. Your reappointment is entirely at the discretion of your department. Myth: “I just talked to my chair and was told this procedure isn’t necessary because they like me so much.” Fact: Your department colleagues and administrators mean well, but they probably don’t know our contract. |
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From Our Contract
A. Subject to the other provisions of Article X: 1. An employee with prior good performance as an eligible adjunct in the same department of a School of the University for not fewer than two semesters (Fall, Winter, Spring or Summer) in each of the two (2) consecutive Academic Years immediately preceding a re-appointment, shall be notified by that University department no later than May 21 of any appointment for the following Fall semester, Winter Intersession, and/or Spring semesters. Such notification of re-appointment shall be subject to course cancellation due to insufficiency of registration or changes in curriculum in each semester. If, for other reasons, such employee: (i) is not re-appointed to an adjunct position, they shall receive termination pay, by no later than September 1, equivalent to the monetary compensation they received for the most recent Academic Year; or by mutual agreement between the adjunct and the department, in lieu of any termination pay, the adjunct may accept a terminal teaching assignment for up to two (2) semesters; or (ii) is re-appointed to an adjunct position, but to a fewer number of courses for the Academic Year than the lowest consistent number of courses for which they were appointed in each of the previous two (2) consecutive Academic Years, they shall receive course load reduction pay, by no later than September 1, for each course reduced, at the contact hour pay rate of the previous Academic Year. 2. An employee with prior good performance as an eligible adjunct in the same department of a School of the University in the Fall, Winter, Spring or Summer semesters for each of the four (4) consecutive academic years immediately preceding a re-appointment, shall be notified by that University department no later than May 21 of appointment for one (1) semester in the following Academic Year if appointment is to be in the Fall semester, Winter Intersession, or Spring semester. Such notification of re-appointment, shall be subject to course cancellation due to insufficiency of registration or changes in curriculum each semester. If, for other reasons, such employee: (i) is not re-appointed to an adjunct position, they shall receive termination pay, by no later than September 1, equivalent to the monetary compensation they received for the previous semester’s appointment as an adjunct; or by mutual agreement between the adjunct and the department, in lieu of any termination pay, the adjunct may accept a terminal teaching assignment for one semester; or (ii) is re-appointed to an adjunct position, but to a fewer number of courses for the Academic Year than the lowest consistent number of courses for which they were appointed in each of the previous four (4) consecutive Academic Years, they shall receive course load reduction pay, by no later than September 1, for each course reduced, at the contact hour pay rate of the previous Academic Year. 3. For those adjuncts eligible under this article, any notice of re-appointment for a Summer semester shall be made no later than March 21 preceding the Summer semester. B. In order to be eligible and as a condition precedent to receiving re-appointment or termination pay or course load reduction pay under paragraph A, an adjunct or part-time faculty member must notify the Chair of their department, or, in the absence of a Chair, other appropriate University administrator, of their request to teach for the following Academic Year, and of their qualification under the provisions of paragraph A. Effective Fall 2024, an adjunct or part-time faculty member must notify the Chair of their department, or, in the absence of a Chair, other appropriate University administrator, of their request to teach for the following Academic Year, and of their qualification under the provisions of paragraph A. Such notification must be in writing and be received no later than the preceding December 15. Electronic mail notice of the December 15 deadline will be distributed to adjunct faculty’s NYU electronic mail addresses at least three times in the two (2) weeks prior to December 15. Relevant information about how to complete and submit a request to teach under this Article also shall be posted on a University webpage(s). If an adjunct or part-time faculty member fails to timely submit the December 15 notification required under this Section B, they shall be permitted a grace period of up to ten (10) business days from December 15 to submit the notification. If the adjunct or part-time faculty member submits the December 15 notification required under this Section B during the grace period, the submission shall be deemed timely. Effective Fall 2024, if an adjunct or part-time faculty member fails to timely submit the December 15 notification required under Section B, they shall still be eligible to receive termination pay or course load reduction pay, as applicable, under Section A, or for the privileges under Section C, provided that they otherwise meet the criteria to receive such pay or privileges under Article X. If the adjunct faculty member is not reappointed or if there is a course load reduction (as defined in Section A), termination pay or course load reduction shall be paid by September 1 of the following Academic Year.If the adjunct faculty member is not reappointed or if there is a course load reduction (as defined in Section A) where the adjunct faculty member failed to accept an offer of appointment(s) within thirty (30) days of receiving the May 21st or March 21st letter of appointment, termination pay or course load reduction pay, as applicable, shall not be owed. |