Dear Member,
As you may recall, during the negotiations for the 24-27 collective bargaining agreement, the FSU Core Bargaining Team (CBT) proposed language that would have created a fund to pay for immigration costs for our international members and their families. The CBT was unable to reach agreement with the Administration on that proposal. We did reach agreement on language to create a labor-management committee that would further examine the issues surrounding immigration costs for international faculty (see contract language below). This committee would have the authority to reach a formal memorandum of agreement.
We, the FSU members of the visa committee, write to provide you with the results of our work (contact the FSU office for a copy of the report). We start by noting that we are disappointed in this result. Our work on the committee began with a continuation of the CBT’s goals of memorializing a fund to cover immigration costs. We held our first meeting with the Administration in early Fall 25 and met multiple times between then and the release of the final memorandum of agreement. Initially, the Administration seemed supportive of this effort. But over the last few months of meetings with the Administration, it became clear that they were not willing to commit to enshrining in the contract any language regarding a fund to cover immigration costs for international faculty. During the course of our discussions with the Administration, we provided multiple alternatives to our initial proposal and expressed a willingness to compromise to reach an agreement. It wasn’t until the committee’s final meeting that the Administration provided us with a suggestion, not in writing. It was made clear that the most they were willing to do was to amend their guidelines to college administrators that would make it clear that transition funds for new hires could be used to cover immigration costs (that language can be seen in the report).
The FSU members of the committee debated whether or not to even co-sign a memorandum of agreement with the Administration. But after some consideration, and after conversations with members of the FSU international faculty caucus, we decided that some small movement in the right direction was better than nothing. That said, we remain committed to the principles that the CBT brought forward via their initial proposal in bargaining and that the FSU members of this committee brought to our work with the Administration. We urge the members of the next CBT to continue to put forward proposals in line with these principles in the next round of contract negotiations, and we urge FSU members concerned about these issues to stay involved and continue to press the Administration to do what’s right for our international faculty members and librarians.
Sincerely,
The Members of the FSU Visa Committee:
Maria Carvajal Regidor, Assistant Professor, English
Miguel Montalva Barba, Assistant Professor, Sociology
Wei Zhang, Professor, Management Sciences and Information Systems
26.6.3 The parties agree to establish a labor management committee for the purpose of researching costs related to visa reimbursements for bargaining unit members. The committee shall be composed of 3 members from the Union and 3 members from the University. The committee shall meet no later than 90 days after the execution of the agreement and shall submit any joint recommendations to their respective bargaining teams by December 15, 2025, at which time the committee shall disband. The parties shall attempt to negotiate a memorandum of agreement as an extension of this collective bargaining agreement