CUNY DIGITAL HISTORY ARCHIVE

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Statements of Belle Zeller and Israel Kugler before the Board of Higher Education

These statements were prepared shortly after the Legislative Conference, led by Belle Zeller, and the United Federation of College Teachers, led by Israel Kugler, merged to form the Professional Staff Congress (PSC) in April 1972. This marked the first appearance by Zeller and Kugler in front of the Board of Higher Education as representatives of the PSC. Zeller focused on CUNY's recently developed "Statement on Professional Obligations for Faculty," as well as newly instituted student evaluations of faculty. Both, she charged, were developed without consultation of faculty and therefore violated existing contracts negotiated in 1969. Kugler, deputy president of the PSC, focused on CUNY’s refusal to bargain with the new union and their insistence on a division into three separate bargaining units for full-time, part-time, and non-classroom staff.

CUNY's initial opposition to the PSC led to hostility between the two parties as well as strike votes by members of the union. Despite the insistence of CUNY administration, the PSC would come to serve as the single bargaining representative for all faculty and staff at CUNY and their first contract was negotiated in July 1973.

Source | Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Creators | Zeller, Belle; Kugler, Israel
Date Created | April 24, 1972
Rights | Obtain From Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Item Type | Text (Report / Paper / Proposal)
Cite This document | Zeller, Belle and Kugler, Israel, “Statements of Belle Zeller and Israel Kugler before the Board of Higher Education,” CUNY Digital History Archive, accessed March 19, 2024, https://cdha.cuny.edu/items/show/3342.

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