This ad-hoc committee is dedicated to fostering a sense of community among contractually limited term and part-time faculty, while also promoting awareness of the impact of existing appointment policies on the terms and conditions of their employment, including their academic freedom.

In 2024-25, an ad hoc committee for Part-Time (PT) and Contractually Limited Term Appointments (CLTA) was formed within UTFA. This committee is dedicated to fostering a sense of community among CLTA and PT faculty, while also promoting awareness of the impact of existing appointment policies on the terms and conditions of their employment, including their academic freedom.

PT and CLTA Membership is Growing

At U of T, between 2004 and 2025, the number of PT positions increased 78% in the Teaching Stream and 75% in the Non-Tenure Stream (research-focused stream that is not tenure track). By comparison, FT positions have increased 54% in the Teaching Stream and 15% in the Tenure Stream over the same period. As of December 2025, PT and CLTA positions now represent 25% of the total UTFA faculty complement at U of T. This trend is consistent with what we see across the university sector, where full-time faculty appointments are consistently being replaced in favour of more precarious contract faculty positions, and often despite the clear need and desire for full-time positions (Kistofferson, 2026). An essential part of the work of the PT-CLTA committee over the past year has been to meet regularly, creating a community space and an opportunity for discussions on the role of PT and CLTA appointments at U of T and how these sector-wide shifts impact working conditions for precarious members.

Advocacy for Contract Members

As the shift in work moves from full-time positions to contract, precarious positions, it is important to push to protect workers' rights and prevent further erosion of secure work. To these ends, the PT-CLTA Committee is working on developing a better understanding of the PT and CLTA working conditions and patterns within U of T over time that impact their work. The PT-CLTA Committee is currently, with support from UTFA Staff, analyzing data related to the contracts of PT and CLTA members to better understand how UTFA can best represent them. Additionally, in the upcoming academic year we will be launching a PT and CLTA survey to gain insight into the priorities and experiences of current members.

UTFA values meeting regularly and reaching out to PT and CLTA members so the diversity of working experiences is represented, and there continues to be a space to discuss and troubleshoot workplace issues. For example, some members enter PT and CLTA positions as a viable (and preferred) career option. Others may need pathways to full-time continuing stream appointments in contexts where the Administration is consistently creating more precarious contract positions despite the clear need for more full-time continuing appointments.

In the year ahead, our PT-CLTA committee looks forward to continuing to grow our network of PT and CLTA Members across our three campuses, as well as partnerships with our full-time colleagues who recognize the collective need for action to improve working conditions across all appointment categories. Faculty precarity is not just a PT and CLTA issue. It’s an UTFA-wide issue.

I want to thank the members of our PT-CLTA committee for the work they have done this year, and for their steadfast commitment to addressing the needs of our many PT and CLTA colleagues across the university. I would especially like to thank Susan Wagner for serving as our UTFA Executive Co-Chair of the committee.

Lastly, we encourage PT and CLTA members to register for our upcoming online workshop on Understanding PT and CLTA Appointment Policies and the Review Process for Continuing Appointments on June 5, 2026, from 1:30-3:30pm.

Kim MacKinnon
Co-Chair, PT-CLTA Ad Hoc Committee