Friends and colleagues, brothers and sisters, thank you for allowing me to briefly address you.
I am here as the elected Chairman of the University of Florida's Faculty Senate.

Why should the Senate be involved in the issue of shift changes for environmental service workers ?

The constitution of the University of Florida [Article III, section 1] binds the senate to:

"…[provide a forum for mutual exchange of ideas between senior officers and faculty. In this capacity, the Senate shall take cognizance of, and may legislate with respect to matters which concern more than one college, school, or other major academic unit, or which are otherwise of general university interest. In exercising its legislative function, the Senate shall make such rules, regulations, and by-laws as it may deem advisable for the fulfillment of its duties..."

We are here, because your concerns are concerns to all of us.

To Fredrick Douglas, the great American patriot, a slave who freed himself, an illiterate who educated himself, is attributed a saying: Wanting change without struggle is like desiring the majesty of the ocean without the awful roar of the waves, like wanting rain without the wind, thunder, and lightning. Impossible. The struggle might be moral or physical, but a struggle there will be.

The struggle you are involved in is one for democratic process no less important than the one Douglas spoke of 150 years ago, or the one that took place here 40 years ago. This struggle is to have a voice in the manner in which your workday is organized.

We have, through the work of the Senate, representatives of the Environmental Service Workers, and the Administration of our University designed a program that will areas the immediate concerns as well as initiating a process of "shared governance".

1. The program of 34 to 40 swing shift [11pm to 7:30 am] will go forward for a period of 3 to 6 months. At the end of this time the "experiment" will be re-evaluated;

2. The group to re-evaluate this "experiment" will be composed of representatives from Administrative Affairs, the Faculty Senate, and the Environmental Service Workers. The representatives of each group will be chosen by the respective group;

3. While this "experiment" is ongoing, the above mentioned committee will meet to clarify the specific problems we are trying to address. Additionally, the committee will come up with a series of potential solutions to the identified solutions that will be presented to the Provost and VP for Administrative Affairs.

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