- Admission
- Programs
- Community
- Research
- Research Priorities
- AI
- Climate Innovation
- Research Reports
- Strategic Research Plan
- Implementation Plan
- Supporting Health and Wellness of Individuals, Populations and Communities
- Expanding the foundations of knowledge and understanding our origins
- Strengthening Democracy, Justice, Equity and Education
- Supporting Research Graduate Students
- Supporting Postdoctoral Fellows
- Valuing and Measuring Scholarly Impact
- Incorporating Indigenous Perspectives into Research Ethics
- Building World-Class Research Space and Infrastructure
- Involving Undergraduate Students in Research
- Supporting Early-Career Researchers (Faculty)
- Funding Research Chairs
- Reducing Administrative barriers to Research
- Transforming industry and economies through technology, management and policy
- Implementation Plan
- Innovation
- Research Impact & Stories
- For Researchers
- For Students
- Find Researchers & Expertise north_east
- Partner With Us
- Institutes, Centres & Facilities
- Find Research Departments & Contacts
- Research Priorities
- Â鶹ÊÓƵ
- Leadership, Governance & Strategy
- Campus Tours
- Careers north_east
- Rankings
- Truth & Reconciliation
- Â鶹ÊÓƵNews north_east
- Give to Â鶹ÊÓƵ north_east
- Dashboard
- Campuses
- Contact Us
- Emergency
Community Consultation: Proposed repeal of policies R50.02 and R50.04
This following message is sent on behalf of Dugan O’Neil, Vice-President, Research and Innovation.
Dear faculty and staff,
To ensure university policies accurately reflect current employment agreements, Â鶹ÊÓƵis proposing to repeal two administrative policies related to the employment of research assistants (RAs):
In 2025, Â鶹ÊÓƵand the Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU) reached a memorandum of settlement to integrate research assistants (RAs) into the existing TSSU collective agreement. As a result, the TSSU Collective Agreement and now governs the employment terms and conditions for integrated research assistants, research support, and other research-related workers.
The proposed repeals are administrative alignments and would not reduce employee rights, protections, benefits or access to union representation. The employee rights and protections previously addressed through Policies R50.02 and R50.04 are now provided through the TSSU Collective Agreement and applicable employment legislation. This includes provisions related to working conditions, compensation, dispute resolution processes and representation through the union.
Â鶹ÊÓƵvalues the important contributions of research assistants and other research-related employees and is committed to supporting fair, respectful and consistent employment practices.
The consultation is proceeding while Â鶹ÊÓƵawaits a Labour Relations Board ruling related to the Graduate Student Research Assistant (GSRA) decision. Any implications arising from that ruling will be carefully reviewed and considered.
In accordance with B10.00 Policy on University Policies and Procedures, Â鶹ÊÓƵis conducting a community consultation on the proposed policy repeals to remove the two outdated and duplicative policies. We invite members of the Â鶹ÊÓƵcommunity to review the policies proposed for repeal on the Policies and Procedures website.
Please submit your feedback to sfu-research@sfu.ca by November 13, 2026.
Thank you,
Dugan O’Neil
Vice-President, Research and Innovation
Â鶹ÊÓƵ
Input provided is collected under the authority of the , , and Â鶹ÊÓƵPolicy on University Policies and Procedures (B 10.00). This information is collected for the purpose of engaging in community consultation, which may result in recommended changes to a policy. If you have any queries about the collection of this information, please contact privacy@sfu.ca.