On November 11, you received a communication from the uOttawa Human Resources team about new cards for staff members. Of note, the message specified that this card will be an identity card to which “other functions will be added over time”, that the card will be required to print documents “from any printer on campus,” and that “a new building access control solution will be installed” making it essential (“No new card, no access to locked buildings, classrooms, labs and offices!”).
Many of you have contacted the APUO to share your concerns, questions and worries about the production and use of this new card, particularly with regard to privacy, data storage timelines and security, surveillance, monitoring and contract partners. The costs and merits of the initiative also raise serious questions, particularly in a context where the Central Administration is pleading underfunding from the province to cut back on our educational mission and justify its positions at the bargaining table.
It comes as no surprise that the APUO has not been consulted on this initiative. We have sent some fifteen questions to the administration today and are due to meet with them early next week to obtain answers. We will also be asking for the November 22 deadline to be extended. In the meantime, if you would like more information before proceeding with this request from the Employer, please feel free to wait until we provide you with more information after next week’s meeting.