Final topics and Summary letter for the Postdoc campaign

 

Dear all,

we are glad to announce that the elaboration of the postdocs' issues and the Introductory letter to the Vice president of the Research and Development are ready and we are now planning the actual meeting.

Here below, there is the text of the letter and the claims we want to discuss with the relevant authority.

Before we proceed, we need to be as brave as possible: some postdocs should tag along during the meeting, to be the actual spokespersons and representatives of the entire community, to change in better the working conditions of all of you guys!

Please give feedback as soon as possible, we are about to send the letter! 

We must stress that THIS IS NOT a battle against PIs but an offering to the TAU administration to improve their contribution to our scholarships and experience on campus.

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Draft Post Doc Demands Letter - by Sunday 2.7

To: Prof. Dan Peer

Vice President for Research and Development, Tel Aviv University

We are writing on behalf of the International Community of PhD and Postdoctoral Peers. Our self-organized group was established six years ago, to assist and provide information to the international researcher community at Tel Aviv University. 

We represent around 300 international Postdoctoral peers, whose research stands as pillars of the academic activity at Tel Aviv University. In the past few years, the community came to realize that there are several widespread problems that most of the members share: low scholarships and no social benefits, lack of information about our rights (such as maternity and sick leave), as well as lack of support from the University in matters such as visa processing and renewal, health insurance and welfare. The initiatives by the University to solve these problems are shy and the sentiments of the community are frustration, anger and discomfort, especially among the Post Doctoral researchers. Some have no option but to leave the University, due to the financial hardships. 

Low scholarships are a common problem to all scholarship recipients, but Postdoctoral researchers have not had their scholarships raised in many years. The basic level of scholarship, which most international Postdoctoral researchers receive, amounts to 8584 NIS per month - for researchers with PhDs and significant professional experience! For comparison, the Weizmann Institute promises 11,500 NIS per month, as well as a travel and professional training allowance. The cost of living in Rehovot and its vicinity is much lower than that of Tel Aviv, which has topped the lists of most expensive cities in the world numerous times. 

This year, we were pleased to find out that the University has decided to provide a compensation for the CPI rise for all the scholarship recipients, except for Postdoctoral peers! The University also promised a 5% raise in scholarships, but only in October, when many of us postdoctoral researchers will already have finished our fellowships.

These recent happenings brought the postdoctoral community members to gather and bring these issues to your attention. We, representatives of the community, request to meet with you, as these pressing matters are becoming more urgent.

Sincerely Yours,

signed

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At the meeting, we will focus on the topics that we brought up and that have been elaborated a little bit more with the help of SEGEL representatives and managers.

Here, we report the final issues

INTRODUCTION

The international community of PhDs and Postdocs is a self organized group connected via social channels (WA, Blog, TAUinternational, word of mouth, Broshim and Einstein dorms). The community provides social interaction and mutual help among the peers participating in it. The group was established around 6 years ago and it is not related or connected with any TAU bodies. However, the last two Liaisons from TAU international office have been invited to participate in the group, as official spokesperson of TAU. Alongside them, there are two admins and various members of the International Research Senate Committee providing help and information. Among the many topics, financial, administrative and personal issues are discussed quite frequently. In other words, the community members report their personal experiences on living the campus, the city and their work environment.

At a certain point, the community came to realize that there are several widespread problems that most of the members share or witnessed. The discussions are many, the initiatives are shy and the sentiments of the community are frustration, anger and discomfort, especially among the Postdocs peers, who recently gained information on their legal status inside the university. Last, but not least, the compensation for the increase of the CPI was completely omitted for the Postdocs. These scholars are approximately 400 people, of which 300 are Internationals.

These recent happenings brought the postdoc community members to gather and bring the following demands to the attention of the University management.

CPI compensation to the Post docs right about now.

Given the rising CPI index (month after month it is increasing), it is unfair that the PhDs and the Master students were granted compensation up front this period, while the post docs were not entitled because of the lack of Recognition of Post docs as working category. Post docs have a shorter period to spend in this country and they can't buffer the volatility of the cost of life in the same way as the others. This also means that they are in a more fragile financial position, as this situation has a direct impact on everyday living, also for the ones living in the dorms. The promised 5% raise of the scholarships (hopefully) happening in the next semester will be too late for many post docs, who are struggling now and will be gone by the next months.

More information and better support/benefits for health care and welfare.

We demand more transparency on the contracts, the agreements, the way in which the scholarships are calculated and allocated and our rights as researchers in TAU. In particular, we require specific statements regarding the rights of having illness leave, the vacation and the maternity leave. More clarity should be offered on the conditions of the termination of the contract between the post-doc and the PI, as currently there is a gray zone; as well, we need information on how we can be protected by the representatives of the labor union of the scholars and who to reach in case of need.

Postdocs are  internationally sought experts but also are older, often with pre-existing conditions that are not included in the policy for students, for example mental health issues and pregnancy. We raise the necessity to obtain free or at least subsidized health insurance and a buffer compensation (e.g. an extra month of scholarship) for their relocation, considering that they might be accompanied by their families.

This demand is in alignment with the proposed working conditions of many other universities, both worldwide and inside Israel, where scholars have specific benefits that help them ease the bureaucratic and financial burden. Instead, here Postdocs are often denied discounts and possibilities: for example, we cannot get the university credit card without a valid citizen ID because we cannot get one from the government. Another example is the welfare tax: postdocs don’t have the possibility of contributing to it, therefore they can't access several services such as the university lawyer.

Equalize minimum wage for every Post doc, with regard of the difference between Israelis and Internationals.

When settling down in Israel, especially in Tel Aviv, the International researchers have to deal with additional costs and have more challenges during their stay (given the absence of a social network such as a family or the citizenship), therefore they might need more financial support than their Israeli counterparts.

Nonetheless, we realized that the current division of minimum wage between International and Israeli postdocs leaves many Israeli fellows on a lower salary. This is a particular issue for a category of Israelis who do face the same challenges as the Internationals, such as new Olim, Israelis returning from overseas, and the non-Israeli spouses of Israelis.

We do believe that, given the skills and the expertise acquired at this stage, every postdoc is a high profile researcher / employee and therefore they deserve a dignified amount of money that makes them financially independent and satisfied. At this age, it is not opportune to rely on parents or struggle to build a family or a future. And lowering the scholarship percentages  of the Israeli researchers is a double loss: to the Israelis, who wish their scholarship to be adequate for the cost of living, and to the Internationals, who think that they are “more expensive, and therefore less appealing” for being hired in TAU.

We therefore demand the equalization of the Scholarship for all of the Postdocs, regardless of the nationality. This equalization should be carried on alongside the proper re-adjustment and update  of the postdocs’ scholarships.

Better and smoother Visa management.

It is frustrating and counterproductive to obtain a (student) visa once a year when we already know that our contract might end in 2 years or more. The Visa system in TAU is overwhelmed (a few employees deal with a huge amount of bureaucracy) and the ministry of interior in Shalma Road in Tel Aviv is quite inefficient, considering the long hours of waiting even when there is an appointment. In order to keep up with our academic and personal scheduling, we need the flexibility of traveling when we need (for example for a visit to the family or a conference, to enter Europe through Schengen visa). This is even more important in periods like the COVID era or the current situation where the visas are elongated instead of being renewed. The unclear policy on the visa handling and these unpredictable occurrences (strikes of the office, the "passport marathon", etc...) make the people anxious about their situation and stressed about the long bureaucracy in order to obtain a visa that necessarily needs to be renewed every year.

Also, one should be able to handle their visa according to their specific needs. For example, given the low scholarships or some interesting work opportunities, some of us would like to get a job other than their position in the university or to become a TA. Considering that with the student visa one is NOT allowed to work, and that the university has a clause in its regulation of the working relationship between PIs and Post docs, it is extremely risky or inopportune to try making some more money or a new working experience here in Israel. Controversially, this clause is not necessarily binding the person to the university, so we need to know its legal value.

The same is true for the Spouse visa, which prevents the spouse of a foreign researcher from working or having any legal remunerative activity here in Israe. Therefore, we conclude that in this situation it is expected that a scholar, with their own (low and insufficient) scholarship, can pay for themselves and their spouses (and maybe also their children).

We therefore demand to obtain a smoother and easier visa processing and to be allowed to get (by default) a student visa with work permit, with the real possibility to invest some of our time in teaching experience or extra activities that will allow one to raise some more money.