Larry, we can’t thank you enough for all of the hard and dedicated work you have done with the UPEI Faculty Association over your 36 years at UPEI.
Larry has worn many different hats while working with the UPEIFA, some of which include (but is not limited to)
Negotiating the first Collective Agreement
UPEI Faculty Association Treasurer (including during the strike and retiring as Treasurer)
Always being the first to offer to attend picket lines on behalf of the UPEIFA and held the flag high (He is always happiest on the picket line)
Worked on arranging and setting up the Strike Headquarters in 2023
Worked as the UPEIFA representative for the PEI Federation of Labour
Hosted the UPEIFA stand at the Labour Day Picnic each year
Placed a wreath every year, on behalf of the UPEIFA at the Injured Workers Ceremony
Throughout his career at UPEI Larry formed many relationships and if you ask anyone who was lucky enough to have the chance to get to know him, they will all tell you that Larry genuinely cared about his students and fellow Faculty Members. He was always there to support anyone who needed it and volunteered his time all over campus.
To provide some context, here are some words provided by other Faculty Members:
So, as you have likely heard, Larry Hale is retiring which feels strange to say. Larry has contributed so much to our UPEI community, both to his peers and his students, for so many years. From a union standpoint, Larry has been in the FA before it even was a certified union. Over the years, he has served on the UPEI FA executive committee in most positions, the most recent being Treasurer. Being the Treasurer during a strike is not a feat to be taken lightly. He was also integral to the formation of BU2 which greatly improved the employment conditions and provided stability for others like myself at UPEI. Nationally, he has worked with CAUT and the Defense Fund, to mention just a few of his contributions.
Thank you Larry so much for all the work you have done over these decades for Faculty members here at UPEI and beyond. Your enthusiasm, your dedication and conscientious concern for your colleagues, have been vital in the work of this union and you have been a pleasure to work with. You have been a large part of how we have become and continue to be an effective bargaining agent for our members.
So, please join me and the entire Faculty Association in a Big THANK YOU and in wishing him and Linda a well earned and fun filled Retirement!
-Andrea Bourque (UPEIFA President)
Larry Hale has been a poster boy for Faculty Association service throughout the history of our Union. Most of our members will recognize him as our Treasurer these past years. Most are probably also aware of his long standing role with CAUT’s Defence Fund, both as our trustee on the Board and as President, showing up with those million dollar cheques.
Fewer might recall the significant role he played in the early history of our Union. Early in the 2000’s we had certified as a union and embarked on the negotiation of our first collective agreement under a newly elected President. Several months into the process that President (and Chief Negotiator) threw a massive wrench into the works by jumping ship to join Administration as the Dean of Arts. Vice President Dave Seeler took over, the bargaining team was reconstituted and began fixing the damage done, but things didn’t settle down until elections brought us a new President – Larry Hale.
Larry was our leader during that crucial period for the Association. He provided the negotiating team with the support and resources we needed to get the job done. It was a long, drawn out process, researching, writing and negotiating the red book. There was a lot of uncertainty for members; there were doubters. Larry was a calming, steady presence helping keep everyone on board.
Perhaps equally important he oversaw those first few years of us discovering how to be a union, how a union organizes itself, what it does and so on. Our previous Faculty Association was a much more informal thing, largely involved in negotiating annual agreements on salary and benefits and not much else. By the end of his time as President we were a real union, contract in hand and ready to work for our members.
– Jim Sentance (Professor, Economics)