The importance of knowledge and education to the Manitoba Wheat Pool is made clear in the The Scoop Shovel, the official organ of the Manitoba Wheat Pool and other co-operatives in Manitoba. Established in the 1920s, The Scoop Shovel owed its existence to a decision by the directors of the Pool to set aside small percentage of income per bushel for educational purposes. R.A. Hoey began to hold meetings to discuss the idea that the Pool was about more than just marketing grain, and in 1926 a Department of Education and Publicity was organized within the Pool. It was directed by J.T. Hull and advised by R.A. Hoey; they expanded and supervised The Scoop Shovel.
They also began to accumulate the educational volumes that would become the Pool library. Hull announced in November of 1926 that the library would be open by the end of the month and reported that: "We have a good representation of works on sociology... On co-operation we have about every book that we can find published in the English language. We have also a good selection of books on economics, history, science, general literature, and rural life. In a word, we have tried to make the library one of usefulness to people whose life is on the land."
He also encouraged Pool members--who were the only ones allowed to use the library at this time--to utilize the library to educate themselves, saying “Use it, for knowledge is power”.
Once the library was open to all Pool members, Hull wrote a regular column for The Scoop Shovel called “In the Library”, in which he would review books and recommend reading in response to frequent questions from members. When the library gained new books, which was almost continually, he would list them and sometimes discuss them.
The library service was a mailing one; the main collection was kept at the Manitoba Wheat Pool central office in Winnipeg and members could request a catalogue of all the library holdings. If they wanted to borrow a book or books on a specific topic, they could write to Hull and the books would be mailed out to the member and returned by mail, all postage costs covered by the Pool Library.
During the crisis of the early 1930s, the library was saved because the Manitoba Co-operative Conference believed it was vital to the success of the Pools and the co-operative movement. The Conference took over administration of the Pool library in 1931, leasing the books and equipment from the Wheat Pool. The library was formally incorporated under a charter after it changed hands, the other charters members being the Co-operative Marketing Board and the United Farmers of Manitoba.
In 1935 the service was made available free of charge to all rural Manitobans with the financial support of the Co-op Marketing Board. By 1939, Manitoba Pool Elevators had begun to prosper again, and took back responsibility for the administration and housing of the library. The traveling library was also established around this time, and hundreds of boxes were distributed to all MPE points. The boxes were rotated and refreshed twice a year.
In 1942 Hull estimated that there were approximately 4,700 books in the Pool Library with an annual circulation of 4,000 to 5,000 books. Operating the library cost around two thousand dollars per year, although the cost was split between the members of the Manitoba Co-operative Conference, at least it was in theory. The Pool library ran as a free service to all rural Manitobans, regardless of whether they were members of the Pool, and the federal government census in 1941 indicates that over half of Manitoba’s population (56%) still lived in rural areas. In 1948, the majority of the Pool Library’s services were rendered unnecessary by an act called the “Public Libraries Act” that had been passed by the Manitoba legislature on April 22, 1948, and would go into effect July 1, 1948. The act provided for the establishing of a provincial “Public Library Advisory Board” that would be appointed by the government. Once the board had been established, the act allowed for the establishment of municipal and regional libraries that would be the administrative responsibility of the municipality or region they served and would be supported by a land tax levied on the population that would have access to the library. All employees of the central provincial library would be considered civil servants.
When the Provincial Library was being established in 1949, the Minister in charge of education--Ivan Shultz--actively sought both the advice of those who operated the Pool Library and the physical resources of the Library. In a letter to W.J. Parker, the President of Manitoba Pool Elevators, Shultz wrote that: "We find that in looking at the province as a whole that the box library service of the Manitoba Pool Elevators is the best developed and the best distributed within the province... We would feel that to a considerable extent you had pioneered in this field and we would be using your accomplishments as a springboard for a wider coverage of the province and an enlargement of the service."
He also requested that Miss E.L. Shields—the Pool Librarian--be released from Pool employment so that the Provincial Library could hire her for a year to aid in setting up the new library system.
An agreement was reached between MPE and the Provincial Library, and the bulk of the Pool Library was transferred to the province. The Pool retained the volumes it wished to keep as reference for its employees, and donated the rest of the open shelf library to the province. The traveling library service was sold at a discount to the province, with the caveat that service not be interrupted during the transfer and that the quality of service to rural Manitoba not diminish once the Library had been entirely transferred to the government. In a letter to Ivan Shultz after the agreement to sell the traveling library had been reached, W.J. Parker wrote that: "...Manitoba Pool Elevators has maintained an open shelf library for a period of some twenty years. These books have been made available to anyone in Manitoba, outside the City of Winnipeg, and the postage both ways was paid by the Pool. We feel it has served a very useful purpose, but that it is not primarily our function and if the government proposes to offer a more complete and universal service we are prepared to retire from the field and avoid what might be considered unnecessary duplication."
Scope and Content
Series contains items once held as part of the Manitoba Pool Library. It has been divided into the following four sub-series: (1) MPE E 1 Manitoba Pool Library publications; (2) MPE E 2 The Scoop Shovel; (3) MPE E 3 The Manitoba Cooperator; and (4) MPE E 4 Pamphlet collection.
BUFA was formed in 1957 as an academic organization with its primary aim the entrenchment and protection of academic freedom.
In subsequent years, BUFA became more involved in promoting the economic, social and general interests of tis members. This process culminated in 1971 when BUFA obtained voluntary recognition as bargaining agent for its members from the University. The relationships between the Faculty and the university were governed by the "Faculty-Administration Brief" (the precursor to the present Collective Agreement).
A dispute arose between BUFA and the University in 1976, when BUFA requested that Instructional Associates be included in the bargaining unit and that the University deduct union dues. The University rejected BUFA's request. BUFA applied to the Manitoba Labour Board for resolution of the dispute. A Board hearing was held in Brandon on May 31, 1977.
At this hearing theLabour Board determined that, since the University had rejected BUFA's contention that it was a union, it would first have to answer the question: Is BUFA a union? In a decision dated June 16, 1977, the Board ruled "that BUFA is not a union; that following therefrom the faculty administration brief is not a collective agreement."
Following this ruling, BUFA launched a certification drive in September 1977. Application for certification was filed with the Labour Board October 17, 1977. In anticipation of a favorable certification ruling, Dennis Olson and Gerald Neufeld collected existing collective agreements from other universiities across Canada. They attempted to incorporate the best features from the old Faculty-Administration Brief and these other agreements into the first draft of the proposed collective agreement.
Certification was confirmed January 1978. The bargaining unit defined in the Certificate included: all full-time and part-time members of the academic, instructional and related staff at Brandon University kncluding laoratory insturctors, cartographers, counsellors, professional ibrarians, continuing education specialists and all other staff directly related to the teaching process. It also included sessional instructors.
Since certification in 1978, BUFA has attempted to function as a principled and effective union. These effors have included: establishing links with other unions and progressive organizations in the community; participating in the Manitoba Organization of Faculty Associations; vigorously pursuing member and union grievancess through to arbitration; advancing the rights and interests of members at the bargaining table; and promoting and protecting academic freedom.
The most recent chapter in BUFA's history was a successful strike in 1998, which started November 9th and ended at midnight November 11th.
The general objectives of BUFA are the advancement of higher education through the protection of the freedom that is necessary to it, and the improvement of the standards of the profession of University teaching. Its members include all full and part-time instructional staff of Brandon University and professional librarians.
Officers of BUFA include the: President, Past President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer. Elected by the General Body at the annual meeting in March. Associate members are not eligible to serve as officers.
Executive - officers and four members elected by the General Body to represent the Faculties of Arts, Science, Education and Music. Four elected at annual meeting. Acts as liasion between BUFA and the University Administration. May appoint committees chosen from the General Body to carry on routine affairs and to act in areas of special interest as directed by the General Body of by the Executive. The Standing Committee of BUFA is the Salary and Faculty-Administration Relations Committee - its duties are to represent the interests of BUFA in negotiating the salary schedule and other benefits and the Faculty-Administration Brief with the Board of Governors or its represntatives. The Vice-President of BUFA is to be the Chairman.
Scope and Content
Series contains minutes, collective agreements, reports, recommendations, correspondence, memos, newsletters, reference materials and various other documents.
Notes
BUFA is a separate corporate entity, but for administration purposes it has been incorporated into RG 6 Brandon University fonds. History/Bio information taken from BUFA promotional materials (File 37) and provided by Bruce Forrest (BUFA Executive) with the return of the signed donation form. Files 106-116 were extracted from the BUFA records and are in the possession of Ms. Eileen McFadden.
File consists of correspondence, reference materials, Executive and Board minutes, agendas, notices, the policy for the admission of visa students (1976), briefs, a copy of "The Role of BUFA," status of women meeting documents, sabbatical for special projects personnel and CAUBO/CAUT documents.
Storage Location
RG 6 Brandon University fonds
Series XV: BUFA
Box 2
File consists of correspondence, a draft copy of the rights and responsibilities of faculty members, an evaluation form, and a draft copy of the evaluation of faculty members.
Storage Location
RG 6 Brandon University fonds
Series XV: BUFA
Box 3
File consists of the BUFA constitution, informational materials and invitations to join. It also includes the BU Faculty list of publications, papers read etc. for 1974-1975.
Storage Location
RG 6 Brandon University fonds
Series XV: BUFA
Box 4
