PERC Recertification Election 2026
We are gearing up for a make-or-break recertification election that will determine the future of our collective bargaining agreement (CBA).
In the coming mail-in election, a majority of bargaining unit faculty (1,200+) must cast our ‘YES!’ ballots by mail or else we will lose our CBA and our rights as faculty.
In the next section, you can find what actions you need to take throughout the election process. Read on below for more information about the recertification crisis and how you can help protect our union.
Current PERC Recertification Election Status
The recertification election process, run by the Florida Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC), is deliberately arduous and confusing. We know it’s designed to make us fail, but we can and will win if we all take coordinated action.
The tracker below will be updated regularly with our progress towards winning this election. The “Action Items” column contains clickable links for what you need to do to ensure we are successful!
Questions? Talk to your department election leader or email the Membership Team.
How and When to Vote ‘YES’
Election Dates
While we do not yet have exact dates for this election, we are reasonably confident that it will begin in early December and conclude in early January.
We are currently waiting for PERC to give us a 30-day notice that the election has been scheduled. The scheduling is entirely in PERC’s hands, but we will inform faculty as soon as we learn the election dates.
Mail-In Ballots
Your ballot will arrive in an envelope from the Public Employees Relations Commission that looks like this proof:
The enclosed ballot asks whether you want to be represented by a collective bargaining agent. Vote ‘YES – United Faculty of Florida’ to protect our certification and our contract.
Return your ballot by mail as soon as you get it using the provided envelope enclosed with your ballot. In some small good news, PERC will provide return postage this year!
Ballots must be received (not postmarked!) before the election day to be counted.
Background FAQ: Why Is this Recertification Election Happening?
Our status as the “certified bargaining agent” is what allows us to collectively bargain. If we are decertified, we lose our ability to collectively bargain and our collective bargaining agreement will immediately and irrevocably become void. Our certification is regulated by the Florida Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC).
There have been two significant union-busting laws in the past few years that pose an existential threat to our rights as faculty.
SB 256 (2023): This law set a minimum requirement of 60% dues-paying membership in order to automatically keep our certification each year. Because we are below 60% dues-paying membership, we must win a recertification election by mail-in ballot every year to keep our contract. This law also outlawed payroll dues deduction.
SB 1296 (2026): This law moved the goalposts on the recertification election: it now will require a majority of eligible workers to cast a vote or else the union automatically fails and the union is decertified. For us, that means 1,200+ faculty members must vote in the upcoming mail-in election in order to keep our collective bargaining agreement in place.
We would immediately lose our collective bargaining agreement. The stability that we expect as faculty members comes from the fact that we have a legally-binding contract – one that guarantees academic freedom, raises, leaves, benefits, sabbaticals, due process, regular workload assignments, clear criteria for evaluations, promotion & tenure, and so much more.
Without our CBA, we would have:
- No means to negotiate raises, benefits, paid leaves, or working conditions
- No guaranteed rights to academic freedom, workload assignments, promotion and tenure, layoff protection, or anything else
- No grievances, representation, due process, or requirement of just cause for termination
- No expectation of democratic faculty input on anything related to our jobs
UF would be able to set and change policy at their own discretion with no faculty involvement. Every faculty member would have to advocate for themselves on their own.
The short answer is No. There is no “on/off” switch to bring our contract back.
Our current CBA is the result of over 50 years of collective bargaining. Right now, when we go to the bargaining table, existing contract language stays in place unless the union and UF bargaining teams choose to propose changes to an article. If we are decertified and lose this contract, we would have to start from scratch with no past precedent. Everything would be on the table and it would likely take years of negotiations before we had a new contract in effect.
How We End This Destructive Cycle
We must build power to tackle the tremendous, existential crises facing our students, our university, and our profession. Instead of wasting time and resources on simply maintaining our right to exist, let’s use this moment as an opportunity to grow our union and take control of our future.
We must surpass the 60% dues-paying membership requirement to protect our certification, our contract, and the 50 year legacy of our union for years to come.