The union representing fundraising professionals at UMass Amherst has filed an unfair labor practice complaint against the university for hiring fundraisers to work for the nonprofit UMass Amherst Foundation rather than working directly for the university as union employees.

“This practice threatens the unit as a whole and creates a dangerous precedent in privatizing state positions that are represented by unions,” wrote Liz Smith, a member of the Professional Staff Union, in a statement on the union’s website. Union staff could not immediately be reached for comment.

The union and the university say negotiations over staffing and the relationship between UMass Amherst and the Foundation are ongoing.

“The discussions are continuing in good faith, and we are hopeful of reaching an agreement,” said UMass Amherst spokesman Ed Blaguszewski in a statement.

The Republican/MassLive.com previously reported on the relationship between UMass Amherst and its nonprofit fundraising arm, the UMass Amherst Foundation.

UMass pays for salaries and expenses at the foundation, but the organization, which was established in 2003, operates as its own nonprofit. Its employees are not considered state employees, and they are not unionized.

According to the Professional Staff Union statement, posted online Dec. 17, the union has been talking to the university for a year about its concern that advancement division employees who should be employed by the university are instead being hired by the nonprofit. The unfair labor practice complaint, filed with the state Department of Labor Relations in June and first reported by The Daily Hampshire Gazette, requests that more than 20 positions currently housed under the foundation be returned to the union.

A hearing is scheduled for January.

Smith wrote that there is now a “two-tiered system” within the advancement division. Foundation employees do not have an established process for termination or discipline, the ability to file grievances, representation by the union, or access to a sick leave bank. They cannot join the state pension or health insurance systems.

Because foundation employees work at-will, “They can be fired or laid off at any time, for any reason, without due process, despite doing the same work and, in many cases, having the exact same job titles, managers, responsibilities, and work locations,” Smith wrote.

Blaguszewski said having a privately governed nonprofit support university fundraising activities is a common practice.

“The UMAF was created to bolster fund-raising in support of UMass Amherst and is designed in part to enhance the recruitment of successful fund-raisers,” Blaguszewski said. “Development campaigns proceed through many stages, including research, evaluation of goals, message development, events and donor relations. The foundation’s hiring process provides flexibility to attract employees with distinct skills at different stages of a campaign, and its personnel structure helps it recruit outstanding fund-raisers in a very competitive job market.”