Hot bargaining summer is getting steamier!
JULY 7, 2023
Your participation has won us substantial gains at the table!
We are making progress, but not fast enough.
The University’s initial counter proposals reinforce the status quo policies and practices.
The University seeks to undermine union security.
Dear Members,
Moving in the right direction.
We are optimistic that we are closer to reaching several tentative agreements. This week’s session was incredibly productive, as we discussed five articles in only five hours!
After a massively successful petition campaign, the administration is negotiating much more seriously and moving in the right direction on several key proposals. Testimonials regarding academic discipline, grievance, probation, union security, and disability accommodations help the Administration’s bargaining members see why we are fighting so hard for the demands we are making. Continue to share your experiences with the bargaining committee.
But we’re still unsurprised by their actions.
After a short-lived attempt to exclude instructional workers from the union, the University has proposed another reckless article to weaken our contract: an open shop proposal. We firmly REJECTED this proposal. Union Security ensures that the union will consist of and protect ALL grad workers in the future. It automatically ensures ALL grad workers are part of the union, and it is critical to maintaining a strong union that can enforce our contract, achieve continued growth, and secure future wins.
The University, as expected, desires to maintain the status quo with respect to disability accommodations, gender equity issues, and academic discipline. We countered this by enumerating all of the ways that the status quo is inadequate - we shared numerous testimonials which illustrated how current University policies and practices routinely fail and unjustly punish graduate student workers.
We have only received 6 out of 19 counter proposals since May 31. We maintain that the University should make this bargaining more of a priority to ensure we get a contract in a timely manner.
Finally, everyone receiving this email is encouraged to attend the General Membership Meeting next Wednesday, July 12th at 5:30pm on Zoom only, with a fun in person barbecue immediately afterward at the Point! Register here. We can’t do it without you!