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Bargaining by the Numbers
- $14,500 – gap between our current salary and a living wage
- 2,400 – grad workers signed petition in support of platform
- 400 – grad workers showed up for open bargaining
- 100 – days until the March 1 deadline for HR to agree to a new contract
- 60 – grad workers involved in 3-hour opening presentation to HR
- 0 – questions asked by HR about our proposals
Grad Workers #ShowUp for Each Other
Hundreds of grad workers and allies gathered on the Diag last Thursday morning to kick off our contract negotiations with UM for affordability and dignity for all grad workers! As MSW student Arie Davey said to the crowd:
“Now is the time to demand—and I mean demand—what this university owes us.”
Workers Present Platform, Propose Living Wage
Over 60 grad workers gave a powerful 3-hour overview of our platform to HR, and the bargaining team formally made our proposal for a living wage. Malcolm Thomas (Public Policy & Economics) explained why he took action:
“I spoke up because there is a desperate need for more people from marginalized communities in the production of scholarship. The longer the administration of this university continues to disregard students like me by prioritizing white students with generational wealth, the longer this university will continue to produce decontextualized and reactionary literature that perpetuates white supremacy.”
Members Win Open Bargaining on Day 1
HR fought for weeks to limit the number of members in the bargaining room, relenting only after 150 grads personally wrote letters saying they wanted to be there. On Thursday, in front of dozens of members, HR refused to commit to open bargaining in the future. Let’s keep up the pressure!
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