Categories: Updates

Join bargaining on Monday, Dec 9 to show Penn we’re fed up with delays

Yesterday, graduate workers met with Penn admin for our fifth bargaining session. While we pushed the administration to make progress on a few issues, we were disappointed yet again by management’s lack of engagement with a large number of our proposals.

Here’s what happened in today’s session:

Due to admin’s total lack of response to ten of our proposals, we remain unable to respond to admin’s proposal on Management and Academic Rights. This article would claim exclusive management rights over issues that are addressed in our other outstanding proposals. Instead of responding to our proposals on those issues, admin is trying to claim broad managerial discretion.
The University presented counter-proposals on Employment Files, Union Access, Workspace and Materials, and Training.
In admin’s response to us on Union Access, they refused to agree to publish our future contract on a University website. Other peer institutions such as Columbia and Yale share their graduate union contracts on university websites so that all graduate workers can be aware of their rights. When pressed on their objection to this section, they said: “The reason is, we don’t. It’s something we’re not happy with, it’s not the first time we’ve had this request, we just don’t, we don’t post them anywhere….We don’t think it’s the place of the University to make it published where everyone can see it.”
Admin also rejected language from Union Access that would allow Penn grad workers to present about our union at university orientations to ensure that all new Penn graduate student workers are informed about their contractual rights. This is standard language already in other union contracts at Penn.

Penn admin’s objections to Union Access make it clear that they are not interested in transparency and intend to continue to obstruct our ability to advocate for our rights as graduate student workers through our union. Further, the continued slow response to our proposals and management’s lack of clear rationale behind their objections demonstrates admin’s disinterest in reaching an agreement any time soon. After nearly two months of negotiations, Penn has yet to respond to ten of our proposals.

Penn admin will not move at the bargaining table on their own. They may not respond to logic and arguments, but they will respond to power. It is our collective action that will force progress at the bargaining table and result in a strong contract to improve our working conditions. This Monday, December 9th, is our last bargaining session of the semester. Join us to pack the bargaining room at 10:30am and demonstrate our collective power to the University!

In Solidarity,

The GETUP-UAW Bargaining Committee

Clara Abbott

Emily Aunins

Peter Bailer

Oishi Bardhan

Kal Brown

Eli Fastow

Adina Goldstein

Sam Herrmann

Austin King

Sam Layding