Today in bargaining, Penn admin finally passed back counterproposals on compensation, healthcare, vacation, and other economic proposals. Their response was disappointing; Penn proposed a minimum stipend of $43,000 and an hourly minimum of $18, with an annual increase of 2%.
For the vast majority of us, this is not an improvement to the status quo. This would raise wages for some hourly workers and the hundreds of graduate workers who are making Penn’s current minimum stipend of $39,425. But most graduate workers already make more than that. Penn’s proposed annual increase of 2% doesn’t even keep up with the current rate of inflation. Admin also proposed that workers would also only receive 3 vacation days per year, and there would be no financial support for workers with children and families outside of existing grants. Furthermore, despite having four months to respond, admin withheld counterproposals on several other economic articles. We must continue to fight at every turn for the compensation we deserve as workers!
During today’s session:
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Penn admin passed counterproposals on the economic articles Transit and Parking, Childcare Support Grants, Health Care, Tuition and Fee Remission, Holidays, Leaves, Vacation, and Compensation.
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Graduate workers passed back a packaged proposal of the remaining non-economic articles, which includes: Entire Agreement, Union Rights, and Appointments.
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We also passed back counterproposals on the economic articles Holidays, Vacation, and Transportation.
We will be bargaining for an additional half-day tomorrow, October 29th from 10:30am-1:30pm at the Inn at Penn. Let’s fill the bargaining room tomorrow morning (10/29) to show Penn admin that their counters are not acceptable!
We’ll need to keep turning up the pressure on Penn admin to win fair compensation. When unionized workers at peer institutions such as Caltech, Cornell, and Johns Hopkins threatened to strike, they won far better stipends than what Penn is currently offering us. If you have not yet signed your strike pledge, the time is now! As Penn admin continues to undervalue our labor, we must act collectively to win the fair contract we deserve.
In solidarity,
The GETUP-UAW Bargaining Committee
Clara Abbott
Emily Aunins
Peter Bailer
Oishi Bardhan
Caitlin Frazee
Katelyn Friedline
Sam Herrmann
Jimmy Kelliher
Sam Layding
George Lin
Jancarlos Montoya
Clancy Murray
Izzy Navarro
Josh Ofili
Rosie Poku
George Porter
Caleb Scott-Joseph
Guru Shabadi
Anne-Marie Zaccarin