Strike deadline: February 17

Graduate workers have set a strike deadline of Tuesday, February 17 at 12:01 AM. If Penn admin does not reach a fair agreement that improves our pay and benefits, provides much needed support for international workers, and lays the foundations for a strong union, then graduate workers will withhold our research and teaching labor beginning on February 17.

A strike is not inevitable. Penn admin has forced grad workers to make a difficult decision: we can accept their insulting offers or we can go on strike to win the contract that we deserve. Grad workers hope that admin reaches a fair agreement with us before the deadline and admin has ample time to do so. Grad workers voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike in November because Penn’s current offers are inadequate. If admin’s offers do not significantly improve in the coming weeks, they will be forcing grad workers to use our strongest tool to win the improvements we need.

The most powerful strikes have high worker participation, cause a large disruption to workplace operations, and thus force employers to come to a fair agreement in a short period of time. It’s up to all of us to make this a reality. This week, grad workers will begin signing up for picket shifts so that we will be ready to strike on February 17 if admin forces us to do so. Sign up for picket shifts and encourage your coworkers to do the same. To learn how to prepare yourself and your coworkers for a potential strike, RSVP for an upcoming strike captain training session.

In the coming weeks, Penn admin will likely send emails meant to confuse and mislead us. The goal of this anti-union messaging is simple. Its intention is to discourage workers from using our most powerful tool—a strike—and force us to accept admin’s insulting offers. Grad workers should know the facts:

• Grad workers seek to bring our pay and benefits in line with our peer institutions, and Penn can afford to do so. Penn’s enormous annual budget surplus and record-breaking endowment dwarf the cost of the improvements that we are looking for.
• In the event of a strike, grad workers who are on strike and completing picket duties will receive $500 per week in Strike Assistance from the UAW Strike and Defense Fund.
• All graduate workers, regardless of our citizenship or immigration status, have the legally-protected right to participate in union activities, including striking. Thousands of international graduate workers on visas in the US have gone on strike alongside their domestic coworkers to win strong, transformative contracts. No international academic workers have ever reported being denied visas due to this activity, including under the Trump administration.

Most of us won’t have experienced taking strike action before, so it is normal to have questions. Grad workers will continue to update the Strike FAQ on the GETUP-UAW website, and you can always email organize@getup-uaw.org if you have more questions.

Grad workers stand united on the shoulders of a powerful, growing labor movement in higher education. We refuse to accept Penn’s vision for the future of higher education: one which neither prioritizes workers’ wellbeing nor fairly compensates the essential functions of research and teaching. If Penn does not come to a fair agreement, we will see you on the picket line on February 17.