4/24/23 Bargaining and Equity Day Update

Yesterday (4/24) was our 9th bargaining session with WSU Admin and we had a great showing for Equity Day. As always, proposals mentioned in the summary below will be linked on the WSU CASE website.

TL;DR:

Here’s a brief summary of what happened yesterday:

In the morning, our bargaining session was joined by Chris Boyan, Director of Pullman campus transit, who answered some of our questions regarding parking & transportation. If you are interested in advocating for transit and parking improvements and working on proposals, you can sign up to join the work group here. 

Over 150 ASEs turned out for Equity Day! Thanks so much to all who joined in support yesterday, we collectively made a huge impact by showing Admin how important it is to improve protections against discrimination and harassment. We presented a well-evidenced set of proposals, including:

We heard powerful testimony from ASEs and Alumni that highlighted the urgent need for additional support and protections regarding the harassment and discrimination of ASEs. It was evident that these stories are not uncommon among ASEs, and that current policies are clearly insufficient. Our proposals are aimed at both protecting individuals and shifting the culture at WSU towards one of respect for all ASEs, with a focus on prevention of harassment and discrimination.

In response to our presentation and ASE testimony, admin responded as though these issues were new to them despite being endemic in academia. They also focused on whether the testimonies referred to ASE’s experiences as students or workers, as though these experiences were not relevant to our collective bargaining activities. The questions they asked indicate that they have spent little time trying to understand these issues that we actively experience every day. 

Admin see conflict in the way that our proposed Grievance procedure interacts with WSU’s current policies. However, we believe that our grievance policy, as currently written, can coexist with university policies such as those related to Title IX. At many universities, ASEs are allowed to file claims through both – allowing them a sense of agency in difficult times. When asked, Admin were not able to clearly articulate their concerns with this solution. We look forward to hearing more about their position so that we can help them understand how these processes work in conjunction at other universities. 

It was clear that the large turnout and the powerful testimony made a huge difference in admin’s behavior during bargaining. They held their revealing comments and questions until after caucus, when most of our attendees had left. This turnout highlighted our strength as a collective, and in not only recognizing, but creating space for the lived experience often shared amongst ASEs. It’s clear that the large number of attendees made a difference during bargaining, and simultaneously it is clear that we will continue to receive pushback on our  proposals attempting to address what was shared during Equity Day. We need to keep organizing to win these important demands! Here’s how you can get involved: