March 14, 2024
Local 4591//WSU–CASE Announcements & Updates:
We’re hosting two Zoom trainings today. No experience required!
Organizing 101: TODAY 3/14 from 12-1pm, Zoom. Our union is only as strong as we make it! Today, we will go over the basics of effectively connecting with our colleagues to build power and promote structural change. We will go over how to have structured 1-to-1 conversations, identify concerns, and make asks.
Contract Enforcement 1.0 Training: TODAY 3/14 3-4:30pm, Zoom. There’s no such thing as a self-enforcing contract! This training will cover the basics of union grievances, how we use them to enforce every single one of our new contractually guaranteed rights, and how we use them to actually shape and strengthen our contract over time! We’ll cover the main steps and talk about how we organize to win grievances.
RSVP for these training (and future trainings) HERE.
____________________
ASE Speaks At Last Week’s Board of Regents Meeting
Last week, ASE Ninh Khuu addressed the WSU Board of Regents at their bi-monthly meeting in the Tri-Cities. During the public commentary period, Ninh called for WSU leadership to recommit to their stated priorities of education, research, and service, ending his address with a poignant statement: “Budgets are about priorities, and we need you, as WSU Leadership, to put your money where your mouth is.”
During these meetings, President Schulz announced that WSU received $2.5 million from the state to fulfill the needs of our contract. President Schulz repeatedly claimed that the state allocation is an “investment” in WSU and that he is “proud that we reached a contract.”
Watch the meeting here, and Ninh’s statement here.
___________________
ASEs Push Back Against Budget Cuts!
ASEs are coming together to fight back against WSU’s ongoing budget mismanagement. On Tuesday, March 5, a team of UAW 4591 members spoke with Dr. Todd Butler, Dean of CAS, to discuss upcoming budget cuts and restrictions placed on department hiring. Dean Butler told ASEs at the meeting that WSU Admin instructed the College to prepare for potential cuts of 1-5%, and the College believes that they will need to restrict graduate student assistantships and make other adjustments to survive (i.e., focusing on teaching instead of research) to survive.
ASEs asked Dean Butler if the University had considered reducing the administrators’ salaries or athletic funding, but got no answer. We will continue to work together to push administrators for answers and can compel WSU to get its priorities right if we work together. Join the efforts at the Direct Action Committee (meets Fridays at 3PM), and others. Sign up to get invitations to workgroups and committees here, or email us at contact@wsucase.org with any questions or input.
In Solidarity,
WSU-CASE Bargaining Committee:
Acacia Patterson, Physics & Astronomy (Pullman)
Adam Bozman, Carson College of Business – Finance (Pullman)
Andre Diehl, Comparative Ethnic Studies (Pullman)
Arianna Gonzales, Psychology (Pullman)
Aurora Brinkman, Psychology (Pullman)
Chelsea Mitchell, School of the Environment (Puyallup Research and Extension Center)
Chia-Hui Chen, Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (Spokane)
Claudia Skinner, School of Languages, Cultures, and Race (Pullman)
Cody Lauritsen, College of Veterinary Medicine (Pullman)
Dano Holt, School of the Environment (Pullman)
Evan Domsic, Crop and Soil Science (Mount Vernon NWREC)
Gavin Doyle, English (Pullman)
Hannah Cohen, Veterinary Clinical Sciences (Pullman)
Kartik Sreedhar, Physics & Astronomy (Pullman)
Kayla Spawton, Plant Pathology (Mount Vernon NWREC)
Kelsey King, School of Biological Sciences (Vancouver)
Miles Hopkins, School of the Environment (Pullman)
Miranda Zuniga-Kennedy, Clinical Psychology (Pullman)
Naseeha Cardwell, Chemical Engineering & Bioengineering (Pullman/Tri-Cities)
Natalie Yaw, Chemistry (Pullman)
Ninh Khuu, Plant Pathology (Prosser)
Peter Obi, Pharmaceutical Sciences (Spokane)
Raymond Bennett, Psychology (Pullman)
Rebecca Evans, Biology (Vancouver)
Shawn Domgaard, Communication (Pullman)
Tazin Rahman, Electrical Engineering & Computer Science (Pullman)
Tholen Justin Blasko, Animal Sciences (Pullman)
Victor Moore, History (Pullman)
Victoria Oyanna, Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (Spokane)
Whitney Shervey, Sociology (Pullman)
Yiran Guo, Mechanical and Materials Engineering (Pullman)