June 1, 2022
We had another great monthly meeting last week to reflect on our filing day actions, preview our new video and talk about next steps on our path to forming a union! We also talked about next steps and how we plan to continue building our communication networks this summer and preparing for bargaining.
What do you want to bargain for? Fill out the survey!
Higher wages? Better health Insurance? Broader fee waivers? Protections for International Students? More support for child and dependent care? All of the above? Make your voice heard by filling this survey out today! The process takes about 15 minutes and all responses will remain confidential. This is a critical part of preparations for bargaining so please be sure to give your input and share with your colleagues.
Eligibility Questions (who is included in our bargaining unit)?
We have recently learned that some supervisors have been asked to provide information to central WSU Administration about the type of work we are doing as Research Assistants, and whether we should be excluded from the bargaining unit. The language of state law can be confusing on this point so here is some additional information:
Washington State law establishes which student workers are eligible for collective bargaining at WSU. Research Assistants are included, unless they are not deemed to have an employment relationship or “service expectancy” related to their funding. Years ago, when Academic Student Employees unionized, the University of Washington administration tried to make the case that Research Assistants who were doing work related to their dissertations provided no service to the University and so should be excluded. But the Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC) rejected this claim after reviewing extensive evidence about the amount of revenue generated for the University by grant-funded ASE work. They ruled that most grad employees doing research are included in the bargaining unit. Here are some key excerpts from their decision (which you can read in its entirety here):
“The record indicates that most graduate students spend many hours on their research, often including work on weekends and staying late into the night. … Even if the specific work hours of student/employees on RA appointments are not tracked, many of them have a service expectancy for work that fulfills a research grant on which the faculty sponsor is the PI. If the faculty sponsor (supervisor) expects an RA to work on such research, the employer is held accountable for the actions of its agent.
“The record demonstrates that the great majority of the student/ employees on RA appointments do, in fact, have service expectancies imposed upon them by the employer (or by faculty members who are agents of the employer for this purpose) while they are working on their dissertations. While gaining a graduate degree is a real benefit to the student, those service expectancies fulfill research grants that bring in a great deal of money to the employer. The Legislature has decided that student/employees whose work appears to make money for the employer should be allowed to bargain collectively, and that legislative policy will be implemented here.”
The collective bargaining agreement for UW ASEs enshrines this standard today: you can see who is included here. The only time graduate student researchers are excluded is when they aren’t working on a grant – and, for example, have secured their own individual fellowships.
We sincerely hope our University administration will not replicate the same misinformed (and frankly insulting) position that grad student researchers don’t provide a service. If they do, we’ll be prepared to mobilize and make sure it’s clear that this legal question is settled in Washington State.
If you’d like to discuss any of this information further don’t hesitate to reach out to us at contact@wsucase.org
In solidarity,
Aurora Brinkman, Psychology (Pullman)
Priyanka Bushana, Integrative Physiology and Neuroscience (Spokane)
Furkan Cakmak, Political Science (Pullman)
Sarah Fakhoury, Computer Science (Pullman)
Yonas Gezahegn, Biosystems Engineering (Pullman)
Danielle Holt, School of the Environment (Pullman)
Aaron Jesch, History (Vancouver)
Kelsey King, School of Biological Sciences (Vancouver)
Kathryn Manis, English (Pullman)
Daniel McCloskey, Anthropology (Pullman)
Emma McMain, Educational Psychology (Pullman)
Kyle Rakowski, Sociology (Pullman)
Heather Ramos, English (Pullman)
Sadie Ridgeway, Sociology (Pullman)
Claudia Skinner, Languages, Cultures and Race (Pullman)
Kartik Sreedhar, Physics and Astronomy (Pullman)
WSU CASE/UAW Organizing Committee