When the university unveiled its strategic plan two years ago, it was a strong sign it was finally acknowledging that compensation — including stipends, salaries and benefits — was too low for graduate students. A report issued by an 18-member committee examining the treatment of graduate assistants at public universities in the state essentially came to the same conclusion, a strong indicator change is needed in how graduate assistants are treated at this university. We believe that change is unionization.
Throughout the latter half of American history, unions have been instrumental in improving the fairness and equity of the nation’s economic system. They abolished child labor, and they gave workers the five-day, 40-hour workweek and the ability to triumph in disputes with management. While there are some exceptions, almost every American worker should have the right to bargain collectively if they choose to do so.
Administrators claim graduate assistants, who teach, aid research or perform other administrative functions, can’t form a union because they aren’t legally employees. Their argument is most graduate assistants don’t pay payroll taxes, working primarily for their education — an absurd distinction. If you receive a university paycheck, and receive university health benefits, and work dozens of hours a week for the university, you are a university employee and should be considered as such.
But under the law, the position of graduate assistants is ambiguous. So the General Assembly should step in and clarify it, making it clear the graduate student employees are exactly that — employees — and should have collective bargaining rights.
Unionization scares many administrators because it actually empowers a group of individuals who would otherwise be powerless. Under a union contract, graduate employees would have the ability to negotiate salaries, benefits and working conditions.
While graduate employees could try to do this now, a union would make such changes protected from administrative decisions.
Graduate employees earn little compared to the six-figure salaries of some professors yet often do just as much work. They work long hours, grade papers, teach and essentially support the growth of the younger undergraduate population. Without their help, this university would not be what it is today.
There is no question that a graduate employees do not deserve the same salaries as distinguished professors, but they do deserve security. By creating a union, graduate employees would be more protected from budget cuts or a ruthless administrator, and any changes to their benefits would have to be negotiated. Plus, allowing graduate employees to unionize could also attract talented graduate students who may otherwise choose to attend one of the more than 20 other universities that have graduate employee unions.
Since the strategic plan was implemented, graduate stipends have increased, and administrators have said they want to increase them even further. This is evidence officials are trying to act in the best interests of graduate employees. But those same officials are misguided when they oppose unionization. While today’s administrators may care about graduate assistants, the administrators of 2020 or 2030 may not. To protect graduate employees from the unpredictable, it is imperative that unionization happens now.
If the General Assembly were to pass legislation recognizing graduate assistants as employees, the university would be forced to recognize their right to unionize. That said, graduate assistants would have to be prepared for some changes. They may no longer be exempt from furlough days, and those who don’t pay payroll taxes may have to start doing so. While these losses would hurt some, the benefits they would reap would far outweigh the costs. It is for that reason that the General Assembly should act now — and graduate students should continue to fight until they do.
