UW student workers hold sit-in protests while calling for a fair contract
SEATTLE - A strike is on the table for those who serve an essential part in the labs and classrooms at the University of Washington.
Academic student employees (ASE) held a sit-in protest on Wednesday while contract negotiations continued.
This affects students who work as teaching assistants, researchers, tutors and graders. Their current contract expired on April 30, but the university and the union, UAW Local 4121, agreed to extend it for one more week while both sides continue trying to reach a new, fair deal.
"The reality is, UW is falling behind in terms of compensation for academic student employees, as compared to peer institutions," said Levin Kim, president of UAW Local 4121.
Unionized academic student employees filled the lobby of Bagley Hall during their sit-in protest. They made a bold statement for a better contract, all while completing their work of teaching, tutoring, and grading.
"Ultimately, this is our university, and we want to be taking up space in the different parts of the university and write our own chapter in labor history as well," said Kim, who is also a teaching assistant and fifth year PhD candidate.
UAW Local 4121 represents about 8,000 academic workers. Kim said the employees are calling for increased compensation to live a sustainable life in Seattle, one of the most expensive cities in the nation.
"Even with their current proposed wage increases, that’s only going to go up to about $2,800 per month, and that’s not enough for us to live on in Seattle," said Kim.
University officials said so far there is a tentative agreement on 30 of the 37 articles in the drafted contract.
In a written statement, UW officials argued, "The ASEs' most recent proposal includes three wage increases in the first year (15%, 14% and 13%), and another 6% each two remaining years. They are also requesting 12-month appointments, which is an unnecessary change from the current 9-month appointment. There is not as much activity on campuses in the summer, including fewer classes, and so there is simply no need for the same level of staffing in the summer as the rest of the year."
Kim said compensation was just one of the items both sides haven’t come to terms on. Kim said health care and increased protection for international students was also on the table.
"They’re also proposing to cut back on health care. So, right now, all of our premiums are covered. But their current proposal has us paying at least $1,000 for health care for the same amount of coverage without any benefits. We also think that is unacceptable, and we think, frankly, that’s an attack on the ASE health and well-being that makes this university run," said Kim.
UW said, "Our intention is to reach an agreement. We have scheduled bargaining dates in May and our expectation is to continue to bargain in good faith. The UW values the work of academic student employees, and our hope is that the ASEs will join us in these good-faith negotiations and avoid any negative impacts on UW students and their work."
The ASE demonstration comes as pro-Palestine supporters hold encampments at UW and campuses throughout the U.S. Kim said the nation is watching as their generation sparks renewed energy for equality.
"Based on sort of decades of living in a society and world within institutions that are ruled by logics of institutional greed," said Kim. "And we want a say in these logics that structure the world, and we want a direct say in how wealth inequality is managed."
UW officials said cost has been the "most prohibitive factor" during negotiations. Provost Tricia Serio wrote on a recent blog, "There are real constraints on the sources of funding – tuition, state funding, grants, etc. – for academic student employees. Grants have limits on what can be paid and are time limited; state funding varies by year; and tuition increases are capped by state law to maintain the affordability of a UW degree for students whose tuition isn’t waived."
UW also argued, "Their request for student fee waivers is unfair to other students. Student fees are determined by students and imposed by students — and paid by all other students on campus. ASEs are students. The UW also doesn’t have the authority to waive the fees and our only option would be to pay them from other sources, including tuition dollars (which are two-thirds of our operating budget), which would ultimately mean that other students would be paying their own fees and also partly paying the ASEs’ fees."
Negotiations for a new contract have been ongoing since before March, according to Kim. More than 99 percent of UAW Local 4121 members approved a vote to authorize a strike. The union president said the next bargaining session is scheduled for May 3.
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"We love our jobs and want to continue doing our jobs, but we also want to make sure that UW is keeping up and not falling behind, so that UW can continue to be a world-class institution that attracts international scholars just like me, that attracts many people from many different backgrounds and truly serves the public good," said Kim. "We’re ready to fight for that. We’ve been really energized by the solidarity that we’ve seen amongst our members."