We are a group of Cornell’s faculty members who support graduate student workers’ right of collective bargaining, but also want to share our unique perspective to the Cornell community about what has been presented and what’s at stake in these negotiations.
We understand the University made a comprehensive contract offer on March 11 with a two-week deadline of acceptance. To best consider whether Cornell’s graduate student workers should accept this offer, it’s instructive to look to the University of Chicago.
Graduate student workers there are represented by the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (U.E.), the same parent union that represents Cornell’s graduate student workers. In the Chicago negotiations last year, that union fought publicly for an annual stipend of $45,000, calling it a “fight for dignified wages.” In fact, the Chicago union claimed victory when it achieved that result at the bargaining table.
Earlier this week, Cornell offered its 3,000 graduate student workers in Ithaca and Cornell Tech a contract proposal with a stipend even larger than the agreement the Chicago UE union achieved. With this offer, Ithaca students would earn a minimum first-year stipend of $47,367 that increases to $48,538 in the second year — more than their counterparts receive in a major metropolitan city. Graduate students at Cornell Tech would be paid even more, with minimum stipends of $58,805 and $60,257 respectively.
These highly competitive financial terms are just one element of Cornell’s recent offer. We believe that once graduate students understand these fair terms, they will urge their union bargaining committee to negotiate in good faith and ultimately approve a deal — instead of striking, which could harm students’ progress and financial stability, as well as negatively impacting the Cornell community.
We were graduate students once, and now we are faculty who advise graduate student workers who are central to Cornell’s mission. We are writing because we greatly value their research and teaching contributions.
We also write because we know Cornell supports workers’ rights to bargain collectively — as reflected in the university’s numerous long-standing, productive relationships with labor unions throughout the campus, and based on the terms of the university’s recent offer, which we believe demonstrates Cornell’s commitment to graduate student workers’ success at a time of unprecedented financial uncertainty due to the changing federal landscape.
We urge all Cornellians to review the offer and learn more at the graduate student worker unionization website and on social media, where the university is providing daily updates to inform the community about this offer.
Beyond generous stipends, the proposal includes platinum health insurance, free TCAT passes, funds which can be used for dental and vision coverage and 12 days paid annual vacation.
Time is of the essence for the parties to reach a deal, so that all graduate student workers — including those graduating this May — receive a $750 ratification payment. Cornell has also offered a $750 matriculation payment for first time students to receive beginning this fall. These flexible funds can be used for moving expenses, visa applications, family care, travel, technology needs and more. These bonus payments respect graduate student workers’ individual priorities and give them control of their money.
Choice signals respect. That’s why the Cornell offer counters the union’s insistence for a “union shop” — which would mandate all graduate student workers join the union and pay dues or risk losing their assistantships and be forced to leave Cornell. The union shop requirement violates Cornell’s core value of academic freedom, since it makes a Cornell education contingent on paying dues to a union which may engage in political activity that graduate students do not condone. Indeed, we turn again to the University of Chicago, where the Graduate Students United is being sued by a nonprofit. That case argues that forcing students to pay fees to an organization violates students’ First Amendment rights.
Cornell has offered a novel proposal that preserves graduate students’ rights while ensuring payments are made for union representation. Graduate students would have three choices: (i) pay dues and join the union; (ii) pay an agency fee to cover the cost of representation without formally joining the union; or (iii) donate an equivalent sum to the United Way of Tompkins County, which offers nearly 50 local agencies for donor choice. This charitable option, successfully implemented at Caltech, empowers graduate students to commit their money to causes that align with their values and contribute to their community while still benefiting from union representation.
A fair collective bargaining agreement benefits graduate student workers and the university. Graduate student workers are a fundamental part of Cornell’s intellectual life and campus community. Please read and discuss Cornell’s comprehensive offer.
Signed,
Kerik Cox, Associate Professor of Integrative Plant Science
Brian Crane, Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology
Julie Goddard, Professor of Food Science
Tara Holm, Professor of Mathematics
Tristan Lambert, Professor of Chemistry
Sturt Manning, Distinguished Professor of Arts and Sciences in Classics
Bill Miller, Professor of Horticulture
Carmen Moraru, Professor of Food Science
Thomas Overton, Professor of Dairy Nutrition and Management
Olga Padilla-Zakour, Professor of Food Science
Joseph Peters, Professor of Microbiology
Karl Pillemer, Professor of Psychology and Professor of Gerontology
Marvin Pritts, Professor of Horticulture and Global Development
Gavin Sacks, Professor of Food Science
Seth Sanders, Professor of Economics
David Sherwyn, Professor of Hospitality Human Resources
Julia Thom-Levy, Professor of Physics
