The Administration has made it clear: It’s going to take all of us to win the contract we deserve. Join us on May 1st and join the march, calling for a fair contract now!
Two weeks ago, hundreds of us stood up to show our support for a fair union contract. It’s been more than a year since we won our union election, yet we are still working without the rights, benefits, and protections of a union contract.
Yesterday in session we heard from a student worker whose health needs require many more specialist and mental health visits than our health plan offers; this student worker must either go without necessary treatment, further exacerbating their health condition, or pay enormous amounts of money out of pocket. Unfortunately, so far, the administration refuses to bargain over the benefits covered by health insurance. This is not a surprising position for them to take, but we have seen other universities bargain for better healthcare. The administration doesn’t believe mental health coverage is important to us.
We are fighting to guarantee fair compensation for our work, and to ensure our income is protected by our union contract. The administration is trying exclude top-ups for teaching fellows from negotiations, which would give the administration the discretion to to cut total pay if they want. We are negotiating over total compensation because we insist on pay raises across the board. We will not stand for more years of “the endowment performed poorly, so we can’t fulfill our promised raises.
On May 1, student workers from across the university will join together for an all-day march in Harvard Yard. We are coming together to call for a strong contract that includes, among other things, fair pay, comprehensive and affordable healthcare, support for international student workers, and protections against discrimination and harassment.
