Initial Bargaining Demands for 2021 Academic Student Employee Contract |
We, the undersigned Academic Student Employees (ASEs), ratify these contract demands for our successor Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
In the midst of the pandemic, these demands are intended to ensure greater security needed for all ASEs to be able to conduct the high quality instruction and research that improves the University and our broader communities. These demands are put forward in solidarity with other UW campus unions, Puget Sound public sector employees, and academic workers at peer institutions across the country, to set a strong precedent for getting organized to mitigate the myriad crises we face. These demands are also intended to improve equity at UW by attending to structural conditions that regularly produce and exacerbate issues with recruiting and retaining underrepresented groups.
These demands were developed based on over 2700 bargaining surveys completed by a majority of all ASEs.
In the midst of the pandemic, these demands are intended to ensure greater security needed for all ASEs to be able to conduct the high quality instruction and research that improves the University and our broader communities. These demands are put forward in solidarity with other UW campus unions, Puget Sound public sector employees, and academic workers at peer institutions across the country, to set a strong precedent for getting organized to mitigate the myriad crises we face. These demands are also intended to improve equity at UW by attending to structural conditions that regularly produce and exacerbate issues with recruiting and retaining underrepresented groups.
These demands were developed based on over 2700 bargaining surveys completed by a majority of all ASEs.
- Compensation: Staggering numbers of ASEs are rent-burdened, and many pay over half their income in rent. To improve equity on campus, reduce rent burden, and keep pace with wages at peer institutions, UW must significantly increase ASE compensation. UW must raise wages to at least keep pace with the increased cost of living in Seattle, including an additional increase during the first year of our contract. UW must also waive all fees and ensure continuous appointments in response to COVID 19.
- Health Insurance: Particularly in the midst of the pandemic, UW admin must ensure all ASEs receive continuous health coverage while they are at UW. Admin must also expand access to long-term mental health coverage, improve dependent coverage, and reduce barriers to receiving gender-affirming coverage.
- Campus Climate: Underrepresented ASEs -- particularly Black, Indigenous, people of color, disabled, trans, and queer ASEs -- continue to face significant experiences with inequity and discrimination at UW. These issues require an approach that goes beyond mere compliance to address underlying structural sources of inequity, and to empower ASEs to address issues effectively. UW admin must agree to expansion of Diversity-Equity-Inclusion efforts, including expanding compensation and support for peer-based training, advocacy, and department-level DEI work, as well as improving reporting processes for all levels of discrimination and harassment.
- Mentorship & Advising: Steep power disparities between ASEs and our advisors often lead to exacerbated issues with discrimination and bullying, and unclear advising can needlessly add years to ASEs’ degree completion. UW admin must improve mentorship of ASEs, including by establishing rights to secondary mentors, improving effectiveness and accountability of various mentorship roles, and improving department-specific support for ASE career development.
- Leave & Caregiving: Increase support for caregivers and leave options. ASEs with caregiving responsibilities bear extraordinary costs and pressures, and need additional support in the interest of continuing their degree progress and ensuring gender equity.
- Maintain or improve all other existing terms of the ASE CBA not addressed above.