Frequently Asked

Questions.

What is a union?

A union is an organization of employees that works together to pursue their collective interests. As a legally recognized representative of workers, unions engage in collective bargaining over wages, benefits, and working conditions for their membership, and represent their members in disputes with management over violations of contract provisions. Two words are often used to describe unions, voice and democracy. 

• Voice: As individuals, employees have little power in their workplace and fear questioning the decisions of management. By organizing as a legally recognized entity, known as a labor union, workers can speak out and have a voice in the terms of their employment. 
• Democracy: Every step in the process of unionization is controlled by the members; from forming the union, to electing union representatives, to negotiating and approving the contract, all decisions are made through a democratic process.

When workers in the United States decide to form a union, they usually join a larger, pre-existing union (such as the UAW, CWA, or AFT) and become a local of that larger organization. The local union handles much of the day-to-day business while the national/international union provides support to workers from all of its locals.

What Does a Union Do?

One of the primary functions of a union is to negotiate with management to produce a collective bargaining agreement; a legally binding contract which defines the “wages, hours, and working conditions” agreed upon by both management and the members of the union. A union also provides legal and political advocacy for its members by lobbying congressional representatives and supporting/opposing bills that would help/harm the membership.

You can learn more about what unions do here.

How is a union formed?

A union is formed in one of two ways in the public sector in the state of Connecticut. Method 1, labor board certification election: a majority of the bargaining unit members sign cards which constitute a petition to have a “union certification election.” The election would be administered by the state of Connecticut and a simple majority of votes cast would form a union. Method 2, card check election: a simple majority of the bargaining unit members sign cards that count as “yes” votes for the union.

What is Geu-uaw?

GEU-UAW is the Graduate Employee and Postdocs Union at the University of Connecticut. We work as Graduate Assistants (GAs), Teaching Assistants (TAs), Research Assistants (RAs), and Postdocs.  We represent all of these units and engage in collective bargaining with UConn.

WHy are we part of the uaw?

UAW is the International Union of United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW). UAW has historically been one of the largest and most diverse unions in North America. In recent decades, 100,000 employees in higher education have joined, making UAW the single largest union of higher ed academic employees in the US. Academic employees from the University of California, Harvard, University of California, Columbia, University of Washington, and many more have found that joining UAW has allowed them to democratically determine priorities as a workforce and dramatically increase power to win improved rights and benefits through collective bargaining.

Who can join the geu?

All graduate students and Postdocs who are employees of the university are eligible to join the union, whether their funding is dependent on teaching, research, or other services performed for the university (e.g., GAs, TAs, and RAs).

International students and postdocs have the same legal right to join and participate in a union as U.S. citizens. In fact, thousands of international graduate employees and postdocs have participated in Unions over the last few decades at more than 150 campuses across the US.

What are union dues?

Dues are important to any union because they provide the financial resources necessary to equalize power with the employer. Membership dues are currently 1.095% of our gross salary.

how can the GEU help you?

With a union, graduate employees and postdocs can negotiate a contract that defines the terms of their employment. A union contract protects workers from arbitrary changes to the terms of their employment (e.g., changes to health insurance, changes of hours and pay, etc). Once a contract is signed, all future changes would have to be negotiated by the union and the administration. In short, a union would give graduate employees security, stability, and peace of mind.
You can learn more about collective bargaining here.

what is collective bargaining?

Collective bargaining is a process that equalizes the power relationship between employees and their employer. Under collective bargaining, we elect co-workers to be representatives who negotiate with UConn and put the terms of our employment into a binding contract. With collective bargaining, graduate employee and postdoc unions have more power to negotiate for improvements in wages, hours, benefits, and terms and conditions of employment.
Without collective bargaining, UConn has unilateral power to change our conditions, such as the dramatic cuts they made to our health benefits in previous years, the increase in the cost of student fees not covered by our tuition waivers, and increased teaching loads. Since our benefits are secured in a Union contract through collective bargaining, UConn cannot make such changes without our agreement.
Collective bargaining gives us the power to negotiate with UConn and allows us to decide democratically what issues to prioritize in these negotiations. Through collective bargaining, we have been able to secure major wins, such as stipend increases, job security, improved childcare subsidies, paid parental leave, workload protections, etc. To read more about our wins and gains from the latest CBA.

How does collective bargaining work?

During bargaining years:

• We elect graduate employees/postdocs to be our bargaining committee
  
• We fill out surveys and give other feedback to the bargaining committee so that it can develop initial bargaining demands that reflect our interests
  
• We vote to approve the initial demands prior to negotiations with UConn.
  
• Once our bargaining committee reaches a “tentative agreement” it believes meets our needs on pay, benefits, and other terms of employment, we vote on whether to approve it as our next contract. Under state law, if our bargaining committee cannot reach agreement with UConn on certain issues, they can enter interest arbitration. Under this process, each side presents its “last best offers” to a neutral arbitrator who decides which proposal on each outstanding issue will be part of the final contract.
  

Do other graduate employees and postdocs have Unions in the u.s.?

Yes. Graduate employees at more than 150 U.S. institutions have unions and engage in collective bargaining.  This includes the University of Massachusetts (Amherst, Boston, and Lowell), University of Rhode Island, New York University, SUNY, CUNY, Rutgers, University of Michigan, University of California, and many others. Postdocs at the University of Washington, University of California, University of Massachusetts, and Columbia University are also unionized. ​

Will the union enforce equal wages amongst different departments?

Our contract sets minimum pay for all graduate employees and postdocs but has never stopped a department from paying an employee a greater amount than that set in the contract.

Why is the grievance procedure important and how does it work?

Our current contracts for both GAs and postdocs include a grievance procedure, which is a process agreed to by the Union and the employer that allows employees to enforce the rights, pay, and benefits negotiated in the contract. Though grievances are typically resolved quickly and informally, most contracts allow for unresolved grievances to be taken to a neutral arbitrator so that the University does not get to decide unilaterally whether they violated the terms of the contract.

In the past, we’ve helped employees resolve issues related to workload, late pay, ungranted leave, etc. If you are experiencing any issues in the workplace or suspect that your rights are being violated, please contact us immediately. The Union will help you resolve workplace issues; however, we will never proceed with any grievances unless you feel 100% safe and comfortable to do so, and we will work to find a solution that has your best interest at heart.