“We believe this contract is a win/win for all parties involved,” said Local 896/COGS Mark Salisbury. “Not only does it achieve one of the seminal goals of UE Local 896/COGS since its inception, but it fully recognizes the critical role of graduate assistants in the success of the institution. By reaching full tuition remission, the university will be able to better compete nationally for the best and brightest graduate students. This contract also helps to ensure that the growing economic recession won’t undermine current graduate assistants from achieving their goals.”
The contract’s highlight is an increase to the union-negotiated tuition scholarship program. In the second year of this agreement, the minimum tuition scholarships should cover nearly 100 percent of the cost of tuition for all graduate assistants. This will complete the agreement in principle reached by the union and university in 2003 for an eight-year phase-in of full tuition reimbursement, increasing the minimum tuition scholarships from zero to $3,612 per semester by the 2010-11 academic year.
The new agreement means that employees will receive significant increases in their take-home pay (salary after paying tuition and fees). For an employee working on a 50 percent appointment (20 hours per week) and taking a full class load (nine credit hours), net compensation will increase by over 10 percent in the two years of this agreement. But for the lowest paid employees on campus, the new contract will bring greater than 25 percent increases in take-home pay.
The agreement includes a number of improvements in contract language. All non-department assistantships will now be posted on one centralized web site, making those openings accessible to all employees. Provisions for class coverage were clarified, with the academic departments now ultimately responsible for covering classes when an employee takes leave. In addition, TAs and RAs will now have to be trained in all skills required for their positions, as described in each employee’s evaluation.
The union bargaining committee includes President Mark Salisbury, Chief Steward Matt Mettler, Area Chief Stewards Sarah Eikleberry, Bill Peterson, Sara Shreve, Matt Weiss, and at-large member Elizabeth Sutton. They were assisted by UE Field Organizer Rob Russell.