Voting starts March 19 in an election that will be supervised by the state Bureau of Mediation Services. Graduate student workers on the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Duluth campuses are eligible to vote.
“Administrators rely on every one of us for the research and teaching that wins grant income and brings outstanding faculty and students to this university,” said Scott Thaller, a graduate research assistant in the Physics Department.
“An election offers each graduate assistant a long overdue opportunity to vote for a union and to negotiate with university administrators on a level playing field.”
Starting March 19, the student workers will decide whether to form a union under the umbrella of the United Auto Workers, one of the nation’s most diverse labor unions. Its 390,000 members include 45,000 workers in higher education, including teaching assistants, research assistants, academic administrators, faculty and other employees.
The Bureau of Mediation Services set the following polling places, open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.:
- Monday, March 19, CHPS Room, Moos 1-425, Minneapolis campus
- Tuesday, March 20, Vincent Hall, Room 120, Minneapolis campus
- Wednesday, March 21, Nolte Hall, room tba, Minneapolis campus
- Thursday, March 22, Blegen Hall, Room 155, Minneapolis campus
- Friday, March 23, St. Paul Student Center, Room 110, St. Paul campus
- Friday, March 23, Kirby Student Center, Kirby Garden Room, Duluth campus
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Voting starts March 19 in an election that will be supervised by the state Bureau of Mediation Services. Graduate student workers on the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Duluth campuses are eligible to vote.
“Administrators rely on every one of us for the research and teaching that wins grant income and brings outstanding faculty and students to this university,” said Scott Thaller, a graduate research assistant in the Physics Department.
“An election offers each graduate assistant a long overdue opportunity to vote for a union and to negotiate with university administrators on a level playing field.”
Starting March 19, the student workers will decide whether to form a union under the umbrella of the United Auto Workers, one of the nation’s most diverse labor unions. Its 390,000 members include 45,000 workers in higher education, including teaching assistants, research assistants, academic administrators, faculty and other employees.
The Bureau of Mediation Services set the following polling places, open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.:
- Monday, March 19, CHPS Room, Moos 1-425, Minneapolis campus
- Tuesday, March 20, Vincent Hall, Room 120, Minneapolis campus
- Wednesday, March 21, Nolte Hall, room tba, Minneapolis campus
- Thursday, March 22, Blegen Hall, Room 155, Minneapolis campus
- Friday, March 23, St. Paul Student Center, Room 110, St. Paul campus
- Friday, March 23, Kirby Student Center, Kirby Garden Room, Duluth campus
A panel discussion, “Diverse Perspectives on Unionization,” will be held at 5 p.m., Wednesday, March 7, at the Bell Museum on the Minneapolis campus. Moderated by the Rev. David Smith, professor emeritus of theology at St. Thomas University, it is open to all metro area graduate assistants.