After more than two years of organizing, a majority of Northwestern postdoctoral researchers and research associates voted to form a union represented by the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America.
The union election, moderated by the National Labor Relations Board, took place on Aug. 25 and 26. The NLRB counted 515 individuals who voted in favor of unionization and 13 who voted against unionization. Of the 1,195 individuals eligible to vote, only 528 voted in the election.
“We won, and we won big,” said postdoctoral fellow Madeline Meier. “It’s just really overwhelming and a relief, at the same time, that it all paid off.”
Prior to the election, the postdocs collected hundreds of signed union authorization cards from a majority of postdocs and research associates on NU’s Evanston and Chicago campuses, according to postdoctoral researcher Edward Arnold.
Once at least 30% of the overall bargaining unit signs the cards, a union election is triggered.
Additionally, postdocs demanded the University recognize the NU Postdoc Union at a rally July 8 while also calling for salary raises, good working conditions and healthcare improvements.
Among these demands is an emphasis on protections for international postdoctorates, who make up around 70% of NUPU-UE’s workforce, according to NUPU-UE. The Trump administration has called for increased scrutiny of international students with plans to limit how long they can study in the U.S.
“We asked for some things, like for (the University to) not let ICE into the building if it ever came to that and potentially providing bridge funding, if some of us would be targeted for political reasons,” said postdoctoral researcher Julia Fadjukov. “At that time, Northwestern said no, but hopefully now with the union, these are some of the things that we can revisit with them.”
With the union authorized, the NUPU-UE will be able to advocate for these changes through a collective bargaining agreement with the University.
In a statement to faculty and staff, University leadership wrote that they were looking forward to beginning the process of negotiating with NUPU-UE.
“Northwestern deeply values the contributions that postdocs and research associates make to the University’s research and teaching missions. We remain steadfast in our commitment to support and prepare them for future success,” University leadership wrote in the statement.
The NU Graduate Workers union took about nine months of drawn-out negotiations for their contract. Arnold expects negotiations for the postdocs to take months as well.
For postdoctoral researcher Valentina Olivera-Pasilio, the unionization movement has built a community for all postdocs at NU.
“I feel safer now that Northwestern cannot do anything without negotiating with us,” said Olivera-Pasilio. “Now we have a seat at the table. We will have a voice in what is related to our workplace environment.”
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