Mediation Tomorrow! Hardship Fund Round 3 Application, And More
Dear SWC,
The purpose of the mediation session on Wednesday was to give us a clearer understanding of the flexibility of the university on our four main concerns: compensation, health insurance, recognition, and neutral arbitration. The main takeaway however, was that the university is at present unwilling to make concrete concessions beyond what they have previously signalled.
In past bargaining sessions, Columbia made it clear that they would offer meaningful compromises to their position during mediation; Provost Mary Boyce made similar statements in her mass emails to the community. Despite this, our mediator Kevin Flanigan clarified that the university team would prefer that the union demonstrate even more flexibility before they present any specific “supposals” (that is, non-binding offers).
The mediation session was detailed and thorough: we presented our rationale for our proposals, along with data that put on full display the inadequacy of our current “benefits” and the need for our demands. In the three hours spent with Kevin, we aimed to be as comprehensive as possible in order to make clear just how little room we have to move and still meet the basic needs of our members. Nevertheless, Kevin relayed that the university would like us to lower the bar even further. Columbia, duplicitous as ever, apparently expressed unwillingness to put in writing their movement on arbitration and harassment, as well as compensation, unless we express a similar willingness to radically adjust our proposals. While we are not married to the specific language of our package, we will not deviate from our core interests: union representation for our entire community of interest, safe working conditions, and compensation including benefits sufficient for living in New York City.
What can we ultimately take away from this meeting? The need to maintain a strong strike! The university will not honor the value of our labor with a fair contract unless they see what happens when that labor is withheld — especially as we draw closer to final exams. Though it may seem that Wednesday’s mediation session brought no meaningful progress, we should be encouraged by the fact that the university's team can no longer point to bargaining as the point of hold-up; the ball is in their court. Any movement they make is the result of pressure from our strike; we must hold the line!
This week we’ll come back from holiday break bigger and better than ever. Don’t forget to join us for a strike march from CUIMC at 168th to Morningside at 116th at 11:00am on Wednesday, December 1st. We’re going to shut down Broadway and make it clear that we keep our workers safe across campuses. Let the city hear our call: we have teeth!
The application for Round 3 of the Hardship Fund is now open. You can apply here. If you applied for funds from Round 2, you will be receiving an email about your disbursement within the next day or two and the funds shortly thereafter. As always, email the Hardship Fund Committee with any questions or concerns.
We hope to see you in tomorrow’s mediation session at 1:00pm. Caucus is at 12:15pm and both will happen on the same Zoom link here.
In solidarity,
Your bargaining committee