UAW gets more than 10,000 signatures to organize 10 University of California campuses

A quiet campaign by UAW organizers at the University of California ended Monday with more than 10,000 signed cards officially submitted to authorities that would create the Student Researchers United-UAW, representing more than 17,000 higher education workers.

These union activists are not required to hold a formal election and can, instead, submit the signed 10,441 cards to California’s Public Employee Relations Board in Oakland. Researchers marched down to the office at 1330 Broadway carrying a banner just after 2 p.m. Signatures will have to be certified as union organizers await instructions on next steps.

The action means the UAW would represent all 10 UC campuses and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Organizers made a point of noting that every site has been actively involved in collecting union cards. These researchers, who get paid by the university, have finished their undergraduate studies and now work toward earning a Ph.D. degree. Their work nets millions of dollars in grant money to help the UC system maintain its role as a world leader in securing patents.

“We are so proud to have signed union cards from more than 60% of our colleagues,” Katie Augspurger, a graduate student researcher in the Buchwalter Lab at UCSF, said in a news release. “Organizing during COVID was a challenge, but nearly everyone we spoke with felt strongly that using our collective voice to improve working conditions would improve our lives and the quality of research.” 

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Augspurger, 26, is in her third year studying proteins on the outside of the nucleus and their role in stem cell development, which helps in the study of aging.

“The UAW has a proven track record for improving working conditions for its academic workers,” she told the Free Press. “We would like to see similar strides in working conditions, establishing protection against harassment and discrimination and establishing a grievance procedure.”

Already the UAW has a strong presence on UC campuses as well as other schools, particularly on the East and West Coasts. The UAW has earned a reputation among higher education workers and professionals including lawyers and engineers for negotiating strong contracts with extensive safety protections.

Vacation loss, threats

Academic workers often mention that researchers have one boss in a lab who can potentially eliminate earned time off or make threats that can ruin careers with little recourse.

“Our people are studying cancer, other diseases, microbiology, computer science, computing and psychology and more,” Augspurger said.

Organizers began gathering signatures in the fall and made a final push this spring.

Researchers said they want a contract that helps gender parity, secures protections for international workers, and acknowledges researchers’ contributions, the news release said.

UAW Vice President Cindy Estrada, head of the UAW Organizing, Women’s and Chrysler departments, said in a statement, “Workers in higher education are organizing because standing together is the best way to address workplace challenges like low wages, unstable benefits and persistent harassment and discrimination.

The UAW negotiation record speaks for itself, she said. “We are thrilled to welcome the UC Student Researchers into the UAW.” 

UC researchers share similar concerns to those voiced by Columbia University medical researchers when 1,700 organized with the UAW in 2020.

Felix De La Torres, general counsel for the employee relations board, acknowledged receipt of the union cards on Monday.

He told the Free Press that the neutral agency will process the petition and make sure it follows all steps required under statutes and regulations to proceed with the certification process. Then the UC system will be contacted for a response, and the school system will provide a list of names that can be cross-checked with the union cards to verify the union has majority support.