Posts tagged American Association of University Professors
Labor Watch: St. John’s Axes Unions, CSU Strike Pays Off
March 5, 2026 // St. John’s is the second institution to use a religious exemption to shutter its union this academic year; in the fall, the Loyola Marymount University Board of Trustees announced it would no longer recognize its non-tenure-track faculty union and cease bargaining.
St. John’s University says it no longer recognizes faculty unions after 56 years
February 24, 2026 // Asserting its identity as a religious institution of higher education, attorneys for St. John's University argued that New York's Public Employment Relations Board lacked jurisdiction over the university on First Amendment grounds. The university also said that faculty members were "managerial employees" of the university and "therefore must be excluded from any bargaining unit." The university's response further argued that the state board was "preempted" from asserting jurisdiction under the federal National Labor Relations Act.
Year in Review: Wave of campus labor organizing gains momentum, brings one new union to Penn
December 12, 2025 // From graduate student workers to research associates and postdoctoral scholars, 2025 marked an unprecedented surge in labor organizing at Penn. The past 12 months saw the formation of a new union on campus, alongside a strike authorization vote amid ongoing negotiations. The Daily Pennsylvanian compiled a timeline of unionization efforts on and around campus over the last year.
Labor unions, faculty associations sue Trump administration over demands to UCLA
September 17, 2025 // UCLA would also be expected to make a statement that it no longer recognizes the identities of transgender individuals, end gender-affirming care for minors at its medical facilities, offer female-only housing and “make clear through the statement and on its website that it does not welcome transgender people on sports teams,” as part of the deal, according to the LA Times. Diego Emilio Bollo, the president of the Undergraduate Students Association Council, said he believes the federal government is withholding the funds in an attempt to coerce the university to compromise its values – including those of academic freedom, free speech and equity. He added that USAC is “incredibly thankful and in support” of the lawsuit.
Unions ‘Wait and See’ on Elections as Trump Upends Labor Arena
August 20, 2025 // That political uncertainty, coupled with a volatile economy and labor market, could have workers second-guessing whether they’re ready to stick their necks out for collective action, the data show. College athlete employment, protections for political protests, and higher penalties for labor law violations are just some of the issues that worker advocates may want to steer away from a Republican board. The average number of newly certified unions per month dropped 22.3% between January and July this year, compared to the last six months of the Biden administration, according to data from the NLRB’s monthly election reports.
Union contracts for UConn employees expire without new agreements in place
July 23, 2025 // UConn’s AAUP has about 2,065 members and UCPEA has about 2,250. UConn Health’s AAUP has about 685 members and University Health Professionals has about 3,400
Penn Museum workers demand raises, protest Univ. pay proposals in picket after authorizing strike
July 10, 2025 // “The average annual salary in the bargaining unit is less than $45,000,” Shaw said. “We’re looking for raises that will not only allow workers to keep up with increases in the cost of living, but to do better over time.” Union leaders also handed out flyers that emphasized Penn’s continued “lowball pay proposals” despite the University’s “annual operating budget of $4.7 billion.” “It’s not so much to ask from the University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer and one of the wealthiest in the city,” Shaw said.
State tosses out Ohio University’s objections to faculty union election
May 13, 2025 // In an opinion attached to the SERB order, Geis wrote that a decision in OU’s favor on the issue of members-only meetings “would likely prohibit union members and employers from meeting exclusively during the period from the petition for representation through the election at all.” Under Ohio law, public employees have a right to organize unions. Geis wrote that the provisions of the Ohio Administrative Code cited by OU “must not be read to conflict with the Revised Code provision they amplify,” which guarantees that right.
In unusual move, doctors vote to unionize at N.J. healthcare giant
May 5, 2025 // A group of doctors who work for both RWJBarnabas Health and Rutgers University voted to unionize earlier this week, union officials said. The physicians — who work for Rutgers 10% of the time and RWJBarnabas 90% of the time — were hired as “clinically focused university practitioners,” or CFUP. They are both physicians and faculty members at the state university.
Teacher unions sue Trump over $400 million Columbia University research cuts
March 26, 2025 // The AFT has also sued Trump over his efforts to dismantle the Department of Education. Trump and AFT President Randi Weingarten have long clashed over the rule of unions in the education system, dating back to Trump's first presidency, when the two fought over return-to-class plans during the COVID-19 pandemic.