Posts tagged University
Op-ed: Faculty leaders fear St. John’s University in NY could lose its union
December 9, 2025 // Institutions that have claimed the religious exemption include Boston College, Duquesne University, St. Leo University, Marquette University, and most recently, Loyola Marymount University. And now, faculty union leaders at St. John's University in Queens, New York, are sounding the alarm that they believe the 155-year-old Vincentian institution is laying the groundwork to follow the same path as other Catholic colleges.
Teachers Union Anti-Trump Lawfare Cases Have Little Connection to K-12 Public School Education
December 4, 2025 // The AFT began as exclusively a teachers union but has six separate divisions that also represent other public school employees, such as teacher aides, custodians, and bus drivers, as well as health care workers and higher education faculty. The union’s website says it also represents public employees, including federal and state employees. “The AFT’s lawsuit spree against the Trump administration reveals what we’ve long known: these organizations have strayed far from their mission of representing teachers,” Aaron Withe, president of the Teacher Freedom Alliance, a conservative education group, told The Daily Signal. “This is exactly why so many teachers are choosing to opt out—they want representation focused on their profession, not a political action committee.”
GET-UP announces strike authorization vote at press conference with elected officials
November 4, 2025 // GET-UP’s economic proposals have included pay increases to match a living wage, comprehensive vision and dental coverage, health insurance for dependents, childcare benefits, retirement contributions, and access to employee benefit programs. During the union’s bargaining sessions on Oct. 28, Penn provided counterproposals on various economic articles, including compensation and healthcare. In their response, according to Friedline, Penn proposed raising the minimum stipend for graduate workers from $39,425 to $43,000.
‘Reinstate the doctors!’ Hundreds protest firing of 2 UH pediatricians
July 14, 2025 // UH CEO Cliff Megerian said Beene and Fouts-Fowler inappropriately downloaded nearly 5,000 healthcare workers' personal information for reasons other than direct patient care. "It's a violation of at least five of our policies," Megerian said earlier this week. "They denied it. We found out they did, and as you can expect, that's what led to the issue." Neither of the terminated doctors knew what policies they'd broken.
UPS deliveries disrupted, others unaffected as strike continues
April 7, 2025 // UPS deliveries were disrupted for a few days as a result of the Wellesley Organized Academic Workers’ (WOAW-UAW) strike, while other deliveries to the College will remain normal. UPS, which unionized under the Teamsters Union, has the contractual right to refuse to cross a picket line, according to the UPS National Master Agreement Article 9. Students received notices from the UPS shipping email last week saying that “unfortunately, a labor strike (unrelated to UPS) has prevented delivery of your package. Your delivery has been rescheduled for the next business day.”
Some Penn State faculty want to unionize as the university considers campus closures
March 11, 2025 // Unrest has been growing among some faculty as the university makes cuts to close a deficit by this summer. An attempt to hold a vote of no confidence in Penn State president Neeli Bendapudi was tabled at a faculty senate meeting last week. Also at that meeting. Bendapudi laid out plans to close some of the Commonwealth campuses. Just how many campuses is uncertain, but none will close before the end of the 2026-27 year. Twelve of the 20 campuses ― Beaver, DuBois, Fayette, Greater Allegheny, Hazleton, Mont Alto, New Kensington, Schuylkill, Shenango, Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, and York ― are under consideration for closure. They will be evaluated by a team led by several top administrators appointed by Bendapudi; she expects to make a decision before commencement in May.
MD bill may give faculty the right to unionize
March 11, 2025 // The bill includes full-time or part-time faculty, and those who are either on tenure or non-tenure tracks. Foley added faculty at Maryland community colleges are already able to organize unions. Since 2012, the number of unionized faculty across the country has grown more than 7%, with more than a quarter of all faculty belonging to a union. More than 80% of unionized college faculty members are nontenured. Foley, a former vice president of the Communications Workers of America, said despite perceptions, unions are not just for blue collar workers.
GOP lawmakers demand info on Biden-era spending used to declare student-athletes as employees
March 3, 2025 // While the change in how college athletes are treated has been welcomed by many, others have been concerned about the move's potential implications. Earlier this month, the Trump administration rescinded the Biden administration NLRB's September 2021 memo insisting college athletes be recognized as employees under federal labor laws. The Trump administration this month also revoked guidance issued by President Joe Biden on his way out of the White House that required schools to distribute direct NIL payments equally to female and male athletes. Aaron Withe, an expert in government unionization and a former college athlete, said he fears continued momentum toward viewing college athletes as strictly employees will destroy college sports. "Are unions going to step in between a coach and their athletes for yelling at the players, or because practice went long or because they're making them run an exceptional amount of lines?" Withe wondered. "If you're represented by a union, they're now your bargaining agent. You have no ability to go represent yourself in anything with the university if it is deemed they are your employer. You've got no ability to go negotiate with them anymore."
Walberg, Allen to NLRB: How Much Taxpayer Money Did Biden-Harris Spend Trying to Unionize Student Athletes
March 2, 2025 // “In September 2021, General Counsel Abruzzo issued a memorandum to NLRB field offices taking a ‘prosecutorial position’ that certain student-athletes were employees under the NLRA. The memo further stated she would pursue an independent violation of NLRA Section 8(a)(1) in ‘appropriate’ cases where an employer misclassified players as student-athletes rather than as employees.” The letter continues: “General Counsel Abruzzo’s attempts to impose the Biden-Harris administration’s misguided priorities on the student-athlete population would have caused significant consequences. Student-athletes would have lost the ability to negotiate their own deals with universities, and classifying these student-athletes as employees could have hindered their ability to transfer between schools.
Opinion: Why Trump’s anti-Semitism crackdown should worry UC union
February 23, 2025 // Following President Trump’s executive order to combat anti-Semitism came reports that his administration has opened investigations at five U.S. universities — including at UC Berkeley. There is, unfortunately, plenty to uncover from violent student groups to passive university administrators. But investigators would be wise to also examine the role unions have played. My own lawsuit against the United Auto Workers (UAW), which represents 48,000 employees across the UC system, should be enough to raise alarm bells. At UC Berkeley, where I am a postdoc, campus administrators were poised to break up a post-October 7, anti-Israel encampment, when the union came to its rescue. The encampment prominently displayed the inverted red triangle—the Hamas symbol used in violent propaganda videos to target Israelis—and banners reading “Glory to the martyrs” and “Student Intifada.” That didn’t deter UAW officials, who legitimized the protest by establishing a “union village” within it.