What's a union?

• A union is an organized group of workers who use their collective strength to change their workplace for the better.

• Unions can be independent or affiliated with a larger union. For example, faculty and graduate student workers at Tufts are unionized with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 509. We're organizing with OPEIU Local 153.

• Under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), private employers are legally obligated to negotiate (or “collectively bargain”) with a certified union. A union is certified after showing that it has broad support among the workers.

Why are Tufts RAs unionizing?

We need a union at Tufts so that we can collectively negotiate fair compensation and better treatment in our jobs. Right now, the University has all of the say over our hours, pay, conditions, job descriptions, and more. As the people who do the important work on campus every day, we believe we should have the ability to negotiate. Winning a certified union will give us leverage to bargain the compensation and working conditions we deserve.

Do RAs at other universities have unions?

Yes! RAs have been unionized at UMass-Amherst since 2002. For the 2020-2021 academic year, RAs at UMass-Amherst were paid $11,742 and received a 25-30% housing subsidy.

OPEIU Local 153, the union we're working with, has successfully won unions with the RAs at Barnard and Wesleyan Universities. The student workers at Grinnell and Dartmouth recently won their unions, as did the RAs at Mount Holyoke.

How do we win our union?

We first asked the University to voluntarily recognize our union, which they had the power to do. Wesleyan University agreed to voluntarily recognize the union of RAs when they were asked.

Unfortunately, Tufts rejected our ask, despite 86% of us RAs signing our names onto union cards to express our support.

Now we will vote in an election hosted by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). All RAs will get the chance to vote on whether they want a union at Tufts. Admin will NEVER know how anyone voted!

The vote is in the Alumnae Lounge of Aidekman Wednesday, Dec. 14th from 12-3pm. Make sure you come vote!