More than 230 contingent faculty members at Barnard College will be able to vote to form a union with the United Auto Workers Local 2110 this September, according to an announcement today. Last month, contingent faculty filed for a union with the NLRB after the UAW said more than two-thirds of contingents had petitioned in support. The Barnard College administration, however, contested the right of full-time and part-time contingent faculty to be in the same unit.
After the NLRB hearings ended last week, the college agreed to sign an election agreement that permits a union for all contingent faculty except for a small subset of full-timers who have supervisory roles. Barnard College's President Debora Spar said in a statement that the administration "fully supports the right of these contingent faculty to make a decision for themselves and without interference."
"We commend the College for reaching this election agreement with us rather than engaging in unnecessary conflict," said Julie Kushner, director of UAW Region 9A, which includes New England, New York City, and Puerto Rico. "We are encouraged by the growing number of employers who have been working out neutrality agreements such as this one. All workers deserve the right to choose unionization without influence from their employers."
"This is a positive step forward for faculty," adjunct lecturer Siobhan Burke said in a statement. "A union will give us a voice in our employment conditions. By lessening the precariousness of our economic situation as employees, it will allow us to stay focused on our role as educators."
While not typically thought of as a higher education union, the United Auto Workers is one of a handful of non-traditional education unions-including SEIU and United Steelworkers-that has been active in adjunct organizing in recent years. For more on the range of union organizing strategies within the burgeoning adjunct movement, read my in-depth exploration: "When Adjuncts Go Union."
UAW's Region 9A has been particularly successful with higher education organizing. Most notably, it has organized contingent faculty at The New School, New York University, and Goddard College. It's also had success getting contracts for graduate assistants at New York University since 2002 and has long been working to organize grad students at Columbia University. Recently, more than 2,000 graduate workers at the University of Connecticut won union recognition.
There are a number of other schools in the region with adjuncts and graduate workers who are actively reaching out to UAW for organizing support.
Given the early support that Barnard adjuncts have shown for unionization, it's likely that the September vote will pass. What remains to be seen is how much the union can get in concessions from the college in terms of pay increases, job stability, and health benefits. It's worth noting that some of the biggest contract wins for adjuncts have come from wealthy universities like Tufts, Northeastern, and Boston University. Barnard College, a women's liberal arts college in New York City that has long been affiliated with Columbia University, might just be able to dole out a generous contract.
