The University has not countered most economics articles in over six weeks

On Monday, August 10th, and Thursday, August 27th, we held our 34th and 35th bargaining sessions with the University.

Since introducing our economics package in May, we have reached agreement on only one economic article, one which secures our status quo recreational benefits, out of the sixteen economic articles and two economic appendices we proposed. In every bargaining session, we have worked hard to identify which demands best reflect the priorities of Unit Members and explain them at the bargaining table, making changes when we think it is necessary to progress the negotiations. The University, however, refused even to provide counterproposals on the majority of the economic articles in both sessions, including the economic demands in otherwise settled non-economic articles like International Researcher Rights and Professional Development. In their last counter, now over six weeks ago, they simply ignored most of the text we proposed, and sometimes undercut benefits we currently have. They chastised us for wanting to have “the best” contract and expecting the University to match or exceed peer institutes in the city. And we still have major disagreements in the Prohibition Against Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation; Grievance and Arbitration; Union Security; Intellectual Property; Management Rights; and No Strike/No Lockout articles.

The reality is that we cannot afford to allow the University to stall bargaining like this. As many are aware, the University has chosen not to discuss increases in compensation this fiscal year while we negotiate a contract. That does not stop the cost of living from increasing, nor does it stop the University from raising our rents. Childcare costs continue to rise; Unit Members continue to lack protections against bullying and abusive conduct; International Unit Members spend thousands on visa and immigration costs; our working conditions stay far behind those at other unionized institutes. Every day that passes without progress towards a contract is a day that the University chooses lower standards at Rockefeller to save money and maintain power. We, as a community, need to decide what actions we can take to make it clear to the University that they must meet our demands.

A last note: in this session, we also presented our first counterproposal on a major article: No Strike/No Lockout. This article is mostly an agreement that the Union will not authorize a strike while the contract is in effect, except under certain narrow conditions: (i) when we don’t have access to the Grievance and Arbitration procedure to enforce certain rights that are being violated; (ii) when the University does not comply with, or does not enforce or uphold the outcomes of, the Grievance and Arbitration procedure; and (iii) when the University commits an unfair labor practice (ULP). This article would ensure that we reserve our right to strike in such circumstances. Additionally, our proposal ensures that no Unit Member will be required to perform struck work nor required to perform subcontracted work where the contractor’s employees are on strike, and no Unit Member will be required to cross a picket line in order to perform their assigned work.

You can access the full text of all current proposals using our online bargaining tracker. Our next in-person session is scheduled for Wednesday, September 16, 2026, from 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM ET. Click here to RSVP if you’d like to attend this or a future session and help us win an industry-leading contract.

In solidarity,

UnJin Lee and Stephen Thornquist

On behalf of the UPROR-UAW Bargaining Committee

UPROR-UAW Proposals:

Holidays (08/27/2026)

No Strike/No Lockout (08/27/2026)

Parking and Transportation (08/27/2026)

Recreation (08/10/2026)

Recreation (08/27/2026)

Tax Assistance (08/27/2026)

Vacations (08/27/2026)

Wellness (08/27/2026)