On Monday, September 29th, we held our 15th bargaining session with the University, where we and the University each exchanged counterproposals on thirteen articles for our contract, including one Tentative Agreement (TA) on the Travel article. This brings us up to six TAs.
The University brought — but did not present — six counterproposals on International Researcher Rights, Appointment Security: Appointments and Reappointments, Union Rights and Access, Union Security, Discipline and Dismissal, and Grievance and Arbitration, as well as a counterproposal to our latest counterproposal on Travel, which brought us to a Tentative Agreement on the article. In addition to Travel, we presented six counterproposals on Intellectual Property, Health and Safety, Employment Records, Workload, Professional Development, and Training. We continue to make progress on these articles as we negotiate with the University.
We also spent time discussing the University’s proposed changes to their Intellectual Property and Remote Work policies, as well as a newly proposed University policy in response to the latest NIH guidelines on the disclosure of funding sources and the associated required training. This discussion helped us understand the status quo practices at the University, so we know where our focus needs to be in our contract demands to protect your existing rights as well as expand them in the case of Intellectual Property.
We came prepared to discuss thirteen article counterproposals. However, the University pushed for a rapid sequence of counterproposals on Travel and insisted that we focus the session on reaching a tentative agreement on this one article. We did reach a TA on Travel that guarantees funding from the University for expenses related to required, or HOL-approved, travel as part of your duties. Additionally, where possible, the University will provide us with direct funding in lieu of timely reimbursement for transportation and registration expenses upon a Postdoc or RA’s request, eliminating the need for reimbursement of what can be thousands of dollars of expenses on our personal credit cards. This was a big win, with strong commitments from the University commensurate with the guarantees provided to other unionized postdocs. The University’s other counterproposals passed to us at the session, in contrast, were unacceptable and failed to meet or exceed the standard workplace rights and protections for unionized Postdocs that are already in effect at other New York City institutions.
As always, our power at the table is a direct reflection of your support. Observe a session, join an action, and help us keep the pressure on. Our next in-person session is scheduled for Friday, October 17, 2025, from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM ET. Click here to RSVP if you’d like to attend this or a future session and see the process firsthand!
You can access the full text of these proposals using our online bargaining tracker.
Have questions or feedback? Don’t hesitate to reply to this email — your input strengthens our collective power.
In solidarity,
Joanna Krzyśpiak
On behalf of the UPROR-UAW Bargaining Committee
UPROR-UAW Proposals:
University Proposals:
Appointment Security: Appointments and Reappointments (see pages 5-9)
Discipline and Dismissal (see pages 16-18)
Grievance and Arbitration (see pages 18-23)
International Researcher Rights (see pages 1-4)
Management and Academic Rights (see pages 25-29)
No Strike – No Lockout (see pages 23-25)
Union Rights and Access (see pages 10-12)
Union Security (see pages 12-15)
Tentative Agreement: