In this update:
We reached a Tentative Agreement for PTO and Holidays.
OHSU says will rethink their position on our stipends.
Get involved to support bargaining!
Hello Graduate Researchers,
Thank you to those of you that joined us for our virtual bargaining session yesterday!
We are happy to report that we reached a Tentative Agreement (TA) for article 12, which focuses on PTO & Holidays. All of our PTO will now be front-loaded so we won’t have to wait to accrue PTO, and with 10 days of rollover, we can theoretically take as many as 30 days off in the summer! We are hoping this makes it easier for members to take vacation when our busy schedules allow it. We also added language to the contract stating that students cannot be forced to take PTO when working on a flexible schedule. So, if you work a Saturday and take Monday off, you should not have to take PTO as long as your PI understands that is what you are doing.
Further, in our opening talks we countered OHSUs claims regarding our stipends, focusing on the stipend levels at other schools and the high cost of living in Portland, as well as providing further proof that our members are one emergency away from disaster. If you are curious about the economics our fellow GRUs face, or just want to see what we showed management have a look at our slideshow.
OHSU management did not respond with a counter today, but stated that they will have to go back to their constituents to discuss what we told them. That's good news! We are hopeful that this means they took what we said to heart and will come back with an offer that helps get us close to agreement soon.
But while we moved closer to finishing bargaining, there is still work to do! For that we have some actions prepared, but we need your support!
Getting real movement also means becoming a member if you are not currently one, and being on the lookout for union events!
If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to [email protected].
In solidarity,
Adrian Baris, Raphael Kirchgäßner, JD Russo, and Austin Wright
