Bargaining & Contract Enforcement Announcements
RSE A-4:
Research Scientist A-4 Salary Increases – Check Your Paycheck!
RSE A-4s, check your upcoming 10/25 paycheck for a 4% pay increase beginning 10/1! The first RSE A-4 contract that we won through our collective actions includes this guaranteed raise.
This paycheck should also include the additional 3.25% raise for any RSE who:
- Was employed by UW as an RSE A-4 as of April 2022
- Did not receive an increase to their base pay between April 2022 and September 2023
- As of October 2023, is still employed at UW as an RSE
Check your 10/25 payslip closely to make sure your pay has been adjusted correctly! These wins were only possible through all of us empowering each other to advocate for ourselves by coming together through majority collective action – let’s make sure that UW implements our hard-won contract. If you don’t see the increases that you would anticipate, please reach out immediately to uaw4121@uaw4121.org.
Postdocs:
Postdocs maintain overtime-exempt status in 2024
The WA Department of Labor and Industries recently announced that the 2024 overtime-exempt salary threshold will be $67,724.80. The 2024 minimum Postdoc salary of $68,455 that we won earlier this year through collective participation in contract bargaining is well above this minimum this confirms that Postdocs will not have to track hours in 2024.
International Scholars: Submit receipts for your OPT and/or J-1 visa fees!
Additionally, we’ve won in our new Postdoc collective bargaining agreement that the University must pay for immigration-related fees for international Postdocs. This includes J-1 visa request fees and amendment fees, and reimbursing Postdocs for J-1 SEVIS I-901 fees and OPT I-765 filing fees. If you are a Postdoc on OPT or a J-1 visa that has paid these fees, please submit receipts for the fees you paid using this form.
Academic Student Employees:
Add your voice – the ASE 2024 Contract Bargaining Survey open through the last week of October!
In early 2024, ASEs will begin negotiating a new contract with the University of Washington. Building a strong, representative bargaining agenda takes all of us as ASEs coming together throughout the year, starting with this bargaining survey to determine our collective priorities on issues including wages, fee waivers, career development, anti-discrimination, and more.
- Take 5 minutes to complete the survey today!
- Sign up to be a departmental Contract Campaign Captain & attend the October Captains’ Call on 10/19 at 5pm (more info below!)
Announcements
Introducing ONE SLACK WORKSPACE for the Local!
It’s here! Connect with fellow members across all units, ask and answer questions, share and learn about opportunities to get involved and grow solidarity with one another. Fill out this form to join the UAW 4121 Slack! If you have already filled out the form and haven’t been added, hang tight. We’ll get you an invite as soon as we can.
For RSEs and Postdocs: Applications Open: Become an EPIC Trainer
Members from all three 4121 units (Academic Student Employees, Postdocs, and Research Scientists/Engineers A-4) have the opportunity to participate in and become peer trainers for the Empowering Prevention and Inclusive Communities (EPIC) program. This is a great opportunity for anyone interested in empowering their colleagues to create a safer, more equitable environment at UW. These paid part-time positions are now posted and open to applicants.
Upcoming Local 4121 Meetings, Events, Trainings
For ASEs: Contract Campaign Captain Meeting (10/19) & Bargaining 101 (10/13 & 10/17)
Our power at the bargaining table is directly linked to our ability to enact our collective solidarity in massive, participatory actions. To this, a strong network of departmental Contract Campaign Captains (CCCs) acting as point people for updates, questions, and conversations about the contract campaign will be essential to winning a strong, effective contract.
Sign up to be a CCC here to be connected with other CCCs through monthly meetings as well as resources for getting involved in your department around the contract campaign. At the October Captains’ Call at 5pm on October 19th, we’ll talk more about the timeline around bargaining, and discuss how to best strategize & align our collective efforts.
Want to learn more about the basics about the contract bargaining process? RSVP here for Bargaining 101 sessions on 10/13 or 10/17!
Organizing 101 Trainings
Our union is made up of members and it is only through member participation that we can build a strong, powerful community of colleagues.
Every month over the fall quarter, we will have Organizing 101 trainings to cover the basics of effectively connecting with our colleagues to build power for structural changes. This month, the trainings will be on:
- Monday, 10/16 from 12-1pm on Zoom
- Monday, 10/30 from 5-6pm on Zoom
RSVP HERE to attend a training and come meet your fellow union members from across all three units, and bring a friend!
Sewliderity Circle
The next 4121 sewlidarity circle will be Saturday Oct 21st, 1-4pm in Odegaard 334.Bring your sewing, crafts, mending, knitting, crochet, weaving, whatever! We’ll watch a movie and vibe! (You’ll need your husky card to gain access to this building on the weekend!)
November General Election
City and county elections are coming up November 7th!
- Register to vote in Washington. If you register now, your ballot for the November election will arrive mid-October. All voting in Washington is done by mail.
- Seattle voters have four $25 democracy vouchers to give Seattle candidates! It costs you nothing, and helps a more diverse group of candidates run in Seattle than if people had to rely on private donations only.
- By pooling many small donations in UAW’s Voluntary Community Action Program (VCAP), our union can impact the campaigns of pro-labor candidates and help elect labor champions into local, state, and federal offices. If you are eligible to vote in the USA, then you can set up your contribution through the VCAP form on our website.
- Everyone (whether or not you are eligible to vote) can help get labor-supporting candidates elected by volunteering! To maximize our political power as a union, we’re sponsoring three door-to-door canvass events. Door-knocking is especially important in local elections like this, where media coverage is sparse, and the electorate is small. Please consider signing up for a canvass date and show up in your union gear (we’ll get you a shirt if you don’t already have one).
Know Your Rights
Over the past week, many folks in our communities have been affected by the ongoing violence in the Middle East. Our contracts include strong protections against harassment & discrimination of all forms, and guaranteed access to leaves if you need to take time off. Reach out to Contract Enforcement at contract-enforcement@uaw4121.org to be connected with fellow members to talk more about any issues you’re facing and for support.
Beyond UW
All members in good standing can submit events/actions by emailing comms@uaw4121.org. Suggested content should be consistent with Local 4121’s core principles.
Solidarity & Political Actions
- Indigenous People’s Day was this past Monday; the day honors the histories, cultures, contributions, and resilience of contemporary Native peoples.” Please consider showing solidarity by joining a land-tending day with Land Back projects, such as Heron’s Nest and paying Real Rent Duwamish.
Community Events
- The UW Harry Bridges Labor Studies Center will be holding their annual banquet on November 5th, 5-8pm in the HUB Ballroom. The event is open to all but space is limited and tickets are required. Event details and an RSVP are available here.
In Solidarity,
Justin Applegate
Lucia Baker
Erica Bigelow
Rebecca Bluett
Francesca Colonnese
Pat Erickson
Max Friedfeld
Colleen Hoffman
Soohyung Hur
Levin Kim
Brianne King
Avi Matarasso
Nicel Mohamed-Hinds
Anzela Niraula
Marissa Parker
Mara Rafferty
Tahiyat Rahman
Anastasia Schaadhardt
Audrey Seo
Samantha Thompson
Natalie Wellen
Tricia Wu
Yuying Xie
The communications team sends out emails on approximately a weekly basis to all members. Generally, these emails will share information to keep you in the loop about union happenings, the labor movement in Washington state and higher ed, and actions we can take to build worker power. If you’re interested in getting involved with the communications working group on an ongoing basis, please reach out to comms@uaw4121.org.