NSHE workers can’t afford to wait

This past November, a supermajority of 2,500 graduate assistants at UNLV, UNR and DRI announced they had signed authorization cards to form a union, the Nevada Graduate Student Workers Union (NGSW-UAW). The experiences that factored into our decision were many. One in four graduate assistants on campuses within the Nevada System of Higher Education report experiencing or witnessing workplace harassment, and similarly, one in four GAs have reported experiencing or witnessing retaliation for raising workplace issues. In addition, 79% of graduate workers at NSHE campuses say their current pay isn’t sufficient to cover basic living expenses. These numbers are consistent with national statistics at universities across the country.Ensuring safe and fair working conditions for graduate assistants is an issue that affects all Nevada residents. We teach, mentor, grade and help prepare 35,000 Nevadans annually to join the workforce. Our research drives new discoveries and innovations that contribute to Nevada’s economy.

But since our vote in November, NSHE has failed to respect our democratic choice to unionize, denying us an equal seat at the table to address the serious challenges we face. 

First, there was silence. NSHE did not respond to our request for a meeting for three months. Next, NSHE tried to pass the buck by incorrectly asserting that they did not have the authority to recognize our union. In reality, there’s nothing stopping NSHE from doing the right thing and recognizing our union now. 3,000 NSHE classified staff and 870 faculty already have union recognition and collective bargaining agreements. 

NSHE’s deny and delay tactics have financial consequences for workers as well, and serve to keep our wages far below other universities. According to Evelyn Airam, a School of Integrated Health Sciences graduate assistant at UNLV, “I have been forced to skip meals, sell blood plasma on a weekly basis, and have worried if the gas in my car was enough to make it to work and classes.” These are not the working conditions that sustain a world-class research and teaching institution. 

NSHE says they have systems like Title IX in place to address harassment and discrimination. But in our experience as frontline workers, these systems are inadequate and often ineffective. Under Title IX and other NSHE-controlled processes, GAs lack enforceable protections against retaliation and an independent grievance process that is not controlled by the university. It’s no surprise that many GAs in hostile work environments never come forward and the university never learns about their cases. 

There is no top-down NSHE policy fix to this problem. The only way to structurally address harassment and discrimination is to create the conditions that enable many more GAs to be confident that reporting will lead to meaningful change and will not damage their academic careers. 

That’s why a supermajority of GAs across UNLV, UNR and DRI have chosen collective bargaining to address the power imbalances that lead to hostile treatment. With collective bargaining, GAs can negotiate a fair grievance procedure where they are supported by a peer union rep, there are enforceable timelines and immediate interim measures, and we have the ability to appeal to a neutral arbitrator if the university attempts to shield powerful abusers from accountability. These are real solutions to the challenges we face. 

Nevada is surrounded by states where GAs have formed unions and negotiated these protections with administrators: University of Alaska, University of Washington, Washington State University, University of Oregon, Oregon State University, University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University, University of California, California State University and more. In nearly every case, GAs and administrators have been able to work together effectively to resolve abusive treatment at early stages of the grievance process without going to arbitration. But the existence of an independent grievance process provides the crucial ingredient for more GAs to participate in reporting and dramatically improves retention of top scholars. 

NSHE has shown time and time again that they are unwilling or unable to address the serious challenges faced by graduate assistants in our workplaces. Graduate assistants have chosen to unionize because it’s the only way for us to have a voice in decisions about our working conditions and our future. 

So enough with the delays, the deflection, and the denials. It’s time for NSHE to recognize NGSW-UAW and engage in good-faith negotiations to improve GA working conditions and the mission of the university as a whole. 

Akhila Gopal is a graduate assistant in ecology, evolution and conservation biology at UNR. Carlos Tkacz is a graduate assistant in English at UNLV.