On Monday, August 10, the University and the Student Workers of Columbia union (SWC) met for a nineteenth bargaining session, in person at the Interchurch Center, to continue negotiating the terms of the union’s successor contract.
During the session, the parties exchanged revised counterproposals on Union Activity/Access, and SWC put forward revised counterproposals on Compensation, Child Care, and Benefits.
As before, the union’s latest demands remain far out of line with economic provisions and benefits available to other union and non-union Columbia employees, as well as to student employees at peer universities. And its outstanding proposals still would impinge on faculty decision-making on academic matters and erode University control over operations, in a manner inconsistent with the Framework Agreement and the union’s prior contract. As such, the parties remain far apart on virtually all major elements of a labor contract.
The parties will meet again on August 31, in person at Interchurch, and have agreed to identify additional dates for bargaining into the fall.
The University remains committed to reaching a fair, competitive, and sustainable agreement with SWC that benefits all of our student employees and the entire Columbia community.
