Bargaining Session 8

On Monday, March 9, the University and the Student Workers of Columbia union (SWC) met for the eighth time in just over 11 months, in person at the Interchurch Center, to continue to negotiate the terms of the union's successor contract. Although a range of topics were discussed, the parties remain far apart on virtually all issues. 

At the union’s request, discussion during the session centered around SWC’s proposals entitled Artificial Intelligence, Academic Freedom, Non-Discrimination, and Benefits. The University put forward counterproposals on Benefits and Training. The union advanced a counterproposal on Grievance and Arbitration.

SWC’s demands and arguments, particularly in support of its Academic Freedom and Artificial Intelligence proposals, continue to demonstrate the union’s insistence on bargaining over permissive subjects and total disregard of the Framework Agreement’s distinction between bargainable employment matters and academic and operational matters that must remain under the University and faculty’s control. Both proposals would significantly invade the University’s authority over academic decision-making by granting student employees the same discretion over academics afforded to faculty and imposing severe restrictions on the use of AI in teaching and research at Columbia – forms of influence over academics that are not proper subjects of negotiations for a collective bargaining agreement and that student employee unions were never intended to seek or have.  

As previously agreed, the parties will meet again on Friday, March 20, in person at Interchurch. Both parties discussed interest in additional dates for bargaining, and the union indicated potential openness to meeting in other rooms at Interchurch to facilitate scheduling, although no agreements were reached. 

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.