GA UNION FAQ

Currently, the University administration decides all aspects of our wages, benefits, and other working conditions. GAs can provide feedback on desired improvements, but the University has the final say. Forming a union with collective bargaining rights is the only way to have the power to negotiate with the NSHE Administration as equals and reach a legally-binding contract. It also will strengthen the voice of graduate assistants to fight research funding cuts, attacks on international scholars, and other actions by federal officials

With collective bargaining, Graduate Assistants set our priorities and our agenda—and we elect fellow GAs as representatives to negotiate on equal footing with administrators for improvements, such as salary increases, career development resources, protections from harassment and discrimination, and much more.

Here is a summary of the key steps towards winning our first union contract:

• GAs form a diverse organizing committee to gather information and make a plan to form a union.
• A majority of all GAs sign authorization cards indicating we would like to form our union.
• GAs request that the University recognizes our democratic choice to form a union and agrees to a fair and enforceable process for collective bargaining. If the university refuses to recognize our democratic choice to form a union, GAs can pass collective bargaining legislation requiring NSHE to recognize our union. 
• GAs achieve recognition and certification of our union, and begin bargaining as equals with the university administration!
• GAs elect a bargaining committee of fellow GAs.
• GAs fill out comprehensive bargaining surveys, hold discussions, request information from University administration, and gather feedback to draft their initial bargaining priorities.
• Initial bargaining demands are sent to all GAs for review, and GAs vote on whether or not to approve them.
• The bargaining committee negotiates as equals with the university administration and provides regular updates to all GAs. GAs engage in collective action about their demands.
• Once a tentative agreement is reached at the bargaining table, all GAs vote on whether or not to ratify the agreement.

Yes! Over 125,000 academic workers have formed unions with UAW at institutions across the U.S. And graduate employee unions have existed for decades at comparable public universities, including:

• The University of California system
• The Cal State System
• University of Washington
• Washington State University
• University of Oregon
• Oregon State University
• University of Alaska
• University of Connecticut
• University of Maine
• University of New Mexico
• and many more!

Other graduate worker unions have won major improvements to their work conditions, including:

• Higher wages
• Tuition and fee remission
• Expanded rights and support for international student workers
• Protection from discrimination; access to a robust grievance process and neutral third party arbitration
• Workload protections
• Protection from dismissal without just cause
• Better healthcare benefits
• Paid family leave and medical leave
• Childcare funds/subsidies

See this page for more info on contract gains made by other unionized graduate workers

University of Nevada Graduate Assistants began to organize in 2021 as a response to the unfair working conditions across many disciplines, including unfair workloads, insufficient pay, inadequate health coverage, and the lack of transparency in administrative communication. We realized that we could make even more progress by negotiating as equals with the University over our working conditions.

We decided to form a union with UAW because more than 125,000 academic workers across the United States are part of UAW, including more graduate student employees and postdocs than any other union. In the last eight years alone over 50,000 academic workers around the country have chosen to become part of the UAW.

The UAW has particular experience with helping to negotiate and enforce strong student worker contracts. For example, at the University of California, Student Researchers United-UAW was recognized as representative for more than 17,000 workers, after a supermajority of UC student researchers signed cards selecting SRU-UAW as their union. Through collective bargaining drawing on the UAW’s wide experience bargaining contracts with university administrators, and through collective action by graduate workers they were able to win 25-80% increases in pay in their first union contract, as well as many other improvements. 

We can also exercise a stronger political voice through the UAW. With active members at more than 45 major campuses across the US, the UAW has become a strong advocate on policy issues that matter to us as academics, such as fighting federal cuts to research funding and enhancing the rights of international scholars.

With roughly 125,000 academic workers, the UAW has become a powerful organization advocating to improve conditions for international scholars and students. For years, the UAW has fought hard to improve the status and working conditions of non-citizen workers. 

For example, the UAW fought to enhance the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program as an important path for international student workers to work in the US after completion of their PhD. More recently, the UAW-affiliated academic worker unions helped lead the fight against Executive Orders issued by former President Trump that targeted international scholars and students. In 2017, the UAW International filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court case challenging the Trump administration’s travel ban. In July 2020, thanks to direct action by UAW academic workers across the country alongside university and government allies, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) backed down from its directive to deport international students taking online classes due to COVID-19. In October 2020, UAW academic workers mobilized against a proposed rule by ICE to shorten visa stays for international scholars. Thousands of public comments were submitted, including by the President of the UAW International. 

UAW Local Unions also provide important resources for researchers on visas. For example, Columbia University postdocs used their union to fight for international researchers to be able to work remotely when they could not return to the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic. They put pressure on the Columbia administration and engaged allies in Congress to support researchers stranded abroad.

Yes, Nevada Graduate Assistants have the right to form a union. When a supermajority of GAs signed cards in 2024, GAs requested that the University recognize our union and agree to a fair and enforceable process for collective bargaining. They have so far refused to do so which is why we are electing pro-labor politicians who will help us pass collective bargaining legislation requiring NSHE to recognize our union. 

In Fall 2024, 1,500 of the GAs across UNLV, UNR, and DRI — a supermajority — signed cards to form our union. After deciding to form our union, we requested that the University recognize our union and begin negotiations for a first contract. The University administration refused to respect our choice to unionize, insisting that we work through existing university channels instead of bargaining as equals for a collective bargaining agreement. 

GAs then went to the legislature to pass a bill requiring NSHE to recognize our democratic choice to unionize. GAs presented and provided public comments to NV Assemblymembers and Senators to support AB 191 which would have required NSHE to recognize our union and any unions formed by other NSHE employees. The bill died in the Ways and Means Committee due to opposition from Governor Lombardo. 

That’s why we’re gearing up this year to elect pro-labor officials that will support our collective bargaining legislation in the upcoming legislative session. After large town hall meetings, GAs decided to endorse current Attorney General Aaron Ford for Governor and we are preparing to support other candidates who will support GAs and other working people in Nevada. 

GAs have a legal right to sign union cards and there are policies that protect against retaliation for supporting a union. But our greatest strength and protection will come from joining together in large numbers just as GAs at dozens of other university campuses have done before us. Tens and tens of thousands of GAs have signed union authorization cards across the US in recent years with no reports of retaliation. University of Nevada GAs have been actively working to form a union since 2020 and no GA has reported retaliation for organizing. 

Many unionized grad workers have found that their relationships with supervisors have improved as a result of collective bargaining because they no longer have to push their supervisors to address problems stemming from decisions by the university administration. For instance, instead of asking individual supervisors for needed financial support, GAs would negotiate collectively with those empowered to make broad improvements like guaranteed wage increases.

At other institutions where student workers have formed unions, collective bargaining has not produced these results. Because all union decisions will be made by the GAs, we will collectively decide what to ask for in bargaining with the University.

Collective bargaining typically includes a process to request financial information that affects graduate workers, which will make it possible for us to be well-informed and conscientious as we engage in bargaining. Both GAs and the administration have to agree on a contract, and neither party would want a result that hurts the quality of teaching and research at the University. Collective bargaining simply means we can negotiate as equals in order to hold the University more accountable to do the best it can do.

For example, the overall number of Research Assistants and Teaching Assistants has grown at the University of Washington since they negotiated their first union contract in 2004, as has the number of student workers at the University of California since they negotiated their first contract in 2000. Overall grant revenue has also increased at UW and UC over those years, showing that these institutions remain competitive in recruiting top talent to their research programs.

In addition, many PIs appreciate working with unionized researchers, because a union contract means PIs do not have to individually negotiate every term and condition of employment (from wages to health care to leave to childcare to non-discrimination protections to vacation to appointment letter terms, etc) and instead can focus on their research.

No. International scholars have the same rights to form and join a union as domestic scholars. Out of tens of thousands of international students, postdocs, and researchers that are part of UAW, there has never been any reported instances of participation in a union negatively impacting visa or permanent residency applications.

With a union, all union decisions – including the decision about whether or not to strike – are made by the workers in the union. 

With that said, state employees in Nevada are prohibited from striking. And while the use of a strike is a powerful tool for many workers, it is far from the only form of collective action that workers can take. Many unions, including unions of graduate workers and other academic workers, can and do win significant improvements without choosing to go on strike and/or without a protected right to strike (for example, Graduate Assistants at the University of Maine just negotiated a first union contract with major gains without striking). We will have at our disposal many forms of collective action, legislative support, and other ways to elevate our demands and win the workplace improvements that Nevada GAs need.

Student government and other advocacy groups do very important work on behalf of the student body. However, the key difference is that the student government does not have the power to negotiate a binding contract with the university that we vote on as GAs. We can only get that power by forming a union.

GAs will not pay dues until after negotiating and voting to ratify our first contract. Once a contract is ratified, each individual GA can decide whether or not to become a dues-paying member. Dues provide the resources to enable effective collective bargaining, enforcement of rights, and every aspect of having a strong union. UAW membership dues are 1.44% of gross income and are typically automatically deducted. 

The best way to learn more is to speak with a fellow GA who is involved in organizing. You can sign a card and support our efforts to elect pro-labor legislators so we can pass GA collective bargaining legislation here.

It takes resources to have a strong union, from the earliest stages of forming a union for the first time, to bargaining and campaigning for the first contract, to enforcing rights under an existing contract, and advocating on policy issues that matter to the union membership.  Dues provide those resources. See below for more information.  

Dues generally cover all of the day to day costs to have a strong union, including paying for legal representation, staffing, rent, equipment, and supplies.  

Most of the day-to-day work enforcing the contract and representing our membership is provided by the Local Union. Under the UAW Constitution, the Local Union automatically keeps 27% of dues money to support its expenses: staffing for representation, rent, equipment, supplies, etc. The rest of the dues is allocated to the International Union’s General Fund (26%), Strike and Defense Fund (44%), and Community Action Program (CAP) (3%). Nevada postdocs would be supported by these funds as described below. Depending on the overall financial health of the Strike and Defense Fund (if its net worth is $500M or greater), an additional allocation of dues called a “rebate” is given back to the Local and International Union.  So, in typical months, the portion of dues retained by the local union is roughly 37%. See the response above to “Will I have to pay dues?” for more info on how the strike fund portion of dues applies in Nevada. 

For some great examples of UAW local union officers helping their coworkers defend their rights, see this summary of successful grievance handling at the University of Washington, or these stories about unionized postdocs fighting pregnancy discrimination at the University of California, or how graduate assistants at UConn took on sexual harassment.

The portion of dues allocated to the International Union would support Nevada postdocs in the following ways:

• Technical experts to help negotiate on equal terms with University admin, including:
• Health insurance experts who can take on the University’s consultants in order to pursue the best benefits for the best price;
• Researchers who can help analyze institute finances;
• Legal advice where necessary; and
• Experienced negotiators to help the Postdoc bargaining team achieve our goals, both at the bargaining table and in terms of developing an overall campaign to win a strong contract.
• Support for new organizing campaigns (for example, the resources supporting  Academic Workers of Nevada-UAW come from existing UAW members’ dues).

Political action: 3 percent of dues go toward the UAW Community Action Program (CAP), which supports pro-labor community and political action, including legislative and other policy advocacy on issues that matter to UAW members. For example, the UAW advocates strongly for fair, comprehensive immigration reform and expanded federal support for research funding, among other topics. [NOTE: legally, dues money cannot be used for federal campaign contributions, such as the presidential race—that money comes from members’ voluntary contributions to the UAW Voluntary Community Action Program or V-CAP, which is separate from, and in addition to, dues.]