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We met with the Columbia administration for our 14th and 15th bargaining sessions in the past three weeks. First, after receiving feedback in our July CPW membership meeting and through numerous conversations on the ground, our bargaining committee brought a new package proposal to Columbia.
In the package, we reintroduced a housing stipend for all postdocs/ARS not living in Columbia housing, addressing the critical need to relieve rent-burden workers with direct support from Columbia. We also made movements in several areas where we thought we could continue working toward an agreement, reached a tentative agreement on the relocation payment side letter, and reasserted language in several proposals (more details below).
After our membership voted by an overwhelming 90% to authorize our bargaining committee to call a strike if circumstances justify, we joined Columbia again at the bargaining table on August 24th. At the session, Columbia withdrew their proposal to cap vacation day payouts for postdocs/ARS who leave the institution. Their proposal also included a minor change to International Employees in regards to requesting information about work authorization, a side letter linking to Columbia’s policy regarding interactions with law enforcement on campus, and language that would increase the Childcare FSA amount in the instance that Columbia increases it for other Officers of Research.
If Columbia understands the level of frustration so many of us feel, they should be prepared to make more meaningful progress at our upcoming bargaining sessions. We are scheduling another session with Columbia on September 10th and have agreed to have a neutral third party mediator join the session at the request of the administration in an effort to make more progress. Please take a moment and RSVP here to join us at the table.
Finally, the more of us involved in organizing and talking to our colleagues about bargaining, the stronger we will be. If you’re interested in helping or joining one of our Organizing Committee meetings, please fill out this form.
You can follow the negotiations in detail on our public bargaining tracker here. Here are some details on our proposals on August 11th:
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On Compensation, we maintained a $80k minimum for postdocs and $92k minimum for ARS, with 3.5% anniversary raises, but reduced the increase in new starting salaries for 2027/28 from 3.5% to 3%.
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On Childcare, we reduced the age eligibility for the FSA from 13 to <6, but maintained an increase from $5k to $7.5k to reach the new federal cap.
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On Housing, we re-introduced a housing stipend of $2500 per year for employees not residing in Columbia Postdoc housing.
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On Appointments, we removed the additional raises for short term reappointments, but maintained restrictions on reasons for short appointments with union consultation.
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On Vacations, we proposed to cap vacation day payouts at 40 days, moving towards Columbia’s proposals to cap at 15 days.
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On Relocation Benefit, we agreed to strike the word “relocation” from the side letter proposed by Columbia, and increase the amount from $1500 to $1800.
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We reasserted our previous proposals on Non-discrimination, Transit, Union Access & Rights, Hardship Fund, and International Employees.
Here are details on Columbia’s proposals on August 24th:
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Columbia withdrew their proposal to cap vacation day payouts in the Vacations article.
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On Childcare, Columbia added language that would increase the Childcare FSA amount for postdocs/ARS in the instance that they increase it for other Officers of Research.
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On International Employees, Columbia added language stating that the University would make reasonable efforts to identify outstanding work authorization information upon request. They also added a side letter linking Columbia Policy for interactions with ICE on campus.
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Columbia reasserted their language in all other areas.
Solidarity,
Philip Creamer, Physiology and Cellular Biophysics
CPW-UAW 4100 Bargaining Committee |
