In case you missed it, Columbia announced a new childcare benefit this week! The new benefit offers up to $3000 in additional funding to offset childcare costs for researchers required to work on campus during July and August.  

We are excited to see this new benefit since the CPW-UAW bargaining committee, along with other constituencies on campus, highlighted childcare concerns as a significant obstacle for women and others with families in relation to the research ramp-up. We are also excited that the new benefit is offered to Postdoctoral Research Fellows and advances our union’s larger goal of enhancing equity and making Columbia a more family-friendly and inclusive research community.

Details on the new benefit can be found on the Columbia Human Resources website. If you have any trouble accessing this benefit, please let us know.

Reminder – CPW-UAW Local 4100 Next Steps Meeting 7/27, 6pm.

As we move into the next phase of our union campaign, CPW-UAW Local 4100 will hold a meeting next Monday, July 27, 2020, at 6pm to discuss some of the necessary next steps in the creation of our Local Union here at Columbia. Please click here to RSVP and receive the zoom link.

While we have achieved important milestones as a union, such as winning our NLRB election in the face of university opposition in 2018, and negotiating our first contract, the work involved in having a strong voice through our union will continue. It is important that Postdoc and Associate Researchers continue to be actively involved to make sure our rights under the new contract are enforced, to fight for strong policies against bullying, and to mobilize in support of national policy issues like international worker rights, science funding and non-discrimination.

We also need to take certain steps to establish our Local Union. At the meeting on the 27th, we will discuss these steps and a variety of opportunities for union members to get involved. Such next steps include:

  • Discussing how to maintain the strong mobilization spirit that has carried us so far

  • Drafting Local Union bylaws that will provide the governance structure of our union

  • Electing an Elections Committee to run local union officer elections

  • Setting a timeline for electing officers and stewards

Clearly, there will be many opportunities to get involved in this exciting new phase of our union’s life. Please click here to RSVP for this meeting.

In solidarity,

The CPW-UAW Local 4100 Bargaining Committee