{"id":7085,"date":"2023-09-19T11:41:57","date_gmt":"2023-09-19T15:41:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/columbiapostdocunion.org\/?p=7085"},"modified":"2023-09-19T11:41:59","modified_gmt":"2023-09-19T15:41:59","slug":"letter-to-faculty-how-to-avoid-a-postdoc-ars-strike-hear-from-the-postdocs-and-arss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/columbiapostdocunion.org\/letter-to-faculty-how-to-avoid-a-postdoc-ars-strike-hear-from-the-postdocs-and-arss\/","title":{"rendered":"[LETTER TO FACULTY] How to avoid a postdoc\/ARS strike – Hear from the postdocs and ARSs"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Dear Columbia Faculty,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are the postdocs and associate researchers that work in Columbia\u2019s labs and research groups learning to conduct independent research by writing and reviewing grants, authoring papers and mentoring students, among other duties. Together, our union, the Columbia Postdoctoral Workers, represents more than 1600 of us throughout the University. We are writing to give you a first-hand account of our contract negotiations, explain our rationale for institutional support rather than passing on the cost to individual PI grants, and suggest ways to support and advocate for us to the administration in order to avoid a strike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We acknowledge that grants and awards have not kept pace with inflation and living costs in recent years. In preparation for our negotiations, we commissioned a financial analysis (you can find the report here<\/a>). Our overarching goal is for the university to start using the proceeds from its considerable reserves to support and invest in research and alleviate some of the burden of the rising cost of living away from grant money. Please read this letter of support<\/a> circulated by some of your colleagues, and take a moment to add your name<\/a> and to discuss our need for support with our department chairs and Deans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While some progress has been made at the bargaining table and we have settled on most issues, the administration, while it doesn\u2019t deny the availability of funds, insists on maintaining the current funding structure so that any gains from our contract negotiations will be taken from research budgets. We need your support in order to change this model.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are the key aspects that are paramount to us:<\/p>\n\n\n\n