Labor
1,300 Harvard Academic Workers Sign Petition Demanding Union Contract
Nearly 1,300 non-tenure-track faculty signed onto a petition and delivered it to Harvard’s top brass at Massachusetts Hall on Thursday, demanding a union contract “as soon as possible."
Harvard Proposes Yearlong Wage Freeze to Custodians Amid Financial Headwinds
Harvard proposed freezing custodian wages for the next year in a contract proposal to their union on Thursday to try to cut labor costs across worker groups as it navigates financial uncertainty.
Grad Union Rallies Against Removal of 900 Students from Bargaining Unit
Roughly 50 Harvard affiliates gathered outside Harvard Medical School’s Gordon Hall on Friday to protest the University’s July decision to remove more than 900 students on research-based stipends from the graduate student union.
FAS Officials Confront Union Organizers Over Harvard’s Campus Use Rules During Rally
Faculty of Arts and Sciences officials confronted members of Harvard’s campus unions over their use of a megaphone at a Thursday rally on the steps of Widener Library, citing a violation of Harvard’s campus use rules.
Unionized Blank Street Workers Push For Higher Pay, Better Working Conditions
Workers at Blank Street’s Harvard Square location said that long lines, inadequate resources, and low paychecks led them and six other Boston-area locations to vote to unionize this past June.
Harvard Lays Off Student Advisers and Lecturers in SEAS Cuts
Nearly a dozen positions that directly support students were among those eliminated in a sweeping round of layoffs at Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences earlier this month, according to a document obtained by The Crimson.
Cambridge City Council Denounces Harvard’s Removal of 900 Grad Students From Union
The Cambridge City Council unanimously adopted a resolution on Monday condemning Harvard’s removal of roughly 900 workers from its graduate student union, calling on the University to address the demands of its unions during ongoing contract negotiations.
Harvard Unions Stage Poster Campaign in Protest of Black Lives Matter Sign Removal
Members of three Harvard unions plastered hundreds of Black Lives Matter posters across campus on Thursday to protest the University’s decision to remove a sign bearing the same message from two professors’ office windows this summer.
Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Lays Off 25% of HUCTW Staff
Harvard will lay off roughly 25 percent of staff represented by its clerical and technical workers’ union at the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and reorganize several offices in response to mounting funding pressures, according to the union.
Security Guards Present Wage, Leave Proposals at First Bargaining Session
Harvard security guards presented proposals asking for wage increases that keep up with inflation and expanded retirement options during their first bargaining session with Securitas Security Services on Wednesday.
Nurses at Dana-Farber Foxborough Ask for Equal Pay to Their MGB Counterparts
Nurses at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s Foxborough campus sent a letter on Friday asking DFCI to eliminate their pay disparity with Mass General Brigham nurses working in the same building.
Harvard’s Undergrad Workers Unionized 2 Years Ago. Their First Contract Is Still Nowhere in Sight.
Nearly two years after unionizing, Harvard’s undergraduate worker union is nowhere near a first contract, leaving student workers stranded as the University closes several of their workplaces.
Harvard Custodians Open Contract Negotiations With Wage and Benefit Requests
Harvard custodians presented a suite of economic proposals to University officials at their first bargaining session on Tuesday, asking for raises to compensate for inflation since the pandemic began.
Harvard Proposes Yearlong Wage Freeze to Non-Tenure Track Faculty Union
Harvard proposed keeping non-tenure-track faculty salaries flat through June 2026 during negotiations with their union on Thursday — an early sign that the University will resist major wage increases as it weathers a funding crisis.
Grad Union Stands to Make More Than $1 Million in Annual Dues if Agency Shop Proposal Passes
When Harvard removed more than 900 students from the graduate student union’s bargaining unit in July, the union lost not just 450 official members, but $20,000 in monthly union fees.
New Progressive Organization Pushes School Committee Candidates to Empower Teachers at Forum
The Cambridge Progressive Electoral Collaboration pushed School Committee candidates to commit to increasing teacher involvement in district leadership decisions during their Sunday afternoon forum.
Cambridge Education Association Endorses Six Challengers — And No Incumbents
Six challengers seeking seats on the Cambridge School Committee received endorsements from the Cambridge Education Association on Wednesday — the latest indication that the union is fed up with the current district leadership.
Harvard Police Union Accuses University of Withholding Information
The union representing Harvard’s police officers accused the University of withholding the report from an investigation of a dispute between two officers, making their first public arguments in front of the National Labor Relations Board since the complaint was filed last year.
Harvard Rejects Grad Union Request to Charge Fees of All Represented Workers
Harvard denied its graduate student union’s long-held request to require represented workers to pay union fees during contract negotiations on Thursday, ratcheting up tensions at the bargaining table as the school year begins.
Harvard Docks Course Assistant Pay, Cuts Back on Undergraduate Hiring
Harvard College cut course assistant pay in some departments by $2 and has begun reducing teaching assistant positions for undergraduates amid University-wide budget cuts.
Harvard Grad Union Requests Academic Freedom Protections in New Contract Proposal
Harvard’s graduate student union requested that the University guarantee academic freedom protections for graduate students’ teaching and research pursuits in a new contract proposal on Thursday, joining a growing roster of graduate unions that have requested similar provisions in recent years.
‘Harder for All of Us’: Confusion Reigns After Harvard Excludes 900 Grad Students From Union
Harvard removed more than 900 students on research-based stipends from representation under its graduate student union in July. More than a month later, they’re still searching for clarity — and getting few answers.
Cambridge Education Association Calls for Halt to Superintendent Search
The union — which represents Cambridge Public Schools teachers, administrators, and staff — expressed outrage over a perceived lack of transparency and remarks made by one candidate who has since been eliminated from the search.
Harvard Custodians Withdraw Petition to Decertify Union
A Harvard custodian withdrew a petition to decertify the union representing University custodians last week, saying he hopes to gauge the union’s response before moving further in a campaign to replace it.
Campus Unions Ask Harvard To Pledge Worker Protections as Federal Cuts Prompt Layoffs
Harvard’s five largest campus unions urged the University to pledge to a suite of worker protections amid federal attacks in a Monday letter emailed to Harvard’s top officials.