MEETINGS TODAY TO DISCUSS BARGAINING COMMITTEE STRUCTURE
At 7pm in Avery 114, we will be holding our January open meeting to discuss the size and composition of our bargaining committee. If you are interested in running for the bargaining committee or want to weigh in on the discussion, please drop by. Tonight’s meeting will produce several options that will be voted on in the next week in a vote similar to last month’s vote on eligibility. This will be another important step forward so that we can hold elections in the near future for our first GWC-UAW bargaining committee.
We will hold a meeting earlier in the day at CUMC. It will be at 1PM in Hammer LL1-119. For those who cannot make it downtown this will be an opportunity for a conversation where we will take feedback. Food will be provided, please feel free to drop by when you can.
OBJECTIONS HEARING CONCLUDED; OVER 4,000 HAVE SIGNED OUR PETITION
Our hearings at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) concluded yesterday, and we are encouraged by how quickly the hearings went. However, as we said in our e-mail yesterday the hearing has only confirmed our belief that these objections represent another effort by the University to delay bargaining in any way possible. As we continue pushing back against the administration’s objections, please join more than 4,000 others and sign our petition urging Columbia to respect our democratic choice.
On the last day of the hearing, we presented testimony and evidence that we believe strongly refutes the University’s allegations. For example, in response to the university’s allegations that representatives of the union were campaigning and intimidating voters in Earl Hall, we presented testimony making clear that a few individuals did in fact go to the lobby of Earl Hall periodically, but were simply there to meet up with election observers to go elsewhere to debrief each observer shift. We also presented two more witnesses who compellingly testified that the video footage taken during the election was not by “union agents” but by individuals working on class projects.
The NLRB hearing officer in charge of the case gave the Union and the University one week to submit briefs stating our final arguments on the objections. We will provide more updates when we submit our brief.