Mediation continued today with another half-day session. We maintained progress towards an agreement with movement from Columbia’s bargaining team on (1) PhD wage increases, (2) summer stipends, and (3) EOAA enhancements. The University proposed an additional 1% increase (on top

The Bargaining Committee is considering resuming the strike if major differences are not resolved. We encourage all unit members to organize their departments to be ready to resume the strike on Wednesday, April 21, if needed. We have a long

Today we continued in mediation with a half-day session. We maintained the positive momentum and now have  a clearer picture of the remaining roadblocks to the overall agreement. We made progress on compensation for masters, undergraduate, and hourly workers. Today

Today, through mediation, the University made the most significant set of moves we’ve seen since before the strike and gave us a much better understanding of their “wiggle room.” We saw that Columbia may be willing to move on their

TLDR: We reached a tentative agreement on a COVID-19 Funding Extensions side letter, and the University proposed to bring Mailman PhD workers to the GSAS total support rates at a faster rate. We began the session discussing reports of retaliation

TLDR: Today we received the first written response from the University on the COVID-19 Funding Extensions side letter that indicated the University’s continued efforts to provide resources for students whose research was impacted by the pandemic. We will continue to

TLDR: We had our first mediation session with federal mediator Andrea Cancer.  On Thursday, April 8, we met for our first bargaining session in mediation. Both sides agreed on Andrea Cancer, who was assigned to our case by Federal Mediation

We met Columbia’s team for a brief bargaining session the evening of April 5th before we embark with mediation in future sessions. The University wanted to address the backlog of work withheld during the strike. They plan to implement a

The Bargaining Committee has decided to accept the University’s offer of mediation with a strike pause. Given the timing and status of bargaining, we believe that we have the best chance of winning a fair agreement this semester if we

Our next General Body Meeting (GBM) is scheduled for today, Friday, April 2, 3:30-5 PM ET (registration link). TLDR: After discussions on Non-Discrimination and Harassment and cost estimates, the University offered to agree to mediation in exchange for a pause to the strike.