After a fight that lasted more than 30 years, graduate workers at Yale University approved their first union contract over the weekend. It passed with support from 99.4% of those voting.
Local 33 of the union UNITE HERE will now represent the university’s 3,200 grad student employees.
The contract, which runs through July 2028, includes improvements to health care, major raises, a comprehensive grievance procedure and improved benefits for families and dependents, among other gains.
It also includes a provision that guarantees the right to negotiate a second contract, even if the National Labor Relations Board should change their status as workers during the next two presidential administrations, which is what happened during the Trump administration.
Arita Acharya is a grad worker in the Genetics Department and was a member of the Local 33 bargaining committee. She said Yale came to the table in good faith and they had very productive negotiations, and she looks forward to building on that relationship in the future.
“I think it’s going to really revolutionize the graduate worker experience here,” Acharya said. “It’s going to mean that many more people from a much wider set of backgrounds are going to be able to come and pursue their academic pursuit here at Yale.”
The contract went into effect upon ratification.