Nazeefa Ahmed at The Chief reports Postdoctoral Researchers represented by the Einstein Researchers United Union recently rallied in the Bronx to call for for labor protections and fair wages from the Einstein College of Medicine Administration. The gathering happened before the latest bargaining session with management and included Union Members and allies from other Medical Institutions in the City. After 15 months of negotiations, only five of 28 articles in the contract have tentative agreements. The Union has been at the negotiating table since winning their Union Election with more than 82% voting yes in May 2024. Each of the 31 bargaining sessions have been biweekly and three to four hours long. “What’s been happening at the bargaining table is not just frustrating, it is unacceptable,” said Silvia Hernandez, a former Cardiology Postdoctoral Researcher on the Union’s Bargaining Committee. The ERU claims the university delayed contract negotiations and “regressed” on terms that they had previously agreed to. The ERU represented by the United Auto Workers, which represents Academic Workers across the United States. The five tentative agreements the Union has reached relate to job postings, severability, training, Union security and Union-Management. “We have not yet reached agreements on fifteen other articles that would provide workplace rights and protections that are increasingly standard for Unionized Postdocs,” the Union said in a statement following the most recent bargaining session, adding that they have not yet begun to discuss economic topics due to the significant delays in bargaining. Some of the points that have yet to be reached include appointments and reappointments, prohibition against discrimination, harassment and retaliation, according to the statement. “What has been especially frustrating over the course of this year is how Einstein uses the current political climate to obstruct our negotiations,” said Juliane Grimm, a fourth-year Postdoctoral Researcher who’s also on the Bargaining Committee.
To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Postdocs pushing for fair contract after one year at the negotiating table – The Chief