►
Description
Docket #0734 - Hearing regarding student workers and labor practices in Boston's institutions of higher learning
A
A
A
Okay,
thank
you.
I'm
also
joined
by
city,
councilor,
at-large,
LT
garrison
and
my
good
friend
from
South
Boston
City
Council,
ready
Flynn
I
want
to
remind
you
that
that
this
public
hearing
is
being
recorded
in
broadcast,
live
on
Comcast
channel
eight
and
our
CN
80
to
Verizon
1964
and
streamed
on
Boston
gov,
slash,
City,
Council
TV.
Please
silence
your
cell
phones
and
other
devices.
A
We
will
also
take
testimony
when
the
appreciate
that,
if
you
would
sign
in
and
check
off
the
box,
if
you
wish
to
testify
over
there,
please
state
your
name
affiliation
residents
and
limit
your
comments
to
a
few
minutes
to
ensure
that
all
comments
and
concerns
can
be
heard.
Today's
hearing
is
on
docket
number
zero.
Seven,
three
four.
In
order
for
a
hearing
regarding
student
workers
and
labor
practices
in
Boston's
institutions
of
higher
learning,
so
the
way
we're
gonna
start
this
off
the
first.
A
The
first
thing
that
I
have
to
say
is
none
of
the
colleges
showed
up.
We
have
letters
from
from
javed
paulcurran
who's,
the
director
of
labor
and
employee
relations,
letter
from
Boston,
College,
David
Quigley,
a
letter
from
Boston
University,
Jean,
Morrison,
University,
provost
and
chief
academic
officer,
and
we
have
a
letter
from
Northeastern
University
John
Tobin
with
that
being
said,
I'd
like
to
call
my
first
panel,
which
is
Sam
Levenson
Justin
blows
if
I
said
that
right,
Zach,
C,
Alex,
I'm
and
carly
fiorina,
very
yeah.
It's
at
you
come
on.
Oh.
A
B
B
Being
said
today
is
about
that
story
and
highlighting
it
if
they
choose
not
to
counter
it
and
that's
their
that's
their
choice
that
they're
making
I'm
so
proud
of
the
students
who
are
organizing
and
proud
of
Labor
who's
here,
also
to
organize
in
solidarity.
This
is
going
to
be
a
robust
conversation
and
to
those
who
ask
why
the
City
Council
would
do
such
a
thing.
This
is
a
private
conversation.
This
is
everything
to
do
with
just
between
two
parties,
and
we
should
mind
our
own
business
wherever
social
justice
or
injustice
is
happening.
B
C
Garrison
good
afternoon,
everyone,
my
name,
is
Alan
Althea
garrison
Council
at
launch.
I
would
like
to
thank
everyone
for
coming
out
for
this
hearing
for
this
year.
We
are
here
to
take
testimony
on
labor
practices
in
Boston
institution
of
higher
education.
Thank
you,
Thank
You
counsel
counsel.
Please.
A
D
D
We
were
there
with
the
SEIU
32bj,
the
City
Council
of
the
City
Council,
still
with
our
nurses,
the
mass
Nurses
Association
in
most
recently
United
26,
which
is
the
hotel
and
restaurant
workers
during
this
right,
and
it
was
made
up
of
a
lot
of
immigrants
and
in
women
hard-working
working
men
and
women.
They
were
fighting
for
a
decent,
decent
wage.
I'm
also
proud
to
be
here
with
so
many
different
organized
labor
unions
that
are
here
and,
as
my
my
friend
from
the
Greater
Boston
labor
council
Darlene,
has
said.
D
I
just
want
to
quote
one
line
from
from
her
testimony
which
I
believe
100%
student
workers
just
like
any
worker,
and
they
deserve
the
same
rights
and
respect
as
everyone.
They
deserve
the
living
wage,
good
health
care
protection
from
harassment
and
discrimination,
just
like
everyone
else
and
I
think
that's
where
I
stand
as
a
member
of
the
Boston
City
Council.
Thank
you
thank.
A
A
F
Thank
you
so
hello.
My
name
is
Alex
Achmed
a
graduate
worker
and
a
PhD
student
in
computer
science
at
Northeastern,
University
and
I
appreciate
the
opportunity
to
speak
to
you
about
my
University's
disrespectful
and
harmful
behavior,
both
towards
its
workers
and
the
city
of
Boston.
As
graduate
student
employees,
we
teach
classes
and
discussion
sections
great
assignments
papers
and
projects
and
conduct
research
and
scholarship.
Although
it
is
well
known
that
graduate
students
assist
in
teaching
fewer
people
know
that
we
also
act
as
the
instructors
of
record
taking
full
responsibility
for
teaching
entire
courses
ourselves.
F
We
are
responsible
for
a
significant
portion
of
the
educational
portion
of
the
university,
while
also
performing
the
cutting-edge
research
that
brings
in
millions
of
dollars
in
research
grants
every
year.
However,
northeastern
along
with
many
other
American
universities
continue
to
deny
that
our
work
is
work.
This
is
far
from
isolated
issue.
Northeastern
hired
an
expensive
anti-union
law
firm
to
build
a
strategy
to
not
only
dissuade
workers
from
forming
a
union,
but
also
running
a
legal
strategy
that
endangers
the
legal
right
to
organize
for
tens
of
thousands
of
student
workers
across
the
country.
F
They
are
paying
huge
sums
of
money
to
try
and
bust
the
adjunct,
faculty
Union,
the
full-time
non
tenure
track,
faculty,
Union
and
ours.
They
were
a
few
sig
knowledge,
the
very
real
issues
we
experience
on
a
daily
basis
that
lead
us
to
organize
to
demand
dignity
on
the
job.
We
are
dedicated.
Workers
battling
to
win
recognition
of
our
contribution
to
the
success
of
the
university.
Many
of
us
come
from
working-class
backgrounds
who
struggle
to
make
ends
meet
while
working
and
earning
our
degrees,
often
living
paycheck
to
paycheck.
F
At
a
recent
meeting,
our
Union
organized
graduate
students
shed
tears
over
their
working
conditions
and
dealing
with
verbal
and
physical
bye
on
the
job.
After
going
through
all
available
channels
for
recourse,
we
find
that
there
is
no
accountability
or
due
process.
We
need
a
union
to
guarantee
real
recourse
through
which
our
grievances
can
be
addressed.
We
were
organizing
because
we
demand
dignity
and
fairness
at
work.
F
We
know
that
these
issues
are
not
exclusive
to
northeastern
student
workers
across
the
nation,
our
building
unions,
to
compat
against
the
abusive
nature
of
academia
that
has
persisted
for
a
long
time.
That
is
why
you
now
see
so
many
grad
students
engaging
in
labor
activism.
All
across
the
country,
in
this
city
and
here
in
this
room
today,
we
do
our
work
for
the
same
reason
that
we
organize,
because
we
care
deeply
about
teaching
and
scholarship
and
we
recognize
the
importance
of
higher
education.
F
Ultimately,
we
believe
that
we
must
work
to
make
academia
more
sustainable
for
the
benefit
of
our
own
institutions
and
the
cities
that
we
live
in
in
Boston
northeastern
has
aided
in
the
dwindling
of
affordable
housing,
as
they
continue
to
expand
tax-free
into
Roxbury.
Our
union
has
joined
in
coalition
with
other
unions
at
Northeastern
and
with
community
organizations
such
as
reclaim
Roxbury
and
the
Poor
People's
Campaign,
and
as
a
group,
we
demand
that
Northeastern
should
pay
its
fair
share
of
payments
in
lieu
of
taxes
to
the
city
of
Boston.
F
We
are
asking
for
the
chance
to
vote
for
our
union
and
guarantee
that,
when
we
win
northeastern
will
recognize
our
union
and
bargaining
with
us
student
workers.
All
over
Massachusetts
have
been
bargaining
for
contracts
for
decades
in
the
public
sector,
including
at
UMass
Boston
in
2016.
We
run
the
right
to
do
the
same,
and
it
is
disgraceful
about.
Our
university
will
not
recognize
our
right
and
get
and
agree
to
bargain,
but
is
instead
choosing
to
threaten
our
ability
to
organize
through
intimidation
and
legal
maneuvering.
F
Gaining
formal
union
recognition
will
allow
us
to
commit
more
resources
to
making
Northeastern
more
sustainable,
both
internally
and
externally,
in
its
relationship
to
the
city.
It
is
in
the
benefit
of
the
city
of
Boston,
for
these
institutions
of
higher
learning
to
bargain,
in
good
faith
with
their
workers,
and
so
I,
ask
city
council
to
please
do
everything
in
your
power
to
rein
in
these
institutions
of
higher
education.
Don't
let
their
nonprofit
status
fool
you!
These
are
multi-billion
dollar
corporations
that
seek
to
grow
and
expand
themselves
at
the
expense
of
workers.
G
A
G
During
the
study,
this
crisis
is,
of
course,
compounded
for
graduate
workers
in
marginalized
communities,
for
instance,
in
a
survey
of
grad
workers
from
over
200
universities,
35%
of
Syst
men
reported
depression,
43%
of
women
reported
depression
and
57%
of
transgender
or
gender
non-conforming.
People
reported
depression
and
I
have
those
studies
available.
If
anybody
wants
them,
why
does
why
does
this
crisis
persist?
G
When
I
talked
to
my
colleagues,
it's
the
norm
for
us
to
discuss
our
struggles
with
poor
mental
health
due
to
our
stressful
work
lives,
we
tell
each
other
about
discrimination
and
harassment
from
our
supervisors.
Inadequate
health
care,
the
inability
to
pay
our
rent,
long
hours
of
work
and
how
these
causes
anxiety
and
depression.
For
me,
overwork
takes
a
serious
toll
as
a
laboratory.
G
Research
assistant
I
spend
my
hour
many
hours
per
day,
dissecting
insects
by
microscope
cleaning
our
lab
driving
between
labs
and
field
sites,
and
that
leaves
me
little
time
to
eat
sleep
or
do
anything
else
to
get
everything
done.
I
regularly
work
for
morning
tonight,
often
past
midnight,
including
during
holidays
and
academic
breaks,
which
are
more
just
become
more
work
time
for
me
and
if
I
were
to
reduce
my
work
time,
I
would
risk
being
discharged
from
my
program
with
my
days,
dominated
by
my
work
and
without
the
time
to
tend
to
my
needs.
G
I've
been
left
with
the
work
left
as
a
worker,
with
never-ending
anxiety
and
suicidal
depression,
without
relief
for
those
of
us
with
permanent
damage
to
our
mental
health.
It
is
clear
that
this
is
not
a
temporary
problem
that
will
be
worth
it
in
the
end.
I
personally
know
that
my
emotional
scars
of
my
deteriorating
mental
health
will
never
really
go
away
and
considering
that
it
is
so
normal
for
graduate
students
across
the
university
to
talk
about
our
mental
health,
to
joke
about
how
our
anxiety
and
how
we
really
could
just
end
it
all.
G
It
is
also
clear
to
us
that
this
is
a
university-wide
problem
that
requires
a
university-wide
solution
right
now,
our
universities
give
us
strategies
and
services
to
cope
with
our
mental
health,
but
access
to
therapists
and
anti-anxiety
medications
do
not
hold
these
universities
accountable
for
addressing
the
working
conditions
that
cause
these
mental
health
issues
to
begin
with.
Unfortunately,
our
mental
health
crisis
has
been
the
means
through
which
our
universities
work
gets
done.
We
work
as
a
mental
health
as
our
mental
health
deteriorates.
The
universities
continue
to
profit.
G
Those
who
haven't
committed
suicide
leave
were
replaced
by
new
workers,
and
the
cycle
of
mental
health
deterioration
inevitably
continues
and
repeats.
However,
we
graduate
workers,
don't
accept
this
situation,
we're
unionizing
in
part,
so
that
we
can
change
the
working
conditions
that
contribute
to
our
mental
health
deterioration
through
collective
bargaining.
We
can
establish
reasonable
workload,
productions
and
protections
and
guaranteed
time
off,
as
well
as
protection
from
harassment
and
discrimination
in
our
workplaces,
enforceable
through
a
fair
grievance
process.
We
will
continue
to
fight
despite
opposition
from
university
administrations.
G
Boston
University,
Boston,
College,
Harvard
and
Northeastern
have
all
explicitly
opposed
us
unionizing,
but
when,
but
they
should
remember
that
when
the
universities
resist
our
union,
the
met
unions
demands
for
a
fair
contract
and
try
to
prevent
us
from
organizing
they
do
so
not
just
at
the
expense
of
our
economic
well-being,
but
also
at
the
expense
of
our
mental
health.
Thank
you
very
much.
Thank.
A
H
I'm
Justin
blush
with
at
Harvard,
so
I'm
a
peach,
third-year
PhD
student
in
the
Economics
Department
as
a
teaching
fellow
as
well,
and
also
a
member
of
the
bargaining
committee
for
the
Harvard
Graduate
Student
Union
H
TSU
today,
I
want
to
share
some
of
the
challenges
that
student
workers
face
with
our
health
coverage
over
which
the
Harvard
administration
has
refused
to
bargain.
So
far,
one
of
the
most
important
parts
of
any
contract
negotiations
is
health
care.
H
H
Many
hourly
workers
in
professional
schools
without
go
without
health
insurance
or
pay
full
price
for
access
to
the
student
plan
for
PhD
students,
whose
typical
x
degree
is
six
years
many
face
a
gap
in
the
fifth
year
when
we
teach
in
our
third
and
fourth
years
we
have
health
insurance,
but
if
we
teach
in
our
fifth
year
many
students
have
to
go
without
it,
either
pay
full
price
or
purchase
it
elsewhere.
Some
students
take
out
loans
to
cover
this
fifth
year.
H
In
addition
to
who
is
not
covered,
there
are
serious
issues
with
the
content
of
the
plan,
namely
our
members
fees
issues
with
the
limit
on
the
number
of
specialists
visits
and
the
mental
health
co-pays
for
mental
health
care.
As
my
colleagues
have
noted
that
mental
health
concerns
are
a
really
big
issue
among
the
graduate
student
population
and
for
students
who
use
the
maximum
forty
visits
per
year,
which
is
less
than
a
week,
and
many
people
often
need
at
least
weekly
visits.
H
This
plus
the
specialists
limit
are
what
makes
Harvard's
refusal
to
bargain
over
the
health
insurance,
particularly
egregious
I'll
just
share
two
brief
stories
of
student
workers
who
have
had
serious
health
conditions
and
cannot
access
as
a
specialist.
They
need
because
Harvard
health
care,
the
health
insurance
we
plan
has
a
limit
of
six
visits
to
specialists,
so
the
first
example
is
a
student
in
the
third
year
that
of
their
PhD
program
in
the
Longwood
campus
working
as
a
research
assistant,
she
suffers
from
a
connective
tissue
disorder,
a
systemic
genetic
and
Ellis
bonus
that
requires
substantial
care.
H
Her
rare
disease
begets
in
her
words,
comorbidities
richness
has
necessitates
seeing
specialists
such
as
a
gynecologist,
a
geneticist,
a
urologist,
a
neurologist
endocrinologist.
This
is
the
at
wrist
and
Roman
rheumatologist
as
well
as
you
can
imagine.
The
University
on
campus
services
are
not
typically
designed
to
provide
such
specialized
care,
and
so
she
has
to
go
to
outside
providers.
This
is
where
the
six
visit
specialists
limit
really
is
because
problem
of
it
becomes
painfully
evident
when
a
specialist
ordered
orders
testing
and
if
follow-up
his
visit
is
needed
to
see
the
results
of
the
tests.
H
Both
visits
count
against
those
six.
This
is
later,
this
student
work
to
avoid
seeing
the
doctors
that
she
needs
during
flare-ups
or
on
set
of
new
symptoms
living
with
a
condition
that
causes
chronic
pain
is
hard
enough,
but
she
should
not
have
to
bear
the
added
burden
of
having
to
ration
her
care.
The
second
example
is
a
student
worker
in
a
doctoral
program
in
the
public
health
school
who
also
suffers
from
a
connective
tissue
disorder.
H
She
worked
for
every
semester
for
the
past
four
years
of
a
program
and
despite
continually
working,
she
was
not
offered
health
insurance
as
a
part
of
her
job
and
had
to
pay
for
insurance
out-of-pocket.
Her
disorder
impacts
almost
every
organ
in
serious
ways.
She's
had
five
major
surgeries,
while
at
Harvard
she
sees
nine
highly
specialized
doctors,
sometimes
three
or
four
times
a
year,
which
would
definitely
exceed
this
six
visit
limit
with
a
specialist
women
in
place
and
campus
health
services
not
being
able
to
provide
those
specialized
needs.
H
She's
instead
opted
to
pay
$765
a
month
in
insurance
through
a
plan
and
them
through
the
MassHealth
connector,
because
it
actually
covers
the
care
that
she
needs
in
December
2018.
The
student
workers
suffered
a
heart
and
and
2019
had
to
get
heart
surgery
to
replace
a
calcified
in
might
be
material
valve.
She
had
lined
up
a
teaching
position
for
the
spring,
but
could
not
teach
and
with
no
teaching
stipend
or
graduate
stipend
could
not
pay
for
the
health
insurance
and
decided
to
complete
her
degree
early.
H
We
share
these
stories
to
demonstrate
that
the
ability
of
student
workers
to
get
quality
health
insurance
greatly
impacts
our
abilities
to
perform
our
work
and
to
further
further
the
academic
mission
of
our
institutions.
We
formed
a
union
to
have
a
greater
say
over
our
working
conditions
and
benefits
and
is
painfully
clear
that
there
are
gaps
in
our
health
coverage
that
need
to
be
addressed.
H
Poverty
administration's
refusal
to
bargain
over
health
insurance
plans
shows
they
have
not
yet
taken
the
needs
of
student
workers
seriously,
while
preserving
the
conditions
that
for
student
workers
with
the
greatest
health
needs
to
go
on
the
outside
market
to
find
other
health
insurance
options.
We
ask
for
your
support
and
encouraging
Harvard
administration,
do
the
right
thing
and
to
negotiate
on
issues
to
negotiate
on
issues,
including
adequate
health
care
that
are
crucial
to
the
lives
of
student
workers.
Thank
you.
Thank.
A
I
My
name
is
Sam
Levinson
I'm,
a
PhD
candidate
at
the
end
of
my
third
year
in
the
chemistry
department
at
Boston,
College
I'm,
also
an
active
member
of
the
Boston
College
graduate
Employees
Union
and
have
been
since
my
first
semester
at
BC.
Thank
you
for
convening
this
hearing
and
giving
us
the
opportunity
to
speak
today.
I
have
had
an
allergy
to
beta-lactam
drugs
such
as
penicillin
and
ampicillin,
since
I
was
an
infant.
The
reaction
I
have
to
these
compounds
is
a
systemic
allergic
response
to
the
state.
This
reaction
has
taken
the
form
of
hives.
I
A
skin
reaction
may
progress
to
the
more
commonly
recognized
symptoms
of
anaphylaxis
swelling
of
the
blood
vessels
in
the
airway
that
prevents
the
patient
from
breathing.
There
is
no
way
to
predict
if
or
when
the
symptoms
of
a
systemic
allergic
response
will
progress
to
that
level.
I
work
in
a
chemical
biology
lab
where
we
work
with
bacteria
and
human
cancer
cells.
We
have
a
variety
of
antibiotics
in
our
lab,
including
penicillin
vasila
and
carbon
Esalen.
I
cannot
make
socks
of
these
compounds
myself
as
being
in
the
same
room
as
the
free-floating
chemical
is
too
dangerous.
I
So
I
rely
on
others
to
make
them.
For
me,
my
primary
care
physician
prescribed
an
epinephrine
auto-injector
EpiPen
to
me
when
I
told
her
about
being
exposed
to
beta
lactam
drugs
at
work.
My
exposure
to
these
compounds
is
entirely
a
work-related
risk
and
therefore
Boston
College
should
accommodate
this
medical
necessity
and
paid
to
fill
the
prescription.
I
brought
the
prescription
to
the
operations
manager
and
Safety
Officer
for
the
BC
chemistry
department
in
July
of
2016,
with
the
request
than
in
addition
to
the
EpiPen.
I
The
department
also
stocked
the
first-aid
kit,
with
diphenhydramine
commonly
sold
under
the
brand
name.
Benadryl,
the
operations
manager
brought
the
prescription
to
the
director
of
BC
environmental
health
and
safety.
She
refused
to
fill
the
prescription
or
to
provide
benadryl
in
the
first-aid
kits
and
provided
a
number
of
spurious
excuses
for
doing
so.
To
date,
I
have
had
a
regular
arguments
with
the
operations
manager
regarding
EHS
s.
I
Failure
to
provide
the
safety
equipment
in
a
dangerous
lab
setting
at
my
last
yearly
physical,
my
primary
care
physician
had
to
renew
my
prescription
for
an
EpiPen
because
it
had
expired.
I
scanned
a
prescription
and
emailed
to
the
operations
manager.
I
explained
in
this
email
that
if
BC
once
again
refused
to
pay
for
the
prescription
and
if
I
experience
any
injury
as
a
result
of
exposure
to
beta
lactam
drugs,
I
would
sue
both
Boston
College
and
the
director
of
BC
Environmental,
Health
and
Safety
personally.
I
I
also
explained
that
I
have
left
instructions
to
my
family
to
do
the
same,
should
I
die
from
anaphylactic
shock
within
days,
a
representative
from
B
C's
office
of
institutional
diversity
contacted
me
regarding
my
reasonable
accommodation
request.
They
approved
my
request
after
asking
for
additional
paperwork
from
both
myself
and
my
physician
and
I
finally
have
my
EpiPen.
Hopefully
Boston
College
won't
take
three
years
to
reimburse
me,
but
without
a
union
contract
dictating
the
timeline
of
graduate
employee
reimbursements,
I
have
no
guarantee
because
Boston
College
refuses
to
bargain
with
our
democratically
elected
Union.
I
I
have
no
legal
protections
from
my
dangerously
negligent
employer.
I
assume
a
deadly
risk
every
day
that
I
come
to
work
on
the
under
the
duress
of
not
being
able
to
progress
in
my
profession.
If
Boston
College
would
just
come
to
the
table,
I
would
be
in
a
position
to
bargain
for
safer
working
conditions.
I
If
graduate
workers
at
BC
had
a
union
contract,
I
would
have
access
to
legal
recourse
to
force
my
employer
to
help
me
manage
the
risks
I
face
in
my
job,
because
it's
clear
they're
not
going
to
follow
the
law
of
their
own
accord.
This
issue
is
not
trivial.
It
is
one
of
life
and
death.
I
must
ask:
why
does
the
administration
at
Boston
College
not
bargain
with
our
union?
Why
do
they
care
more
about
lawsuits
than
about
whether
I
live
or
die?
I
Why
did
it
take
the
threat
of
a
lawsuit
for
BC
to
do
the
right
thing?
Unfortunately,
the
callousness
and
lack
of
respect
I
have
experienced
is
common
behavior
from
the
BC
administration
towards
BC
graduate
workers.
The
administration
at
Boston
College
has
repeatedly
tried
to
silence
our
voices
as
we
demand
that
they
finally
bargained
with
our
union.
They
are
so
afraid
of
not
having
absolute
power
over
the
employees
that
they
went
so
far
as
to
academically
sanction.
Many
of
us
when
we
protested
their
refusal
to
bargain
using
our
rights
as
workers.
I
This
retaliation
came
in
the
form
of
inappropriate
academic
punishments
for
18
graduate
employees,
of
which
I
was
one.
We
were
punished
for
passing
out
flyers
at
a
campus
event,
a
workplace
action
that
we
have
the
right
to
do
as
workers.
The
dean's
office
also
put
three
of
my
colleagues
on
academic
probation
for
speaking
out
at
a
speech
by
university
president
father
Leahy
and
leading
a
walkout
of
that
event.
One
of
these
three
was
punished,
despite
not
having
even
taken
the
action,
as
affirmed
by
statements
from
more
than
15
people
who
attended
the
speech.
I
This
graduate
employee
received
a
high
level
of
discipline
and
if
he
had
participated
again
in
protected
concerted
activity
in
support
of
himself
and
fellow
workers
at
BC,
he
might
have
been
expelled
as
an
international
student
worker,
expulsion
from
BC
would
have
jeopardized
his
visa
and
his
ability
to
remain
in
the
US.
The
Boston
College
administration
is
using
academic
discipline
to
discourage
Union
activism
and
the
decision
to
punish
union
supporters
independent
of
their
actual
actions
is
antithetical
to
the
evidence-based
process
of
academic
research
and
to
the
mission
of
justice
that
the
university
claims
to
support.
I
Bc
administrators
know
that
labor
law
protects
concerted
activity,
but
is
also
well
aware
that,
because
the
Antin
worker
trump
labor
board,
bringing
to
the
plate
to
the
board,
would
jeopardize
her
status
as
workers
and
that
of
all
student
workers
at
private
universities.
These
intimidation
tactics
will
not
work,
though,
because
we
as
workers
refuse
to
hold
our
silence
in
the
face
of
injustice.
Thank
you.
Thank.
A
J
Evening,
my
name
is
Carly
Brandt
and
I
am
currently
a
doctoral
student
in
religion
at
Harvard,
University,
I
study,
American
nuclear
testing
in
the
Marshall
Islands
and
I
just
finished
my
sixth
year
at
Harvard.
I
was
there
for
two
years
finishing
a
master's
degree
in
religion,
ethics
and
politics.
Before
I
began
my
PhD
in
2015
as
part
of
my
PhD
I
work
as
a
teaching
fellow,
which
means
that
I
help
teach
classes
to
undergraduates
and
graduate
students
a
grade
coursework
I
meet
with
students
during
office
hours.
I
lecture
and
I
lead
review
and
discussion
sections.
J
Thank
you
for
holding
this
hearing.
I
am
here
to
you
I'm
here
tonight
to
speak
with
you
about
my
experiences
as
a
graduate
student
and
a
new
mother,
and
to
urge
you
to
take
action
to
support
graduate
student
worker
parents,
which
I
believe
is
in
the
best
interests
of
these
universities
and
our
communities.
This
moment
provides
us
with
an
opportunity
to
come
together
to
collaborate
to
create
better
and
more
equitable
institutions.
J
This
past
year
has
been
an
exciting
and
challenging
one
for
me
in
addition
to
turning
30
I
presented
papers
on
my
dissertation
research.
At
different
national
conferences
visited
the
National
Archives
to
conduct
research
for
my
dissertation
until
the
government
shutdown
prevented
me
from
concluding
that
research
completed
the
chapter
of
my
dissertation,
presented
at
a
colloquium
taught
a
class
and
had
a
baby
Sara
Lina,
who
turned
1
two
weeks
ago.
J
By
far
the
biggest
challenge
that
I
have
faced
this
year
has
been
child
care,
finding
a
place
to
leave
my
daughter
while
I
work
has
been
incredibly
costly
and
time-consuming.
Even
though
I
put
Sara
lina
on
the
wait
list
at
three
different
daycare
centers
a
week
after
she
was
born,
it
was
not
until
six
months
later
in
January
that
she
finally
received
a
spot
at
a
daycare
nine
miles
away
from
where
I
live.
J
The
lack
of
institution,
institutional
support
for
student
worker
parents
has
a
disproportionate
impact
on
women
and
student
workers
without
oxide
to
outside
wealth.
Currently,
Sarah
Lina
attends
daycare
all
day
three
days
a
week.
It
cost
three
hundred
and
twenty
dollars
for
those
three
days,
which
adds
up
to
one
thousand
two
hundred
and
eighty
dollars
a
month
since
I
cannot
afford
to
enroll
her
full-time
I
also
have
a
babysitter
come
on
Mondays
and
Fridays
for
four
to
five
hours.
J
This
costs
an
additional
hundred
and
twelve
two
hundred
and
thirty
dollars
a
week
between
January
1st
of
this
year
and
June
thirtieth
I
will
have
paid
a
total
of
ten
thousand
five
hundred
and
sixty
dollars
on
childcare.
This
doesn't
include
the
times
that
I've
had
to
get
a
babysitter
during
the
evening
to
attend
a
colloquium
or
event
on
campus.
Nor
does
it
include
the
cost
of
bringing
my
daughter
to
academic
conferences
where
I've
presented
my
work.
J
I
know
that
Harvard
faculty
are
eligible
for
dependent,
Care
Fund
grants
which
help
with
caregiving
cost
during
short
term
professional
travel
and
I
believe
that
this
is
something
that
should
also
be
made
available
to
graduate
worker
parents.
Harvard
faculty
are
also
eligible
for
the
access
program,
which
is
an
initiative
that
enables
faculty
to
meet
their
caregiving
needs
while
succeeding
in
their
academic
careers.
They
receive
priority
enrollment
at
Harvard,
child
care,
centers
and
faculty.
Making
less
than
$200,000
a
year
are
eligible
for
subsidies
to
help
cover
the
cost
of
child
care.
J
I
made
$34,000
this
past
year
and
I
received
zero
subsidies.
In
addition,
I
paid
one
thousand
nine
hundred
and
one
dollars
each
semester
and
four
hundred
dollars
last
June
for
my
daughter
to
be
covered
under
Harvard
health
insurance,
her
health
insurance
bills,
not
including
co-pays
and
other
costs
that
have
resulted
from
her
health
care
needs,
have
totaled
an
additional
four
thousand
two
hundred
dollars
in
the
12
months.
J
Since
she
was
born
when
Sierra
Lena
was
born,
I
received
a
one-time
payment
of
six
thousand
five
hundred
dollars
from
Harvard
University
I
was
also
told
that
I
was
eligible
for
12
weeks
of
leave.
Unpaid
because
and
I
didn't
take
this
because,
like
almost
every
other
woman
and
parent
I
know,
who
is
a
student
worker,
I
could
not
afford
to
go
for.
Go
a
paycheck
for
12
weeks.
I
know
student
worker
parents
who
have
found
it
necessary
to
get
another
job
on
top
of
the
work
they
already
do.
J
As
graduate
students,
teaching
researching
and
writing
and
the
work
they
already
do.
As
parents
in
order
to
make
ends
meet
next
year,
I
will
be
teaching
full-time
and
anticipate
spending
in
excess
of
20
$1,600
on
childcare.
I
also
anticipate
spending
around
$4,000
to
ensure
that
she
has
health
insurance,
not
including
the
cost
of
diapers
wipes
food,
clothing
or
housing.
That's
a
total
of
over
$25,000
next
year,
I
anticipate
making
around
$33,000
as.
A
J
You
can
see
the
situation
is
untenable
at
Yale,
for
example,
I
no
graduate
students
receive
an
annual
stipend
to
$4,600
from
the
University,
and
their
children
receive
health
insurance
at
no
additional
cost
to
the
students
they
created
these
policies
to
demonstrate
their
commitment
to
helping
all
graduate
students
succeed
during
their
time
at
school.
Harvard
does
provide
a
subsidized
membership
to
care
comm,
which
I
use
to
find
our
babysitter,
but
the
ten
days
of
emergency
care
that
the
university
helps
cover
can't
be
used
to
pay
her.
J
It
can
only
be
used
to
partially
subsidize
the
cost
of
daycare
or
babysitter
chosen
by
CARICOM
in
an
emergency.
As
a
result,
I
have
found
this
benefit
incredibly
difficult
to
utilize,
as
have
the
other
parents.
I've
spoken
with
in
an
emergency
situation.
The
last
thing
you
want
to
do
is
leave
your
child
with
a
complete
stranger,
I.
J
Don't
want
to
have
to
choose
between
being
a
scholar
and
a
mother
from
where
I
am
sitting.
It
seems
as
though
Harvard
has
an
opportunity
to
take
action
and
lead
on
issues
related
to
working
families,
ensuring
that
student
workers,
who
are
new
parents,
and
particularly
new
mothers
and
low-income
student
workers,
are
able
to
finish
their
degrees
and
graduate
will
benefit
our
students,
our
universities,
our
children
and
our
communities.
Thank
you.
A
F
F
F
A
G
Like
Alex
I'm,
also
full-time
research,
I,
don't
do
I,
don't
take
classes
anymore.
I
go
depending
on
my
funding
situation,
either
I'm
teaching
a
Boston
University.
We
are
either
funded
to
do
research
or,
if
we
don't
have
grants
were
funded
to
teach
in
my
situation,
I'm
funded
to
do
research
during
the
summer
and
then
I'll
be
teaching
in
the
fall.
G
G
I,
don't
use
all
well,
so
certain
things
don't
apply
to
me.
I
do
have
copay
for
different
things.
For
instance,
mental
health
I
do
have
co-pays
for
medication,
so
things
that
would
cost
like
a
hundred,
maybe
twenty
dollars.
Instead,
we
don't
get
I
or
dental
care.
That's
particularly
problematic
for
me,
because
there
I
didn't
mention
it.
I
have
an
eye
condition
that
requires
serious
surgery,
cost
like
four
thousand
dollars
s
I
have
insurance,
so
I
can't
afford
that,
and
so
the
biggest
thing
is
we
don't
have
a
higher
dental
care.
A
H
B
I
I
Two
months
paid
parental
leave
and
that
policy
was
not
equal
across
all
the
schools
that
graduate
workers
work
in.
So
that
was
for
the
Arts
and
Sciences,
but
it
did
not
apply
to
let
the
Lynch
School
of
Education
until
we
started
clamoring
for
it
and
then
Boston
College
decided
to
give
it
to
us
as
a
way
of
making
us
be
quiet
and
affordable
dental
plans.
Again
we
do
not
have
an
affordable
dental
plan,
no.
I
B
B
I
B
I
B
Lastly,
advocates
have
falsely
claimed
that
union
supporters
were
disciplined
for
distributing
leaflets
on
BC
campus
last
fall.
The
fact
is,
several
grad
students
were
found
responsible
for
interfering
with
a
public
event
and
infringing
on
the
rights
of
others
to
hear
a
presentation
in
our
main
theater
on
September
27th.
They
are
bound
by
the
same
policies
and
code
of
conduct
that
apply
to
all
14,000
400
BC
students.
I
was.
I
A
I
I
I
C
B
Again,
I
just
want
to
be
clear.
This
is
I
mean
it's
it's
it's
not
funny,
and
it's
important
that
people
understand
that
when
the
university
is
saying
that
you
would,
through
your
application
from
the
NLRB
that
you
weren't
walking
away
from
certification
as
a
union,
and
that's
that's
what
I
believe
that
you're
trying
to
state
in
this
letter.
I
B
I
B
F
Mean
I'm
not
sure
how
it
compares
to
other
colleges,
but
help
I
know
that
sorry,
just
one
more
thing
that
the
amount
of
financial
support
differs
a
lot,
as
other
people
have
said
across
academic
departments,
so,
for
example,
the
highest
paid
departments,
usually
in
the
STEM
fields,
get
like
mid
30
Kay's,
but
and,
for
example,
the
humanities.
That
number
is
much
lower.
F
F
F
Recently
up
the
amount
of
money
we
could
get
reimbursed
for
conference
travel,
it
used
to
be
like
and
I
think
it
was
like
two
or
three
hundred
you
could
get
reimbursed
for,
but
if
you're
traveling
internationally
for
a
conference,
your
expenses
are
much
more
than
that
and
then
the
other.
There
is
travel
reimbursements
that
do
vary
by
department
and
computer
science.
My
department,
you
can
get
if
you
apply
for
it:
a
travel
grant
for
$1000
ish
yeah.
F
B
I
F
F
It
became
sort
of
like
a
response
to
our
organizing
activity
like
as
we
had
started,
demanding
more
and
more
services.
They
began
to
like
offer
them
so
as
a
result,
direct
result
of
our
union
organizing.
So,
for
example,
our
union
made
a
big
campaign
issue
out
of
the
fact
that
we
have
no
recourse
when
we
deal
with
abuse
and
harassment
on
the
job
and
northeastern
at
that
time
did
not
offer
an
Ombuds
person
for
graduate
workers.
B.
F
There
was
an
Ombuds
person
if
you
were
technically
considered
a
university
employee,
as
if
you
were
staff,
for
example,
I.
My
understanding
that
other
universities
in
the
Boston
area
do
have
an
Ombuds
person.
Northeastern
did
not
until
we
demanded
that
they
increase
services
and
they
did
offer
that
as
a
result
of
our
demand.
But
it's
still
not
enough.
As
you
know,
an
Ombuds
person
can't
advocate
for
you,
and
it
is
not
a.
F
F
You
can
file
a
Title,
9
complain
so
title
nine
is
the
federally
mandated
office
that
the
university
uses
to
process
such
complaints,
so
title
9
is
entirely
the
outcome
of
any
title.
9
investigation
is
subject
to
the
university's
decision.
So
as
a
result,
if
you
have
an
issue
and
you
bring
it
to
title
9
and
you
go
through
that
process,
the
university
can
simply
ignore
it
and
that's
been
the
case
in
other
universities.
F
So
there
was
a
case
that
I'm
I
believe
it
was
University
of
Connecticut.
I
can't
remember
exactly,
but
essentially
there
was
a
graduate
worker
who
had
experienced
harassment
and
the
title
nine
procedure
did
nothing
and
then
they
were
able
to
bargain
for
a
grievance
procedure
through
a
union
contract,
and
that
was
actually
able
to
offer
an
independent
arbitration
and
that's
essentially
what
we
want,
because
currently
there
is
no
independent
process.
Is.
A
I
A
B
B
I
D
D
I
know
there's
just
reading
some
documents
as
10,000
student
workers
in
the
city.
It's
it's
it's
a
big
part
of
the
Boston
economy,
obviously
as
higher
education
and
I'm,
a
lot
of
companies
and
a
lot
of
colleges
and
universities
are
making
a
lot
of
money
off
of
off
of
education.
Just
listening
to
your
stories
that
it's,
it
seems
to
me
that
the
the
only
way
you
really
could
be
a
graduate
student
teacher
is
come
come
from
a
wealthy
family.
D
Unfortunately,
and
if
you
came
from
a
wealthy
family,
you
wouldn't
you
know,
you
wouldn't
have
these
issues,
but
it
Penn
Eliza's,
working-class
kids,
that
want
to
be
a
professor
someday
because
living
that
type
of
life
you
guys
just
explained
is-
is
not
something
you
know.
I
wouldn't
want
to
do
all
that
stress,
but.
D
In
what
impact
does
that
have
down
the
road
on
on
your
future?
As
a
professor,
when
you're
still
dealing
with
some
of
the
the
issues
you
we
had
as
a
student,
a
student
teacher,
you
know,
must
and
must
put
you
back
in
a
you
know,
back
in
a
negative
position
with
with
all
the
the
hardships
that
you've
had
as
a
student
teacher
or
just
wondering.
If
anyone
wants
to
comment
on
that.
H
H
Would
this
last
semester,
I
was
teaching
an
undergraduate
pack
or
not
macroeconomics
course,
and
not
only
did
the
course
actually
go
quite
a
bit
beyond
what
I
had
myself
had
learned
in
undergrad,
but
it
was
just
a
mathematically
very
challenging
course
took
a
lot
of
prep
time.
I
had
to
learn.
I
had
to
be
able
to
learn
the
content
of
the
course
sufficiently
well
to
teach
it
to
undergraduates.
Many
University
are
expecting
to
be
donors
and
to
keep
the
university
going
in
the
future.
That
is
not
work
that
anyone
can
do.
H
This
is
it's
very
it's
challenging
work,
it's
extremely
valuable
work
and
so
to
be
able
to
be
like.
Oh
we're
handing
you
this
large
gift
of
thirty
thousand
dollars.
Many
people
could
be
pursuing
other
careers,
making
quite
a
bit
more
money
at
it,
Creek
adding
to
their
retirements
one.
One
thing
that
we've
talked
about
in
our
and
our
campaign
is:
is
retirement
plans.
H
It's
something
that
I
don't
think
any
graduate
student
has
people
finish
their
PhDs
when
they're
30,
sometimes
later
people
put
off
having
a
kid
until
they're
done,
and
that's
for
a
lot
of
people.
Your
late
20s
is
exactly
the
time
that
you'd
like
to
be
able
to
have
kids
people
sacrifice
a
lot
because
they
care
about
their
work.
They
care
about
the
academics,
they
care
about
the
institution,
and
then
the
universities
act
like
it's
a
gift
just
to
compensate
us
for
what
we're
adding
to
the
institution,
so
I
think
I.
H
J
Just
really
appreciate
your
point:
counselor
Flynn
I
think
that
this
is
above
all,
almost
an
issue
of
equity.
I.
Think
it's
egregious
that
the
career
path
of
academia
is
essentially
foreclosed
to
anyone
who
doesn't
come
from
an
independently
wealthy
family
and
to
put
this
in
perspective,
in-state
tuition
at
UMass.
Amherst
is
$29,000
right.
That
includes
room
and
board.
By
the
time
my
daughter,
Sarah
Lena
begins.
Kindergarten
I
will
have
paid
out
of
pocket
the
equivalent
of
a
four-year
college
degree
for
her
in.
D
Does
it
also
impact
the
studying
that
you're
doing
or
the
research
that
you're
doing?
It
certainly
takes
time
away
from
what
you're
dedicating
your
life
to
in
terms
of
teaching
or
research,
but
when
you
have
those
types
of
medical
issues
that
you're
dealing
with
the
people
are
dealing
with.
Generally,
it's
also
a
time
commitment
away
from
what
you
really
are
studying
for
so
it
does
probably
impact
your
professional
life
as
well.
Absolutely.
D
D
D
D
E
Thank
you
to
councillor
Edwards
for
leading
this
effort
in
sponsoring
this
hearing
and
thank
you
for
sharing
I,
think
your
very
personal
stories
and
I
think
some
of
them
I
think
especially
Zack,
highlighting
using
just
his
last
initial
some
of
the
fear
and
pressure.
You
may
feel
to
share
that
story
today
and
thank
you
also
for
sharing
some
of
your
both
your
experiences
and
that
of
some
of
your
colleagues,
especially
around
the
mental
health
piece.
My
work
on
on
the
council
has
involved
creating
greater
access
to
mental
health
services
across
our
city.
E
I
E
I
Tell
us
when
they're,
recruiting
us
to
Boston
College
for
the
chemistry
department
is
how
much
money
we
have.
We
are
the
second
highest
endowed
department
in
the
university.
The
first
highest
endowed
department
in
the
university
is
the
football
team.
So
we
bring
in
a
lot
of
money
for
the
university
in
the
form
of
grants
and
if
the
university
has
that
much
money,
why
can't
they
afford
to
give
us
dental
insurance?
Why
can't
they
afford
to
give
us
a
yearly
eye
exams?
I
E
Through
your
work
and
I
think
that
as
nerds
that
there
is
an
ability
to
do
that,
research
and
I
think
that
that
analysis
would
be
really
important
to
bolster
this
effort
and
support
this
effort,
because
we've
done
it,
we've
seen
it
through
athletic
programming
across
the
United
States
with
universities
and
the
box
that
those
teams-
and
they
can
they
can
do
that.
They
can
understand
the
revenue
through
the
sale
of
jerseys,
for
example.
So
what
is
it?
E
I
Think
I
don't
have
those
numbers
right
now,
but
they
would
be
fairly
easy
to
quantify
at
least
for
the
lab
sciences,
because
the
people
who
do
all
of
the
bench
work
that
is
getting
funded
by
these
grants
are
the
graduate
workers.
So
if
you
look
at
the
grant
money,
that
is
how
much
money
the
graduate
workers
are
bringing
into
the
university
and
their
professors
like
the
pis,
don't
receive
the
entire
amount
that
they
get
in
the
grant.
The
university
takes
some
and
that
amount
varies
depending
on
the
university
in
the
department.
So.
E
J
Absolutely
right,
in
addition
to
bringing
in
money
through
the
universities,
many
of
us
are
also
residents
of
these
cities
in
these
communities
for
ongoing
on
a
decade
right,
and
so
we
bring
in
income
to
the
city
merely
through
raising
our
children
here
through
living
here
for
partaking
in
all
that.
But
the
city
of
Boston
and
the
neighboring
communities
have
to
offer.
A
J
B
B
You
and
just
and
I'm
happy
so
what
we
do
will
have
a
committee
report
that
comes
out
to
the
General
Council
and
so
by
then
I
hope
to
have
some
numbers
for
my.
My
colleagues
at
the
City
Council
I
think,
along
with
looking
at
revenue
generated
patents
also
generated
by
the
universities.
Those
are
extremely
valuable
and
also
looking
at
where
we
do
partner
with
universities,
of
graduate
students
and
nursing,
for
example,
will
be
working
at
Boston,
Public,
Schools
and
making
sure
I
never
thought
to
look.
B
But
now
I'm
gonna
make
sure
that
that
person
is
paid,
certainly
a
living
wage
to
be
a
nurse
in
Boston,
Public,
Schools
and
I.
Don't
want
them
to
be
considered
a
student
and
learning
how
to
be
a
nurse
and
therefore
being
cut
out
of
any
benefits.
So
that's
something
I
promised
to
do
that.
Research
for
my
colleagues
and
yourselves
Boston
University.
B
So
again
we
got
a
response
from
the
University
and
I
just
want
to
make
sure
we
go
through.
It
highlight
some
of
the
things
that
all
your
benefits
that
you've
been
receiving
but,
as
stated,
we
believe
that
our
PhD
students
are
first
and
foremost
students
whose
teaching
and
research
activities
are
integrally
related
to
their
scholarly,
scholarly
professional
development.
We
seek
to
build
a
student-centered
ph.d
program
for
the
21st
century.
G
G
B
G
We've
actually
talked
a
lot
about
this
to
our
fellow
grad.
Workers
is
within
the
Union
and
one
of
the
biggest
problems.
It's
a
policy
in
quotes,
there's
no
enforcement
mechanism
for
there's
no
monetary
value
associated
with
it.
It's
basically
just
the
university
saying
that
we
we
think
you
should
have
two
weeks
off
so
for
a
lot
of
graduate
workers,
the
ones
that
need
a
policy
of
enforcement
mechanisms.
The
most
don't
really
have
anything.
That's
who
needs
that
policy,
and
so,
if
you
just
say
yes,
you
have
two
weeks
off.
G
What,
if
I
might
my
adviser
says?
I,
don't
want
I,
don't
want
you
to
have
those
two
weeks
off,
I'm
stuck
that's
the
like
the
whole
point
of
having
the
contract
and
even
this
little
minimal,
minimal
statement
that
they're
giving
us
is
only
because
our
union
has
been
advocating
for
mandatory
vacation
time.
So
there
is
a
policy
in
quotes,
but
it's
really
meaningless
and
we've.
We
have
talked
to
plenty
of
graduate
students
about
this
one.
So.
B
I
think
what
I'm
hearing
from
folks
are
from
from
the
panel
is
that
even
whatever
benefits
that
are
provided
are
at
this
at
the
universities
election,
if
they
choose
to
take
them
away
decrease
them,
you
have
no
counter
to
that
in
any
way,
shape
or
form
and
I.
Think
Harvard
had
mentioned
that
it
is
Harvard
is
currently
engaged
in
active
good-faith
negotiations
with
hg
su
UAW
negotiations
with
began
on
October
15
2008
een,
following
a
vote
in
April
of
2018
by
graduate
students
to
organize.
B
H
So
we
did
start
in
October,
but
40
meetings
for
a
first
contract
I
think
anyone
who's
been
in
contract
negotiations
for
a
large
unit
with
workers
who
do
different
kinds
of
work.
40
minute
meeting
is
no
no
we're
close
enough.
We
have
over
the
summer.
Maybe
they
mention
this.
That
I
think
we
will
have
maybe
two
or
three
meetings
total
working
out
the
details
of
this
create
requires
persistent
back-and-forth.
H
B
H
Are
negotiating
but
there
are
some
things
that
are
on
the
table
that
they
have
simply
refused
that
are
just
very
standard
things
for
either
in
other
contracts,
with
other
unions
at
at
Harvard
or
just
standard
in
a
in
a
contract.
So
the
biggest
one
is
protections
for
discrimination,
harassment
if
you
can
bring
a
sexual
harassment
or
a
discrimination
case
to
third-party
arbitrators,
I.
Think
someone
mentioned
right
now
in
the
end,
Harvard
decides.
If
you
have
a
discrimination
complaint,
someone
who's
paid
by
the
university
decides.
H
What
we're
asking
for
is
for
the
University
and
the
Union
to
jointly
fund
an
arbitrator
so
that
you
have
a
case
like
this,
you
can,
you
can
go
to
someone
ultimately
isn't
paid
only
by
Harvard.
This
is
something
that
exists
in
other
union
contracts
on
Harvard
campus
and
they've
refused
to
include
that
in
our
contract
so
far,
and
there
are
other
standard
things
about
information
being
able
to
actually
successfully
represent
our
members
and
know
who
they
are
and
also
in
compensation.
H
But
from
the
perspective,
the
University.
Some
of
our
compensation
is
financial
aid.
When
we
teach-
and
some
of
it
is
salary
from
a
student
workers
position,
the
financial
aid
is
conditional
on
teaching,
and
so,
if
they
have
discretion
over
part
of
our
compensation,
the
rest
of
the
compensation
doesn't
mean
much
so
on
basic
things.
About
representation
about
is
what
we're
shooting
for
and
compensation.
Does
it
even
matter
or
can
we
go
to
a
third-party
arbitrator
for
cases
of
discrimination,
harassment?
These
are
all
and
health
insurance.
The
Harvard
just
has
so
far
said.
B
So
I
wanted
to
thank
all
the
panelists,
for
describing
not
only
the
workplace
is
that
you
are
working
in
your
workplace,
injuries,
your
workplace
risks
and
that-
and
I
truly
appreciate
you
breaking
down
how
the
is
actually
breaking
you
down
as
well
as
individuals.
I.
Think
it's
important
that
you
express
not
only
what
your
universities
are
doing,
but
the
ultimate
impact
in
terms
of
workplace
as
a
worker
class,
the
injury
and
how
that's
impacting
us
so
I
want
to
say
your
advocacy,
like
any
other
unions.
B
A
I
A
G
I
just
wanted
to
reinforce
that
point.
The
only
contracts
we
sign
are
like
intellectual
property
rights
agreements.
B
we
just
signed
one
so
for
fur.
I
can
speak
from
my
experience
like,
for
instance,
just
to
give
you
an
idea
of
how
that
works
practically
when
I
was
taking
classes
for
like
a
year
or
so
total
you
sign
up
for
classes,
there's
a
certain
cost
that
the
university
determines.
They
say,
there's
that
cost
there's
fees
associated
with
that
we
pay
or
something.
G
And
then
the
university
says
they'll
cover
it
after
we
are
finished,
you
know,
I,
don't
have
us
after
I
finished
completed
the
amount
of
coursework
that
I
need
to,
which
is
very
minimal.
The
then
we're
just
paid
by
you
know
for
teaching
or
through
our
grants.
So
the
university
is
continual
like
focus
on
like
they
they
it's.
It
feels
very
much
like
they're
just
make
up
make
up
tuition
because
it's
not
like
they're,
actually
they're,
the
ones
that
are
setting
the
tuition.
They're
saying
this
is
how
much
you'll
pay
and
then
they're
paying
it
themselves.
G
Yeah
so
there's
the
tuition
doesn't
really
matter
for
graduate
workers,
especially
after
you've
completed
your
teaching
assignment.
No,
your
your
student
assignments
for
most
graduate
workers
were
we're
working,
we're
researching
we're,
teaching
we're
not
taking
classes
and
so
that
emphasis
on
us
being
students
is
just
not
our
experience.
Yeah
is
our
whole
heart
points.
I
We
do
ed
sorry
I'm
at
BC
we
receive
a
letter
from
our
department,
every
semester
telling
us
how
we're
gonna
be
paid.
If
that
comes
from
teaching
or
if
that
comes
out
of
our
advisors
grant
and
then
the
bottom
of
the
letter,
it
says
for
work
that
is
not
to
exceed
20
hours
per
week
and
in
my
experience
we
work
many
more
hours
than
20
hours
per
week.
The
expectation
in
my
lab
is
that
we
work
60
hours
a
week
minimum
and
our
advisor
regularly
reminds
us
of
that
fact.
D
A
C
B
A
A
K
Name
is
Doris
Rhonda
birthday,
I
am
from
CIU
32bj
and
I'm
here
to
support
our
brothers
and
sisters
at
Harvard,
University
and
also
I
I
want
to
share
how
important
is
a
half
agreement
that
King,
you
know,
can
work
as
a
workers
like
protect
us.
I
want
to
give
just
one
sure
story
about
how
one
supervisor
arise:
irassman
my
co-workers,
and
when
the
union
take
the
agreements
he
got
fired.
This
is
a
good
thing
also
I
wanna
share.
K
We
have
a
childcare,
we
receive
child
care
and
I
think
why
the
students
can
have
the
opportunity
like
King,
received
child
care
like
help
to
take
care.
Their
kids
and
also
I
want
to
mention.
Gwen
thinks
how
important
is
have
a
clear
language
in
our
contract,
because
sometimes
we
are
know
about
laws,
and
we
we
need
in
these
have
a
clear
language
in
how
we
can
do
agreements.
This
is
Quanah
sharing
and
so
happy
here
to
support
hours,
brothers
and
sisters
in
the
students
and
harbor.
L
Hi,
my
name
is
James
MS
arias,
I'm,
a
master's
student
at
Boston
College
and
even
though
I'm
a
master's
student
I
organized
with
the
Union
and
one
just
one
thing
I
wanted
to
talk
about
today.
Why
unions
are
so
important
to
myself
into
a
lot
of
other
graduate
workers
is
how
important
unions
are
for
lgbtq+
workers
short
of
comprehensive,
like
statutory
protections
for
state
and
federal
laws.
Unions
provide
the
only
protection
that
a
lot
of
LGBTQ
employees
have
across
this
country.
L
Currently,
there's
no
federal
law
prohibiting
discrimination
against
transgender
employees.
The
Trump
administration
right
now
is
working
to
roll
back
protections
for
transgender
employees
and
for
employees
based
on
sexual
orientation.
There's
three
cases
before
the
Supreme
Court
right
now,
which
will
be,
which
will
determine
whether
title
seven
of
the
1964
Civil
Rights
Act,
does
in
fact
cover
sexual
orientation
or
gender
identity.
L
In
more
than
half
the
states
in
this
country,
you
can
still
be
fired
based
on
sexual
orientation
or
gender
identity,
unless
you
have
the
protection
of
a
union
contract
and
for
many
LGBTQ
employees,
the
only
employment
protection
you
have
is
your
union
card
unions
historically
have
been
incredibly
important
for
LGBTQ
workers,
and
this
is
particularly
important
when
your
employer
claims
a
religious
exemption
or
religious
status
like
Boston
College
does
in
its
filings
in
the
NLRB.
Besides,
arguing
against
the
Union
BC
claimed
that
the
NLRB
had
no
jurisdiction
over
the
school
because
of
its
religious
status.
L
You
might
have
seen
this
on
the
news.
Just
in
the
last
week,
the
archdiocese
in
Indianapolis
told
to
Catholic
schools
that
they
had
to
fire
two
teachers,
because
they
were
gay.
One
of
the
schools
agreed
and
fired
the
teacher,
the
other
school
refused
and
the
archdiocese
revoked
its
Catholic
accreditation
in
2004
at
BC,
the
English
department
tried
to
fill
a
chair
and
their
top
two
candidates
were
both
gay
men.
The
school,
including
input
from
the
current
president,
father
Leahy,
wanted
to
bypass
those
candidates
and
hire
another
candidate.
L
Why
is
a
union
important
for
LGBTQ
workers
at
Boston,
College,
it's
2019
and
the
school
still
continues
to
discriminate
against
LGBTQ
community
members.
Gender
gender
identity
is
not
part
of
DC's.
Non-Discrimination
policy
and
BC
still
to
this
day,
refuses
to
recognize
any
queer
student
organization
in
2002.
The
Princeton
Review
ranked
BC
is
the
second
least
welcoming
College
in
the
country
for
LGBTQ
students,
putting
it
at
number
344
out
of
345
universities
surveyed
in
response
to
this
and
a
lot
of
other
bad
press.
L
They
were
getting
BC
recognized
a
Gay,
Straight
Alliance,
but
not,
and
continues
to
this
day
to
refuse
to
recognize
any
queer
student
group
and
it
changed
its
sexual
orientation
to
include
its
non-discrimination
policy
to
include
sexual
orientation,
but
not
gender
identity,
but
when
they
added
sexual
orientation,
they
put
a
caveat
in
which
basically
said
it
is
the
policy
of
Boston
College,
while
reserving
its
lawful
rights,
where
appropriate,
to
take
actions
designed
to
promote
the
Jesuit
Catholic
principles
that
sustain
the
mission
to
comply
with
state
and
federal
laws
prohibiting
discrimination.
So
they
put
in
a
caveat.
L
It
was
so
important
to
them
to
reserve
the
right
to
discriminate
against
LGBTQ
members
of
the
community
that
they
had
to
put
that
clause
to
give
them
the
right
to
do
it.
They
were
still
going
to
assert
their
religious
exemption.
I've
sat
in
meetings
with
administrators
and
Dean's
and
they've
said
well.
We
personally
agree
with
you
and
we
sympathize
with
you,
but
the
school's
position
has
to
be
respected
and
you
have
to
understand
it's
not
going
to
change
and
I
sit
there
and
and
I
think
I.
L
Look
at
them
and
I
think
you
know
you
need
to
calm
down.
It's
really
not
that
important
for
you
to
discriminate
against
LGBTQ
community
members.
You
could
grant
everyone
the
same
rights
in
the
world.
It's
not
going
to
end
on
top
of
that.
Bc
refuses
to
have
an
LD,
LGBTQ,
plus
Student
Center
Georgetown,
a
Catholic
University,
which
also
has
a
graduate
student
union,
has
an
LGBTQ
Student
Center,
but
B
C's.
Application
of
this
idea
of
Catholic
Jesuit
values
is
selective.
Just
this
past
week
they
had
an
event
with
the
CEOs
of
two
weapons
manufacturers.
L
They
refused
to
divest
from
banks
who
invest
in
private
prisons,
who
discriminate
against
minority
homeowners
and
who
put
power
plants
on
indigenous
reservations
or
in
poor
and
non-white
neighborhoods
in
2003
the
same
president
of
BC,
who
oppose
gay
marriage,
who
refused
to
recognize
an
LGBTQ
Student
Center
declined
to
sign
a
petition
opposing
the
Iraq
war.
So
it
seems
that
it's
only
LGBTQ
issues
where
this
idea
of
Jesuit
Catholic
values
is
applied
and
not
in
other
areas.
So
I'll
try
to
be
brief
and
wrap
up.
L
You
can
see
with
a
lot
of
this
happening
why
LGBTQ,
grad
students
or
grad
workers
at
BC
would
not
feel
comfortable
reporting
harassment
or
reporting
discrimination,
or
would
not
feel
that
they'd
be
treated
fairly
in
a
grievance
process
or
a
discipline
process.
When
you
don't
have
any,
you
know,
set
out
protections
that
could
be
agreed
upon
in
a
union
contract
where
it's
basically
arbitrary
and
it's
up
to
a
department
chair
or
a
Dean
or
the
administrator
who
you
happen
to
be
dealing
with
and
whether
or
not
they're
sympathetic
to
your
cause.
A
A
N
Know
everyone
wants
to
go
home,
I'll,
be
really
brief.
I'm,
the
president
that
a
clerical
workers
union
at
BU,
so
I
mean
I,
see
what
grad
workers
do.
Personally,
my
son
is
a
graduate
student
in
it
in
a
university
in
another
city,
so
I
realized
what
they
do,
but
I
just
want
to
say
that
bu
in
these
other
schools
they
make
money
off
the
work
these
people
do.
So,
if
that's
not
something
that
you
qualify
for
unions,
I,
don't
know
what
is.
Thank
you.
Thank
you.
A
M
You
are
the
ones
that
are
inspiring
me
to
continue
the
work
that
I
do.
My
name
is
Darlene
Lambos
and
I'm,
the
executive
director
of
community
labor
United
and
vice
president
of
the
Greater
Boston
Labor
Council,
and
to
get
together.
We
represent
over
100,000
union
members
and
community
leaders
throughout
the
Greater
Boston
area.
Today,
our
labor
council
and
community
partners
stand
with
more
with
more
than
10,000
student
workers
in
our
city,
who
are
doing
the
amazing
work
for
universities
in
Boston
teaching
classes,
performing
groundbreaking
research
and
helping
find
cures
for
diseases.
M
They
are
doing
the
work
that
our
city,
our
families
and
the
public
rely
on,
and
that's
what
universities
are
supposed
to
be
about
right,
educating
and
innovating
for
the
public
good,
not
protecting
their
bottom
lines,
or
there
are
tens
of
millions
of
dollars
in
their
endowments.
Universities
are
not
businesses
and
they
don't
pay
taxes,
but
unfortunately,
too
many
of
them
have
lost
their
moral
compass
and
exploits
student
workers.
In
the
same
way,
some
of
the
worst
corporate
diet
Giants
have
done.
M
Student
workers
are
just
like
any
other
worker
and
they
deserve
the
same
rights
and
respect
as
everyone
else.
They
deserve
a
living
wage,
good
health
care
and
protections
from
harassment
and
discrimination,
just
like
everyone
else,
and
just
as
organized
workers
from
have
always
done
whether
it
was
a
famous
striking
UAW
workers
in
Flint
Michigan
in
the
1930s
or
the
Wayfarer
workers
walking
out
in
Copley
Square.
M
I
respectfully
call
on
the
City
Council
to
stand
with
the
student
workers
across
Boston
I
encourage
the
council
to
consider
all
possible
means
of
ensuring
these
universities
serve
our
city's
multiracial,
multi-gender
working-class
communities
by
fully
respecting
and
bargaining
with
their
student
employees.
Thank
you
thank.
A
O
Brian.
Thank
you
good
evening,
members
of
the
Boston
City
Council
thank
of
this
opportunity
to
speak
tonight.
My
name
is
Brian
Doherty
and
I
have
the
opportunity
to
represent
the
building's
construction
trade
unions
and
in
Greater
Boston
and
the
Boston
building
trade
unions,
which
represent
35,000
working
families
in
the
Boston
area.
I
just
like
to
start
by
saying
thank
you
to
all
of
the
community
and
labor
voices
in
all
the
workers
at
these
universities
who
were
fighting
so
hard
and
advocating
for
the
union
protections
they
deserve
the
universities
and
colleges
we
were
discussing.
O
Howard
University,
Boston,
College,
Boston
University
in
Northeastern
University
have
a
great
track
record
of
using
union
labor
to
build
and
maintain
their
campuses.
We
appreciate
that
and
we
appreciate
our
great
partnership.
The
building
trade
unions
have,
with
these
colleges
and
universities
they're
committing
their
commitment
to
building
with
union.
Labor
is
good
for
workers
for
worker
families.
It's
good
for
the
colleges
and
universities,
it's
essential
for
our
local
economy
and
it's
vital
to
strengthening
our
communities,
choosing
to
utilize
the
region's
best
trained,
most
professional
and
most
of
inclusive
workforce
showcases.
O
These
colleges
and
universities
recognize
the
value
of
a
well-trained
skilled
in
inclusive
workforce.
Beyond
the
building
trades,
they
also
have
a
very
highly
trained,
highly
skilled
workforce
in
the
form
of
their
world-class
graduate
student
employees.
The
number
of
employees
total
upwards
of
10,000
and
is
exciting
to
see
them
uniting
and
making
their
voices
heard.
We
commend
and
applaud
these
colleges
and
universities
for
building
Union.
We
also
believe
that
these
employees
who
work
in
the
building's
after
we
build
them,
should
also
have
the
right
to
form
a
union
and
to
collectively
bargain.
O
We
believe
that
whether
you're
pouring
concrete
point
coffee,
employing
chemicals
into
beakers,
every
worker
deserves
the
right
to
form
a
union,
have
a
voice
at
work
and
have
the
ability
to
support
themselves
and
their
loved
ones
after
work
outside
the
workplace.
We
have
seen
Boston's
real
colleges
and
universities
serve
the
city's
community.
O
Well,
in
the
past,
we
are
choosing
to
remain
optimistic,
that
they
will
change
course
quickly
on
this
issue
and
bargain,
in
good
faith
with
their
students,
their
student
workers
to
ensure
safe
and
fair
working
conditions,
just
like
we
have
on
the
construction
sites
at
these
critical
institutions.
That
means
negotiating
fair
contracts
for
graduate
student
workers,
with
the
recognition,
wages,
health
care
and
protections
from
harassment
and
discrimination
that
workers
in
student
that
workers
deserve
in
need
in
the
workplace.
O
I'd
also
like
to
to
the
dedicated
student
workers
of
these
Boston
universities.
Please
know
that
the
Boston
building
trade
union
is
staying
with
you
today
tomorrow,
in
every
step
of
the
way
and
continuing
with
you
in
this
fight,
we
work
on
the
same
campuses.
We
share
the
same
values.
We
share
the
values
that
workers
are
human
workers,
rights
are
human
rights
and
the
right
to
collective
bargain
collectively
is
an
essential
part
of
our
democracy,
I'll
be
for
the
building
trade
unions.
We
see
thank
you
for
the
opportunity
to
speak
this
evening.
O
We
say
thank
you
to
the
graduate
employees
for
your
advocacy
and
your
courage
in
this
space
to
fight
for.
What's
right
and
what's
fear
and
thank
you
to
a
partner
community
and
labor
organizations
for
your
continued
advocacy,
we
believe
that
this
is
an
opportunity
for
all
of
us
to
come
together
for
the
workers
of
the
world
unite,
and
we
thank
you
for
the
opportunity
to
share
this
tonight.
Thank
you.
Thank.
P
P
My
Union
supports
the
right
of
the
student
workers
that
have
it
to
organize
the
Union,
and
we
believe
that
they
have
this
right
for
collective
bargaining
and
have
a
right
to
a
fair
contract.
The
administration
has
refused
to
agree
to
basic
rights,
such
as
arbitration
for
harassment
and
discrimination.
That
gives
a
student
worker
the
right
to
have
their
case
decided
by
a
neutral
party
who
is
not
paid
by
Harvard.
This
is
outrageous.
We
all
know
from
the
news
that
the
administration
cannot
please
itself
there
were.
P
P
How
dear
students
ask
for
this,
so
I'd
like
to
tell
you
what
we've
been
doing
with
these
articles
and
why
these
are
necessary
to
be
in
a
contract
both
both
of
these
articles
enforce
through
arbitration
in
our
contract.
What's
the
difference
between
having
language
in
a
contract
and
not
having
language?
It's
the
difference
in
what
we
call
solidarity
versus
solitary
solidarity
means
a
cooperative
effort
of
all
our
members
in
all
aspects.
In
fighting
for
this
language.
Coming
up
with
this
language
and
voting
for
this
language,
it
means
a
law
to
those
who
are
most
affected.
P
It
lets
them
know
that
they
are
together
with
people
who
have
their
backs.
It
gives
them
power
and
encouragement
to
enforce
this
language.
Solitary
means
that
you
are
on
your
own.
You
may
have
a
little
help
here
and
there,
but
you
don't
have
that
encouragement
and
knowing
that
people
have
fought
for
you
and
have
your
back
a
good
example
for
that
with
us
is
a
worker
who
was
harassing
women
and.
A
P
P
Our
cooks
do
not
tolerate
sexual
harassment
on
the
job,
so
there
was
a
someone
who
was
sexually
harassing
a
woman
and
we
immediately
took
it
up
through
our
grievance
procedure
and
this
worker
was
fired,
but
in
our
investigation
we
found
out
that
he
had
harassed
other
women
and
we
asked
why
didn't
you
come
forward
is
because
they
felt
that
it
was
slight
and
that
they
didn't
want
him
to
be
fired.
They
knew
they
had
the
control
over
his
being
able
to
work
and
they
tried
to
discipline
him.
P
That's
a
well-known
story
in
this
country,
well-known
story
at
Harvard,
University
people
don't
complain
about
sexual
harassment
or
discrimination
because
they
get
repercussions
if
they
do
not
have
a
contract
with
this
language.
In
it
another
example
of
how
this
stops
a
hostile
work
environment
from
happening
is
we
had
a
manager
a
while
back,
who
was
passing
out
checks
as
he
used
packs
out
checks.
He
went
to
the
Black,
Latin
and
Asian
youth
and
said
verbatim
here
you
go.
You
can
buy
a
lot
of
crack
with
this
when
we
found
out.
P
We
followed
this
up
with
a
grievance
and
campaign,
but
while
we
were
campaigning,
there
was
a
snowstorm
and
workers
usually
stay
at
Hobbit
and
a
major
major
snow
song,
because
we
got
to
feed
the
students
in
the
morning.
Well,
he
only
wanted
some
of
his
favorite
men
to
stay,
so
he
told
E
and
some
of
the
women
who
came
forward
and
says
we'll
stay,
because
we
want
to
help
feed
the
students.
You
also
get
overtime
for
this
and
he
says:
ok
well,
you're
gonna
have
to
sleep
in
the
basement.
P
There's
some
dirty
mattresses
down
there
that
you
can
sleep
in
and
watch
out
for
the
rats.
Well,
they
said
well
we're
not
staying
and
they
went
home
well,
those
the
men
that
he
wanted.
He
put
him
up
in
a
hotel
and
the
women
complained
the
next
when
they
came
back
well.
This
was
also
why
we
were
in
this
arbitration
movement
with
about
what
he
had
done
to
the
other
youth
and
so
adding
this
to
it.
He
was
fired.
P
There
in
the
process
that
it
was
amazing
to
our
workers
in
the
grievance
procedure,
Hobbit's
defense
of
this
guy,
because
they
defended
him.
That's
why
we
were
on
their
way
to
arbitration
was
that
upper
management
told
the
lower
management
to
be
tough
on
the
workers,
be
tougher
and
they
told
him
to
separately
be
tougher
on
these
workers.
His
toughness
was
sexually
harass.
People
racially
harass
people,
that's
toughness,
a
lot
of
management,
that's
toughness
in
this
country,
and
we
were
appalled
when
that
happened.
P
It's
not
because
there's
a
law
out
there,
and
so
even
if
there
is
laws
that
somewhat
protect
us.
We
need
language
to
protect
us
in
arbitration
in
our
contract,
because
language
by
itself,
which,
if
you
don't
have
arbitration,
is
not
enforceable.
That
is
how
we
make
a
good
environment.
Our
workers
can
go
home,
feeling
safe
at
work,
go
home
come
back
the
next
day
because
they
know
they're
gonna
feel
safe
at
work.
P
With
these
articles
and
our
contract,
we
are
the
ones
that
enforce
the
laws
that
are
good
for
our
workplace.
We
enforce
not
we're
not
on
for
not
only
enforce
the
laws
that
you've
made.
We've
also
enforce
the
rules
that
we
make,
and
you
know
your
rules,
you
make
laws
and
it's
laws
in
the
books
that
are
not
enforceable
in
workplaces.
I'll
go
over
an
example
in
a
little
while,
but
we're
the
ones
who
do
it
and
we
do
it
through
this,
bring
it
home
it,
and
so.
P
The
and
this
is
not
only
good
for
our
workplace-
it's
good
for
the
city,
because
unless
these
laws
are
enforced,
you
have
a
terrible
situation.
Sexual
harassment
and
discrimination
are
not
acceptable.
Howard's
refusal
to
give
that
same
rights
to
the
student
workers
to
arbitrate
these
cases
is
simply
not
acceptable.
We
negotiated
with
harvard
many
times
most
recently,
it
took
us
strike
three
week
strike,
which
you
all
supported.
Thank
you
very
much
to
get
a
fair
contract,
and
on
that
we
actually
added
more
stuff.
P
We
added
transgender
rights,
Native
American
rights
and,
along
with
our
and
I,
want
to
tell
you
the
consciousness
of
our
workers
is
that
we
got
our
wages
and
we
got
our
healthcare,
which
are
our
main
issues,
but
we
got
them
and
we
and
the
workers
decided
to
stay
on
strike
until
those
clauses
about
transgender
and
Native
American
rights
be
put
in
the
contract.
We
stayed
out
on
strike
for
another
day,
and
so
that's
the
consciousness.
P
No
I
would
like
to
say
what
happens
when
you
don't
have
a
contract
like
this,
because
we
have
there's
there's
one
of
the
universities
that's
represented
here.
I
won't
say
what
it
is,
but
we
we
had
a
contract
with
them.
Five
years
ago
we
just
negotiated
with
them.
I
was
one
of
the
organizers
at
the
time
to
do
that,
and
we
had
at
the
first
negotiation,
first
actually
meeting
of
our
workers
that
we
had
gotten
to
help
organize
35
of
them.
We
sat
them
around
in
a
room
and
we
said
to
them.
P
What
is
the
one
thing
you
want
from
the
union
and
we're
they
made
half
the
money
that
we
make,
so
everybody
thought
35
people
would
say,
money,
money,
money,
money,
not
one
of
them
said
money,
they
all
said
respect
and
the
hard
workers
away.
This
is
what's
going
on,
they
don't
want,
they
make
half
of
us
and
we
found
out
these
things.
Sexual
harassment
was
going
rampant
in
there,
not
not
a
harassment,
I'm.
Sorry,
there
was
no
sexual
harassment.
There
was
assault.
P
There
was
a
guy
who
says
you
know
what
I
have
to
do
everyday
in
work
is
that
I
have
to
watch
in
the
kitchen
where
a
managers
sexually
assaults-
my
my
mother
and
I
can't
do
nothing
about
it,
and
he
said
this
has
been
happening
for
years
and
the
first
thing
when
we
got
our
first
contract
there
was
six
managers
were
fired
immediately.
That's
what
happens
and
that's
what's
going
on
in
kitchens.
That's!
What's
that's!
P
What's
going
on
in
management
that
don't
have
a
union
to
protect
them
because
we
enforce
the
laws
we
make
the
things
right
we
make
hostile
environments
disappear,
we're
the
only
ones
that
can
do
it.
Nobody
else
is
going
to
do
it
and
that's
testimony
and
that's
why
the
Harvard
grad
students
and
all
the
grad
students
with
the
university
should
have
must
have
a
contract,
especially
protection.
Harvard
University
says
they
can't
have
sexual
and
protection
this
this
clause,
this
insane.
A
Q
Members
of
the
committee,
thank
you
for
this
opportunity.
Please
bear
with
me:
I
have
a
little
bit
of
laryngitis.
My
name
is
Jordan
McMillan
I
am
a
PhD
candidate
in
sociology
and
the
current
president
of
the
Graduate
employee
union,
UAW
Local
69.50
at
the
University
of
Connecticut,
which
represents
more
than
2,000
graduate
assistants
or
GA
s
as
I
will
refer
to
them.
Q
Henceforth,
as
someone
who
worked
at
UConn
both
before
we
had
a
union
contract
and
after
I
am
here
today
to
speak
about
how
collective
bargaining
can
and
has
worked
to
achieve,
fair
processes
and
outcomes
for
survivors
of
discrimination
and
harassment,
given
that
there
are
10,000
graduate
workers
at
private
universities
here
in
Boston,
I
hope.
My
testimony
helps
the
council
understand
the
critical
nature
of
this
issue
to
this
important
workforce
in
your
city.
Q
Our
union
has
made
a
huge
difference
in
the
lives
of
GA
s
at
UConn,
both
in
terms
of
concrete
economic
gains,
including
an
excellent
health
care
plan
and
critical
workplace
rights
and
protections.
We
are
particularly
proud
of
and
I
want
to
focus
on
tonight
on
our
negotiation
of
stronger
protections
against
and
recourse
for,
sexual
harassment.
Q
Other
forms
of
discrimination,
as
Harvard
is
apparently
doing
currently
UConn
attempted
in
the
bargaining
process
to
place
limits
on
graduate
assistants
options
for
recourse
in
the
cases
of
sexual
harassment
and
discrimination,
but
in
bargaining,
our
first
contract
in
2015
and
in
our
second
contract
in
2018.
The
university
ultimately
agreed
that,
given
the
extremely
lopsided
power
relationship
that
can
exist
between
GA
s
and
a
supervisor,
it
is
in
the
mutual
interest
of
the
institution
and
GA
s
to
have
fair
recourse.
Q
In
fact,
at
the
conclusion
of
our
2018
negotiations,
the
university's
lead
negotiator
told
the
Board
of
Trustees
that
our
quote
our
team
viewed
stronger
non-discrimination
and
harassment,
protections
as
mutually
beneficial.
Unquote,
though,
we
have
had
to
work
through
a
number
of
differences
at
the
bargaining
table.
We
are
deeply
appreciative
that
the
university
has
ultimately
agreed
that
union
representation
and
access,
if
necessary,
to
a
neutral
arbitrator
to
render
a
decision
on
discrimination
or
harassment.
Grievances
is
a
fair
and
mutually
beneficial
provision.
Q
I
will
share
one
recent
example
that
illustrates
how
critical
these
protections
and
advocacy
and
representation
by
the
Union
are
for
GA
s
and
ultimately
for
gender
equity
in
our
universities
and
the
broader
academic
workforce.
Anyone
who
knows
anything
about
the
academic
workforce
is
familiar
with
the
following
scenario
that
highlights
the
extreme
power
imbalance
that
our
contract
addresses.
An
international
GA
in
the
sciences
is
paid
to
do
a
research.
Q
It
is
paid
to
do
research
as
a
ga
under
the
supervision
of
the
male
professor,
who
will
eventually
sign
off
on
her
PhD
dissertation
in
this
case,
in
this
particular
case,
after
enduring
months
of
sexual
harassment,
culminating
in
an
effort
by
the
professor
to
forcibly
kiss
her
this
GA
independently
filed
a
complaint
with
the
universities
title
nine
office,
the
university
concluded
that
her
case
lacked
sufficient
evidence
for
the
university
to
sustain
the
complaint.
Then
the
retaliation
started.
Q
No
one
will
ever
know
exactly
what
the
professor
said
to
other
faculty,
but
not
surprisingly,
more
than
half
a
dozen
faculty
rejected
her
request
to
be
her
supervisor
with
comments
such
as
faculty
members
would
prefer
to
have
a
new
freshly
admitted
student
then
take
on
a
student
who
has
had
problems
with
the
former
advisor
and
quote.
If
I
was
you,
I
would
have
looked
to
transfer
to
a
new
school
a
long
time
ago.
Unquote
on
the
verge
of
leaving
graduate
school.
Q
She
luckily
remembered
that
the
Union
steward,
who
had
come
a
few
months
earlier
to
introduce
her
to
the
Union
working
closely
with
the
Union
she
filed
a
grievance
under
the
contract
against
the
long
pattern
of
harassment,
as
well
as
retaliation
with
the
possibility
of
the
facts
being
submitted
to
a
neutral
non-university
arbitrator
and
with
the
help
from
the
Union
navigating
the
process.
This
GA
worked
out
a
very
favorable
settlement
that
enabled
her
to
remain
in
the
graduate
program
work
with
a
new
supervisor
and
complete
her
PhD.
Q
Roughly
three
years
later,
she
graduated
and
moved
on
to
a
great
job
without
the
Union
and
the
fair
process
negotiated
into
the
union
contract.
This
GA
was
ready
to
leave
her
PhD
Oh
Graham
and
be
another
statistic
in
an
ongoing
lack
of
gender
equity
in
our
universities.
Tens
of
thousands
of
our
UAW
graduate
worker
colleagues
across
the
u.s.
have
have
similar
provisions
in
their
contracts,
including
those
at
UMass,
Amherst
NYU,
the
University
of
Washington,
the
University
of
California
and
California
State
University,
of
course,
UConn.
Q
If
it
truly
believes
in
gender,
equity
Harvard,
like
UConn,
should
recognize
the
mutual
interest
in
having
stronger
protections
against
sexual
harassment.
No
graduate
worker
should
feel
like
leaving
graduate
school
is
their
best
option.
I
would
like
to
close
by
encouraging
the
council
to
do
everything
in
its
power
to
communicate
in
the
strongest
terms
to
Harvard
that
they
should
agree
to
a
fair
recourse
in
the
contract
with
HDS
you
UAW
in
the
current
negotiations
and
quickly
Thank.
R
Thank
you.
My
name
is
Beverly
brakeman
I
am
the
director
of
UAW
region
9a.
We
represent
more
than
36,000
members
in
New,
England,
New,
York,
City
and
Puerto
Rico
I
want
to
thank
you
for
the
opportunity
to
speak
tonight.
Thank
You,
councillor
Baker
and
Thank
You,
councillor
Edwards.
We
really
appreciate
the
opportunity
to
be
here
and,
if
you
allow
all
of
us
to
bring
this
important
issue
forward.
R
As
the
regional
director
I
sit
on
the
UAW
international
Executive
Board,
representing
a
total
of
more
than
400,000
members
in
a
wide
variety
of
workplaces
across
the
United
States
Canada
and
Puerto
Rico
in
higher
education,
the
UAW
represents
more
than
75,000
academic
workers
across
the
United
States,
including
more
graduate
student
workers
than
any
other
Union.
We
also
represent
postdoctoral
researchers,
adjunct
faculty
support
staff
and
other
university
employees.
The
UAW
has
a
long
and
successful
track
record
representing
workers
in
this
sector.
R
Graduate
workers
at
UMass
Amherst,
for
example,
negotiated
and
ratified
their
first
contract
in
the
early
1990s
and
continue
to
have
a
strong
unit
that
has
made
numerous
improvements
in
their
contracts
over
the
years.
In
fact,
graduate
workers
in
particular
have
generated
unprecedented
energy
and
momentum
in
the
very
recent
past.
In
just
the
last
five
years,
more
than
17,000
academic
workers
have
organized
endemically
democratically
chosen
represented
representation
by
the
UAW
in
the
Northeast,
including
graduate
workers
here
tonight
at
Boston,
College,
Harvard,
Boston
University
in
Northeastern,
University
and
thousands
more
still
in
the
process.
R
These
workers
are
critical
workforce
in
the
city,
their
teaching
and
research
both
enhance
the
city
as
a
hub
of
quality
education
that
attracts
the
best
students
from
across
the
globe
and
also
helps
bring
more
than
2
billion
dollars
per
year
in
research,
grants
and
contracts
that
stimulate
the
local
economy
and
I
do
have
a
daughter
who's
going
to
be
coming
here
to
college
in
the
fall,
so
I'm
very
proud
that
she'll
be
coming
to
this
city.
As
you
have
also
heard,
these
workers
share.
R
Many
of
the
same
concerns
as
all
other
workers,
such
as
fair
pay
and
benefits,
but
they
have
also
identified
a
number
of
issues
that
they've
spoken
about
here
tonight,
specifically
in
their
profession.
Strengthening
protections
and
records
in
cases
of
discrimination
and
harassment
also
unique
to
this
sector
is
that
the
imbalance
of
power
experienced
by
all
workers
with
their
employer
and
its
managers
is
dramatically
increased
in
the
academic
sector,
because
supervisors
of
teaching
and
research
assistants
have
ultimate
control
over
both
the
workers,
academic
pursuit
and
their
financial
security.
R
Given
you
a
w's,
long
track
record
of
reaching
agreements
with
universities
across
the
u.s.
going
back
decades.
It
is
so
very
disappointing
that
these
administrators
invest
so
much
time
energy
and
resources
fighting
workers,
efforts
to
have
a
voice
in
the
workplace
and
fair
tracks.
These
administrators
and
trustees
should
embrace
their
young
workers
workers
who
are
natural
allies
in
strengthening
our
universities
as
beacons
of
progressive
ideas
against
the
forces
of
reaction
that
seek
to
close
our
borders
and
move
our
society
backwards.
R
Instead,
they
are
using
this
Trump
moment
to
stall
workers,
efforts
to
make
universities
and
our
society
better,
clearly
slides,
siding
with
Trump
and
the
one-percent
in
their
effort
to
stop
these
workers
is
out
of
step
with
the
values
of
this
city.
You
have
mostly
a
young
workforce
who
overwhelmingly
have
positive
positive
experiences
being
part
of
unions,
who
then
carry
that
positive
experience
into
a
variety
of
workplaces
across
our
country.
We
understand
why
Trump
and
the
rest
of
the
1%
find
that
threatening.
R
S
S
My
name
is
Abril
Harris
and
I'm
a
third
year
PhD
candidate
at
Boston
College
in
the
School
of
Social
Work,
and
today
you
have
all
heard
the
testimonies
of
my
fellow
grad
workers
and
have
learned
about
the
impact
that
the
lack
of
protections
of
workers
rights
has
on
our
livelihood
and,
frankly,
our
well
being
perhaps
many
of
you
in
this
room.
Some
of
you
in
this
room
have
attended.
Grad
school
are
currently
in
grad
school,
so
may
be
able
to
have.
These
experiences
resonate
with
some
of
your
experiences.
S
I
have
been
a
grad
student
for
four
years.
Unfortunately,
and
I've
become
accustomed
to
a
lifestyle
in
which
many
of
my
resources
are
constantly
siphoned
left
near
desolation
being
a
grad
student,
you
are
socialized
to
believe
and
accept
that
this
process
of
obtaining
a
higher
education
will
be
hard
and
that
you
are
not
expected
to
garner
much
support
from
your
institution.
I
say
that
we
have
an
opportunity
to
change
that
and
we
do
not
have
to
continue
to
punish
students
for
trying
to
improve
their
prospects,
not
only
for
themselves
but
for
their
families.
S
As
a
black
and
Latino
woman
raised
in
a
working-class
family,
the
socialization
message
that
I
received
about
grad
school
and
higher
education
were
non-existent
because
my
family
had
not
yet
pursued
this
level
of
degree
before,
as
with
many
other
grad
students
of
color,
we
often
come
into
these
institutions
with
little
information
to
prepare
us
for
what
is
to
come.
We
are
often
recruited
and
brought
into
programs
and
departments
with
promises
of
support
and
told
that
the
environments
which
we
in
which
we
will
exist
will
be
inclusive.
S
I
learned
very
quickly
that
this
is
not
the
case,
in
addition
to
all
the
hardships
of
being
a
grad
student
which
we
have
all
heard
today.
These
hardships
are
often
amplified
and
compounded
for
students
of
color.
We
come
on
to
campuses
that
are
generally
homogenous
and
not
truly
inclusive.
This
has
led
me
to
experience.
Isolation
and
fear.
My
department,
I,
must
say,
is
fairly
supportive
compared
to
some
of
the
other
experiences
of
my
colleagues.
S
However,
the
campus
climate
is
at
times
unbearable
upon
stepping
upon
the
BC
campus
there's
an
immediate
feeling
of
otherness
you're
given
looks
of
confusion
or
surprised
at
your
presence.
I
myself
was
studying
in
our
department
space
meant
for
doctoral
students
and
was
asked
to
present
my
ID
to
make
sure
that
I
was
a
student
there
and
I
couldn't
study
in
that
space
for
several
months
because
of
my
general
feeling
of
being
upset.
S
This
was
reported
to
our
department
administrators
and
we
were
told
to
not
jump
to
conclusions
about
possible
racial
racial
implications.
Of
this
event,
I
could,
as
a
student
of
color
for
four
methods
of
protection,
I
often
travel
with
a
backpack
or
a
Boston
College
sweater,
just
to
avoid
any
issues
that
I
might
encounter
on
practice
on
on
cam.
Many
of
my
colleagues
have
been
reprimanded
for
being
in
areas
in
which
we
are
told.
We
are
welcome
and
then
later
we
find
out.
S
We
are
not
several
professors
and
students
have
made
offensive
and
demeaning
comments
in
the
classroom
and
as
students
of
color,
we
are
left
to
endure
this
treatment
without
any
recompense.
We,
when
we
use
our
voice
to
our
to
discuss
our
plight
to
the
leadership
of
this
institution,
it
is
often
met
with
hostility
and
silence
students
of
color.
We
are
burdened
with
being
the
voice
of
our
cultural
group
and
charged
to
help
the
school
with
helping
to
them
to
create
a
more
diverse
space
and
inclusive
environment.
On
campus.
This
is
not
our
job.
S
Those
things
should
have
already
been
in
place
before
we
arrived,
however,
we
are
asked
and
pressure
to
sit
on
committees,
review,
curriculums
and
did
and
dedicate
our
time
to
these
endeavors
without
pay
as
the
year.
These
are
deemed
volunteer
opportunities,
and
what
truly
makes
it
hurtful
is
when
we
dedicate
time
and
try
to
make
the
campus
more
accepting
and
inclusive
our
suggestions
are
and
offerings
are
rejected
or
ignored
as
being
a
student
who
is
black
and
Latino,
especially
when
you
are
called
to
teach
into
classrooms
where
the
majority
students
are
white,
an
upper-middle
class.
S
Grad
students
of
color
are
often
challenged
to
prove
that
we
are
qualified
to
teach
and
as
a
TA
or
instructor.
If
a
student
says
something
in
class
that
is
offensive
or
becomes
disrespectful.
Our
departments
are
often
ill-equipped
to
support
us
and
encourage
us
to
ignore
and
endure
these
experiences.
There
are
no
affinity
spaces
for
grad
students
of
color
to
find
supporting
community.
Two
of
my
colleagues
started
as
a
group
for
PhD
students
of
color,
and
they
receive
little
funding
to
encourage
the
longevity
of
this
group.
We
are
tired
of
enduring
for
the
duration.
S
All
we
ask
is
to
have
our
right
to
engage
in
collective
bargaining
with
our
institution
to
ensure
that
we
are
properly
supported
as
workers
and
the
contributions
that
we
make
are
valued
and
recognized.
I
come
from
a
long
line
of
union
workers,
my
family
comes
from
longshoremen
and
Merchant
Marines
and
I
have
seen
the
ways
in
which
unions
have
guaranteed
them.
Their
wages
and
protections
against
discrimination.
S
Grad
student
work
for
too
long
has
gone
unrecognized
and
our
contributions
are
seen
as
repayments
for
the
favor
of
being
allowed
to
be
educated
at
these
institutions.
While
I
am
grateful
to
have
an
education
and
spend
my
time
in
the
learning
environment,
it
is
also
the
university's
privilege
to
have
students
offer
their
intelligence
perspectives
and
energy
to
support
the
knowledge
that
manifests
to
inform
the
solutions
that
will
hopefully
make
this
world
a
better
place.
I
hope
we
can
count
on
the
council
support
to
implementing
a
union
for
grad
workers.
S
We
are
a
vulnerable
population
and
are
often
exploited.
Universities
have
traditionally
been
white
elite
spaces
and
discussing
workers.
Rights
without
attention
to
intersectional
identities
like
race
and
ethnicity,
will
continue
to
perpetuate
the
inequities
that
exist
in
the
broader
society.
Unions
are
one
of
the
few
tools
that
communities
and
individuals
have
to
insulate
themselves
from
in
Justices
and
exploitation
that
happens
in
the
workplace.
Please
support
us
students
and
doing
this
in
a
time
where
workers
rights
are
under
attack.
Thank
you
for
your
time.
T
And
I
am
a
PhD
candidate
in
the
Lynch
School
of
Education
and
human
development
at
Boston,
College
and
I
am
an
activist
for
the
Boston
College
graduate
Employees,
Union
and
I
am
also
an
international
student.
In
preparing
this
testimony,
I
spoke
with
my
fellow
international
graduate
workers
on
campus
to
gather
their
stories.
They
wish
to
remain
anonymous
because
speaking
up
is
a
tremendous
risk
for
us.
Many
spoke
of
incredible
hardship,
stress
and
fear.
Our
ability
to
stay
in
this
country
is
dependent
on
being
in
good
standing
with
the
university.
T
This
means
that
most
international
graduate
workers
are
forced
to
stay
silent
about
issues
they
face
in
the
workplace.
We
can't
report
being
overworked,
harassed
or
discriminated
against
because
of
the
precarity
of
our
situations.
Just
last
fall
Boston
College
disciplined
several
international
graduate
workers
for
exercising
their
federally
protected
right
to
organize
at
their
place
of
work.
Some
international
students
were
given
administrative
warnings.
One
was
given
academic
probation,
which
is
just
a
step
below
suspension.
These
tactics
present
an
extreme
threat
that
serves
to
silence
us.
T
It
is
clear
to
me
that
the
manner
in
which
Boston
College
treats
its
international
graduate
workers
reveals
deep
misconceptions
about
who
we
are
there's
a
misconception
that
most
international
graduate
workers
are
wealthy
and
that
we
do
not
need
financial
support.
International
graduate
workers
come
from
all
socio-economic
backgrounds.
I
talked
to
many
who
faced
grave
financial
struggles.
Some
come
to
the
u.s.
with
family
members
who
are
dependent
on
them.
Assumptions
of
affluence
mean
that
those
who
are
not
well-off
are
left
to
suffer.
T
Boston
College
refuses
to
respect
our
majority
vote
and
bargain
with
its
graduate
student
workers.
One
of
the
consequences
of
this
is
that
many
of
us
are
paid
a
wage
that
is
below
what
is
considered
a
living
wage
in
Boston,
even
though
we
support
the
core
functions
of
Boston
College
as
a
university
through
our
research
and
teaching,
many
of
us
are
paid
around
21,000
to
24,000
before
taxes.
T
A
liveable
annual
income
in
Boston
is
estimated
to
be
at
least
thirty
thousand
before
taxes
for
an
adult
living
alone,
citizens
and
green
card
holders
of
the
United
States
have
the
option
to
supplement
these
meager
wages
by
working
a
second
job.
Sometimes
a
third,
however,
international
students
who
are
on
visas
are
only
allowed
to
work
a
maximum
of
twenty
hours
a
week
during
the
school
year
and
can
generally
only
work
on
campus
without
a
special
permit.
Some
of
us
are
fortunate
to
be
able
to
make
additional
money
within
these
strict
parameters.
T
We
find
a
second
on-campus
job
for
just
the
summer
months,
where
we're
allowed
to
work
more
hours.
However,
many
find
themselves
in
much
less
than
ideal
conditions.
We
may
be
forced
to
borrow
money
or
take
jobs
where
we
get
paid
in
cash
to
avoid
a
paper
trail.
This
is
not
the
position
that
we
want
to
put
ourselves
in,
but
many
of
us
find
ourselves
with
no
other
option.
T
International
graduate
workers
must
also
pay
exorbitant
visa
transaction
fees
and
may
have
dependents
who
cannot
legally
work
in
the
country.
These
conditions
magnify
the
burden
of
a
low
stipend
and
the
financial
stress,
impacts
our
mental
health.
Some
of
you
may
wonder
you
knew
the
deal
going
in.
You
knew
what
the
stipend
would
be.
Why
didn't
you
go
somewhere
else?
I
believe
that
every
worker,
regardless
of
where
we
come
from,
deserves
to
have
our
basic
rights
upheld
and
deserves
to
make
a
livable
wage.
T
We
conduct
world-class
research
and
generate
economic
revenue
for
the
universities
that
we
work,
for.
We
have
come
from
around
the
world
to
institutions
like
Boston
College,
to
study
and
work
to
make
our
dreams
a
reality.
We
work
hard
to
achieve
our
goals
and
most
of
us
seek
to
uplift
our
families
and
communities
in
the
process.
We
add
diverse
perspectives
to
the
academic
environment
and
bring
knowledge
from
other
cultures.
We
do
not
deserve
to
be
exploited,
silenced
and
demeaned.
We
demand
to
have
our
union
recognized
demand,
fairness
and
justice.
Thank
you.
Thank.
A
U
Hello,
my
name
is
Shirley
Buckner
and
I'm,
a
rising
third
year
PhD
student
worker
and
Harvard
sociology
department
and
a
member
of
the
Harvard
Graduate
Student
Union
barbing
bargaining
committee
committee.
Sorry
I
just
want
to
clarify
one
thing
really
quickly
about
the
tuition
remission
question
that
you
had
before
mr.
Baker
we
have
the
pleasure
of
representing
over
4,000
student
workers
on
our
campus.
Many
of
them
do
get
tuition
remission,
but
we
also
represent
professional
school
workers.
Student
workers
and
undergraduates
are
also
in
our
in
our
unit
and
they
do
not
get
tuition
remission.
U
U
Welcome
thank
you
for
this
opportunity
to
speak
to
you
all
today,
I'm
here,
to
share
our
union's
experience.
Bargaining
for
the
right
of
a
survivor
of
workplace
harassment
or
disagree,
or
discrimination
to
a
fair
and
timely
process
with
interim
relief
and
the
choice
to
bring
their
case
before
a
neutral
decision-maker
not
employed
by
Harvard.
Harvard
has
been
steadfast
in
refusing
this
request.
One
of
the
many
things
that
the
me2
movement
has
shown
us
is
the
importance
of
power
differentials
in
our
society.
It's
something
that
we
have
heard
repeatedly
today
in
this
room.
U
According
to
recent
studies
done
by
reputable
academic
policy
advocates,
the
academic
workplace
is
not
immune.
For
example,
a
recent
report
by
the
National
Academies
of
science,
engineering
and
medicine
suggested
that
academic
academia
is
quote
second
only
to
the
military,
unquote
in
the
pervasiveness
of
sexual
harassment.
A
2014
survey
by
the
American
Association
of
universities
found
that
nearly
half
of
women
say
they
experienced
some
form
of
sexual
harassment
during
graduate
school,
but
only
one
in
ten
reports.
U
It
the
dramatic
gap
between
the
numbers
to
experience
and
those
who
report
and
address
sexual
harassment
underscores
the
lack
of
confidence
survivors
have
in
existing
university
systems
of
recourse
that
are
tilted
against
the
survivor,
lack
of
confidence
in
action
which
perpetuates
the
underlying
problem
and
maintains
a
gender
inequity
in
the
academic
workforce.
Based
on
our
experience,
Harvard
is
no
exception
and
listening
to
student
workers
across
campus,
many
don't
trust
institutions
like
Harvard
to
police
themselves
that,
without
access
to
a
neutral
person
to
rule
on
a
dispute,
it
is
hard
to
imagine
a
fair
outcome.
U
Are
others
fear,
retaliation
for
coming
forward
with
their
story?
We
have
experienced
these
facts.
We
have
a
sorry.
We
have
explained
these
facts
to
Harvard
in
support
of
our
proposal
for
access
to
union
representation
and
a
neutral
arbitrator
and
Harvard
has
rejected
our
proposal.
They
have
repeatedly
told
us
we
should
accept
the
status
quo
because
they
say
the
status
quo
works
fine,
and
yet
we
have
shown
numerous
times,
both
in
and
outside
of
the
negotiating
room.
How
Harvard's
internal
process
has
failed
student
workers
and
the
wider
Harvard
community?
U
One
wouldn't
need
to
look
much
further
than
a
high-profile
case
of
Jorge
Dominguez
Dominguez
is
a
former
professor
in
Harvard's
Government
Department,
who
sexually
harassed
students
for
decades
was
found
to
be
guilty
of
serious
misconduct
in
the
80s
and
nevertheless
was
promoted
up
the
ranks
until
he
reached
the
position
of
vice
provost
for
international
affairs
from
2006
to
2015
in
2015.
Sorry,
our
recent
internal
report,
a
hard-fought
win
by
student
activists,
found
that
the
me
Dominguez
was
guilty
of
unwelcome
sexual
contact
over
a
span
of
40
years.
U
U
He
should
not
have
been
allowed
to
maintain
to
remain
on
campus
and
continue
harassing
students
and
survivors
should
not
have
felt
like
they
had
no
choice
but
to
leave
and
while
doing
so
jeopardized
their
careers
conquer,
contrasted
decades
of
harassment
by
Professor
Dominguez,
with
a
UCLA
postdoc
who,
with
vigorous
advocacy
from
her
Union
and
access
to
a
process
and
in
neutral
arbitration,
if
needed,
was
able
to
resolve
a
pregnancy
discrimination
grievance
literally
in
a
matter
of
days.
This
is
just
one,
albeit
high-profile
instance,
of
the
failure
of
Harvard's
current
process,
but
throughout
our
organizing.
U
We
have
also
heard
from
current
student
workers
who
are
survivors
of
harassment
and
discrimination
and
who
have
experienced
firsthand
how
Harvard's
current
process
does
not
work.
For
example,
one
black
student
worker
had
a
faculty
member
tell
them
not
to
try
to
work
with
a
particular
professor
who
was
from
a
country
that
is
predominantly
white,
because
that
professor
prefers
to
work
with
people
from
their
own
country,
ie
white
people.
This
was
incredibly
off-putting
for
that
student
worker.
U
They
sought
help
from
high-level
university
administrators,
but
those
administrators
advised
the
student
to
try
to
resolve
the
issue
informally
with
people
in
the
department,
rather
than
pushing
for
a
grievance
procedure
through
the
Union.
However,
this
approach
places
the
burden
of
addressing
these
issues
squarely
on
the
shoulders
of
the
student
worker,
who
is
dealing
with
the
consequences
of
the
problem.
There
is
no
university-wide
process
to
address
racial
discrimination
at
Harvard.
I'll
say
that
again,
there
is
no
University
process
to
address
racial
discrimination
at
Harvard.
U
A
third
party
grievance
procedure
for
discrimination
and
harassment
would
provide
a
framework
for
actually
holding
the
university
accountable
to
the
standards
we
had
Harvard
as
spouse.
Another
example
is
that
of
a
student
worker
who
was
a
target
of
sexual
and
gender-based
harassment,
while
working
in
a
lab,
a
co-worker
in
the
lab,
harassed
this
worker
by
commenting
on
her
body
and
giving
her
graphic
description
descriptions
of
his
body.
He
also
said
she
was
useless.
This
went
on
for
years
and
caused
the
student
worker
to
lose
confidence
and
cost
her
extreme
stress.
U
The
student
worker
attempted
to
get
help
from
her
supervisor
other
faculty,
the
Dean
and
eventually
the
title
nine
office.
In
other
words,
they
went
through
Harvard's
internal
process
that
they
claim
is
working
fine
after
multiple
conversations
with
her
supervisor
and
a
revolving
door
of
title
nine
coordinators,
who
gave
her
conflicting
it
and
continuing
to
suffer
uncomfortable
encounters
with
the
harasser
that
could
have
been
avoided.
They
finally
arrived
at
a
solution
to
protect
the
survivor.
This
took
almost
a
year
a
year
that
disrupted
her
work
and
damaged
her
relationship
with
her
supervisor.
U
The
process
of
working
with
the
university
to
stop
harasser
caused
more
pain
than
the
harassment
itself.
She
seriously
considered
leaving
academic
science
because
of
this
experience,
Harvard
administration
claims
to
support
survivors,
but
that
support
must
be
in
action,
not
just
in
words.
They
agreed
to
negotiate
a
contract,
but
they
have
been
dragging
their
feet
for
over
a
year
and
they're
refusing
to
provide
fair
and
timely
protections
against
discrimination
and
harassment.
We
believe
that
in
2019
all
workers
deserve
a
process.
U
They
can
trust
when
they
experience
harassment
and
discrimination
at
work,
a
process
that
includes
a
neutral
decision-maker
not
on
their
employers
payroll
when
I
leave
Harvard
in
a
few
years.
I
want
to
be
proud
not
just
of
my
academic
accomplishments,
but
I
also
want
to
be
proud
of
my
university
as
a
result
of
my
experiences,
organizing
my
fellow
student
workers
and
negotiating
in
the
room
with
Harvard
administration,
I
cannot
say
right
now
that
I
am
proud
of
my
University
I
hope
that
this
changes
in
the
future.
Thank
you.
B
A
B
I
thought
again,
all
the
testimony
was
excellent.
I
I
just
wanted
to
follow
up
on
some
of
the
points
that
you
mentioned
above
about
some
of
the
money
that
is
generated.
You'd
heard
one
of
my
colleagues
asked
about
some
of
the
research
and
I
think
you
had
mentioned
millions
or
some.
So
could
you
talk
to
me
about
that?
How
much.
R
Dollars
in
in
Massachusetts
is
the
number
that
I
talked
about,
that
the
students
well
across
the
globe
bring
more
than
two
billion
dollars
per
year
in
research
grants.
So
so
the
work
that
they
do
in
the
labs
is
funded
by
grants
that
come
in
to
the
states
and
then
fund
the
universities
and,
as
I
think
Sam
said
before
the
universities
get
some
of
that
money.
R
B
Then
also
for
the
the
representative
from
UConn
I'm
curious,
because
you
heard
several
of
the
graduate
students
testify
to
the
actual
mental
and
emotional
toil
of
working
in
an
unsafe
work
environment,
which
is
what
they're
doing,
and
you
talked
about
working
without
a
contract
in
before
a
contract.
Is
there
any
way
to
get
research
or
surveys
showing
the
impact
on
the
workers
with
or
without
a
contract
number
one?
Q
Absolutely
so
I'm
certain
there
is
a
way
to
get
that
research
done.
I
do
not
know
that
it
has
been,
but
I
think
that
it
would
be
very
useful
and
make
a
very
compelling
argument,
because,
as
I
mentioned,
I
was
there
before
we
had
a
union,
and
after
and
I
can
attest
to
having
a
safe
work
environment
significantly.
Improving
my
emotional
and
mental
well-being,
also
having
stable
finances.
R
Can
I
just
anecdotally,
cuz
I
I
helped
to
lobby
the
in
Connecticut
the
State
University
contracts
have
to
go
through
the
legislature,
so
I
helped
to
lobby
that,
and
we
did
a
petition
at
that
time
and
I.
Remember
there
were
so
many
legislators
who
had
been
graduate
or
research
assistants
and
they
were
like
sign
me
up.
Sign
me
up.
You
know
because
they
knew
what
the
experience
as
a
graduate
student
worker
was
and
how
good
it
would
be
for
them
to
have
a
union.
R
B
I
think
also,
it
would
be
important
to
adds
the
narrative
or
research
and
to
find
out
the
attractiveness
of
a
school
if
it's
going
to
run
on
its
elitism
and
how
it's
one
of
the
best
schools
for
and
then
pick
whatever
the
to
also
be
one
of
the
best
schools
to
be
a
graduate
student
at
like
the
experience,
is
one
of
the
best,
not
the
academics,
that
you're
going
to
be
able
to
demonstrate
or
be
exposed
to.
So
yes,
I.
Q
Can't
speak
to
that
not
from
a
research
standpoint,
but
from
an
experience
standpoint
being
a
graduate
assistant.
There
are
multiple
people
in
my
department
who
specifically
said
when
they
started
that
they
came
to
UConn
because
it
was
unionized
and
a
number
of
our
members
who
got
their
master's
degrees
at
UConn
and
moved
on
to
other
institutions
for
their
PhDs.
B
I
think
one
of
the
biggest
points
that
I'm
pulling
from
the
recent
testimony
is
I
had
thought
about
it
in
terms
of
wages
in
terms
of
benefits
in
terms
of
just
general
dignity.
But
if
you
do
not
have
a
Graduate,
Student
Union,
you
essentially
do
not
have
discrimination.
Protection
as
a
class
on
your
universities
is
what
I'm
hearing
from
from
many
of
the
testimonies
here,
whether
it's
because
of
your
orientation,
your
gender
identity
or
your
your
racial
identity.
It
seems
that
that's
basically
no
protection.
Otherwise.
Is
that
your
experience
and
that's
your
understanding.
S
Even
though
I
specifically
said
that
having
a
police
presence,
waking
up
to
a
police
presence
was
traumatic,
they
decided
to
set
a
meeting
with
me
and
the
service
worker
that
was
also
present.
Even
though
that
wasn't
my
initial
complaint,
so
having
protections
in
regards
to
discrimination
would
be
very
helpful
in
having
an
actual
process
to
go
about.
Making.
These
claims
would
also
be
make
me
feel
more
confident
as
a
student
worker
I
just.
U
Want
to
add
a
little
bit
of
the
experience
of
student
workers
at
Harvard
so
because
there
is
no
established
University
process
for
dealing
with
issues
of
discrimination.
I
also
want
to
add
bullying
to
that.
We
are
also
trying
to
negotiate
protections
against
bullying
in
our
cons,
which
so
far
the
university
has
not
agreed
to.
U
So
we
have
people
who
have
experienced
discrimination
or
feel
like
they
have
experienced
discrimination.
They
go
to
the
title
nine
office,
because
that
is
the
the
only
real
kind
of
training
we
get
when
we
get
on
campus.
It's
all
about
title.
Nine
is
all
about
title.
Nine
title
nine,
as
we
know,
I
hope
deals
with
gender
and
sexual
base,
harassment
and
assault,
and
not
for
other
forms
of
discrimination
which
we're
trying
to
get
all
forms
of
discrimination
covered
in
our
contracts.
U
The
students
go
to
this
high
online
office,
they
go
to
tightline
coordinators
and
these
coordinators
kind
of
are
just
like.
We
don't
know
how
to
deal
with
this.
This
is
not
our
wheelhouse
and
those
students
are
kind
of
left
with
no
recourse,
which
is
why
we're
fighting
so
hard
for
what
we're
fighting
for.
Thank
you.
A
A
Q
O
D
R
R
I
will
say
one
difference,
however,
when
they're
at
a
state
university
you
can
you
have
a
lot
more
leverage
if
you're
in
a
state
like
Connecticut
or
Massachusetts,
where
you
can
go
to
legislators
and
congressional
delegation
and
those
kind
of
folks
who
can
put
pressure
on
the
University,
for
example,
at
the
University
of
Connecticut
I
mean
they're
the
flagship
universities,
so
we
were
able
to
get
our
US
senators,
our
entire
congressional
delegation,
so
they
also
the
the
state.
Universities
tend
to
be
more
more
highly
unionized.
You.
V
D
D
That's
that's
very
helpful.
Thank
you
and
maybe
the
last
question
I
have
is
to
dolly
you
know.
Brian
I
know
the
work
you
do
on
helping
many
many
unions
across
across
the
state
whether
it
was
the
hotel
and
restaurant
workers
or
the
mass
Norrises
Union
Association
I
I
know
the
answer
to
it,
but
I
just
wanted
to
hear
your
answer.
I
know
you,
you
are
unions
are
always
there,
but
why
is
it
important
for
unions
to
get
involved
in
supporting
other
unions
that
need
help?
Can
you
talk
about
some
of
the
you
know,
solidarity.
D
M
Thanks
counselor
I
I
would
just
echo
what
ed
said
over
there
that
the
difference
between
solitary
and
solidarity
I
think
when
people
come
together.
I
think
that's
one
of
the
things
that
the
right
in
corporations
try
to
do
is
to
isolate
us
to
say
that
our
problem
is
our
own
problem.
No
one
else
is
feeling
the
same
way
and
what
unions
do
and
what
community
organizations
do
is
get
people
together
and
say.
Actually
the
problem
is,
the
problem
is
intentional.
O
O
Why
we're
here
to
lend
our
voices
to
this
to
this
important
fight,
and
thank
you
thank
you
to
your
advocacy
to
I.
Think
the
City
Council,
the
Walsh
administration
has
had
a
very
important
role
in
sticking
up
and
fighting
for
folks
who
need
help
need
help.
You
need
a
voice
and
I
just
like
to
thank
you
for
your
advocacy.
Thank
you.
Brian.
R
Is
worth
there
bears
repeating?
Is
that
graduate
student
workers
in
the
private
sector
are
in
danger
of
having
their
rights
to
organize
and
unionize
be
taken
away
from
them
by
Trump
and
this
NLRB,
and
that
is
a
huge
difference
and
I
think
makes
it
all
that
more
adds
to
the
urgency
of
getting
these
contracts
and
calling
these
these
universities,
these
private
universities
on
the
carpet
for
siding
with
this
I.
Don't
even
want
to
call
him
my
president,
but
Trump
and
his
NLRB,
because
they're
gonna
do
bad
stuff.
D
Thank
you,
and
my
final
comment
well
two
comments
that
I
want
to
end
by
saying
this
hearing
was
very
educational:
I
want
to
say
thank
you
to
councilor
Edwards
in
counts,
Baker,
there's
a
lot
as
a
city
council
that
I
learned
tonight
that
I
didn't
know,
especially
the
mental
health
issues
that
some
graduate
student
workers
face.
I
didn't
know
that
I
didn't
know
about
the
harassment
issues
that
they
face
as
well
and
the
little
protection
that
they
have
they
have
in
addressing
those
concerns.
D
So
I
want
to
say
thank
you
to
Lydia
and
Frank
for
bringing
bringing
us
together,
and
you
know
also
the
the
international
graduate
workers
are
also
impacted
negatively,
especially
with
with
very
limited
rights
because
of
it
might
be
immigration
issues.
It
might
be
visa
issues
and
if
you
were
to
complain
in
lose
your
job,
unfortunately,
it
might
have
an
impact
on
your
visa
or
immigration
status
as
a
worker
or
as
a
student.
D
B
A
V
Why
not
I'm
a
PhD
candidate
at
the
University
of
Massachusetts
in
Boston
and
I'm
here
in
solidarity
with
our
colleagues
at
the
private
universities?
They're
speaking
to
you
today,
there's
been
a
couple
of
points
that
came
up
tonight,
that
I
I
just
want
to
to
address.
I
didn't
bring
prepared
notes
but
I'm
happy
to
answer
any
questions
you
may
have
about
our
contract
or
the
Union.
We
have
at
UMass
Boston
in
terms
of
the
the
competitiveness
of
graduate
employee
salaries
and
the
wages
we
make.
V
And
when
you
look
at
the
work
we
do
as
research,
assistants,
teaching
assistants
and
our
our
work
as
students,
that's
less
than
minimum
wage
and
the
university
claims
that
that
that's
a
competitive
wage
I
was
our
lead
negotiator
last
time
and
they
they
claim
that
that's
a
competitive
wage.
They
don't
even
want
to
make
cost-of-living
increases
to
that
on
the
notion
of
the
value
of
grad
employees.
Most
of
us
here
who
our
grad
students
have
gone
to
Google
Scholar
before
and
know
the
research
engine.
V
Well,
there
is
no
peer-reviewed
research
anywhere
on
the
value
of
the
grad
student
community
to
universities,
and
one
would
think
that's
something
that
would
be
well
studied.
I'd
be
happy
to
study
my
own
population
rather
than
going
out
to
the
field
when
we
did
our
contract
negotiations
with
UMass
Boston.
V
In
terms
of
the
supplement,
the
role
that
unions
have
been
supplementing
the
the
mental
and
physical
health
of
our
students,
we
maintain
a
box
of
tissues
in
our
office.
Just
like
you
do
counselor,
because
we
have
a
lot
of
students
coming
in
and
crying
all
the
time
I've
had
students
that
you
know
we've
had
to
put
on
suicide
watch
and
go
to
go
to
the
counseling
office
on
campus.
We've
had
some
very
serious
problems.
V
V
Often,
the
only
group
that's
left
to
fight
to
get
you
back
to
grad
school
is
the
Union
we're
the
ones
that
can
fight
the
grievance
deal
with
the
disciplinary
hearings
represent
the
students
who
often
can't
afford
to
hire
a
labor
lawyer,
we're
there
for
them,
and
we
can
get
those
students
back
working
on
their
degrees
and
finally,
with
the
Union.
The
one
thing
that
we
do
have,
as
someone
alluded
to
earlier
I
think
it
was
ed.
We
have
respect
on
campus
when
we
go
in
with
students.
Those
students
are
not
alone.
V
We
know
the
administrators
to
go
to
talk
to.
We
can
help
those
students
advance
the
advance.
The
mission
that
they
have
been
getting
a
degree
and
moving
through
higher
education
eventually
become
a
part
of
the
system.
Many
of
us
want
to
become
professors
and
join
the
community
and
without
a
good
experience
in
grad
school,
that's
difficult
to
want
to
join
that
profession
going
forward
anyway.
I
just
want
to
make
a
few
of
those
comments
and
I'm
happy
to
answer
any
questions
you
may
have
about
what
our
situation
is
at
UMass
Boston.
Thank
you.
Thank.
W
So
we
heard
from
several
students
several
fellow
grad
workers
about
the
challenges
faced
as
grad
workers
and
I
just
wanted
to
really
hammer
home
that
the
point
of
organizing
is
not
merely
to
have
the
universities
address
these
challenges,
but
to
get
that
language
fixed
in
a
union
contract.
So
as
that
from
bu
I
mentioned
before,
when
the
counselor
made
about
the
be
used
guaranteed
five
years
of
funding
or
the
guaranteed
two
weeks
of
vacation.
These
these
guarantees
are
they're
meaningless
because
it
is
entirely
at
the
universities
election.
W
So
on
all
of
these
issues
that
have
been
spoken
on,
you
know,
a
university
could
hire
100
mental
health
workers
tomorrow
and
it
wouldn't
be
good
enough
because
they
could
take
it
back
the
next
day.
They
could
offer
free
dental
and
vision
coverage
for
all
of
their
students
tomorrow,
and
it
wouldn't
be
good
enough
because
they
could
take
it
back
the
next
day.
They
could
offer
free
child
care
tomorrow.
It
wouldn't
be
good
enough.
W
They
could
take
it
back
the
very
next
day
and
locking
these
things
down
in
a
union
contract
is
really
the
core
of
why
this
organizing
is
so
important.
It's
not
just
getting
a
response.
Getting
the
universities
to
change
the
the
guaranteed
language
enter
contracts
that
allows
us
to
enforce
these
terms
and
hold
the
versity
to
account
is
what
is
really
an
important
ear.
W
Anything
else
is
transitory.
It
can
be
undone
and
particularly
for
international
students.
As
we
just
mentioned,
bye-bye
Chris
are
in
a
state,
above
even
greater
precarity,
because
any
issues
that
arise
at
work
you
know
if
they
lose
their
status.
If
I
lose
my
status
as
a
student
I.
Have
this
limited
time
in
which
I'm
forced
to
leave
the
country
break?
W
A
A
B
You
all
I
know
it's
been
a
long
evening,
and
many
of
us
are
probably
looking
at
the
bait
starting
shortly,
speaking
of
which
Bev
Bev
had
mentioned,
that
there
and
in
university.
Excuse
me
in
Connecticut,
there
had
been
political
pressure
put
on
a
lot
of
those
who
are
elected
at
the
state
and
federal
delegation
levels
and
I.
Just
wanted
to
note
we
earlier
today
we
had
a
tweet
from
a
presidential
candidate
in
solidarity
for
BC.
Bernie
standards
actually
noted
that
he
had
heard
about
this
in
the
organizing
effort,
so
talk
about
opportunities
for
political
pressure.
B
B
Think
the
beginning
of
many
other
campaigns
and
conversations
I
really
appreciate
the
linking
together
I
think
it
was
the
north
northeastern
student
who
talked
about
working
with
right
to
the
city
working
with
other
housing,
justice
organizations
around
the
university
as
a
union
and
that's
another
example
of
what
unions
do
they
also
link
into
other
social
justice
movements
as
a
UAW?
Is
there
with
Martin,
Luther,
King
and
fighting
for
racial
justice?
B
Has
an
a
union
I
think
it's
really
important
that
we
look
at
the
power
of
divestment
and
the
power
of
looking
at
our
private
foundations
that
are
funding
a
lot
of
this
research
and
the
power
of
federal
are
looking
at
our
federal
delegations
that
are
pushing
for
federal
dollars
for
these
universities
and
state.
Any
state
money
going
to
private
universities
for
research.
B
How
you
can
fund
that
research
makes
no
sense
to
me
at
the
it
would
I
think
it's
time
to
talk
and
bring
those
foundations
to
the
table,
who
are
funding
research
at
these
universities
that
will
not
recognize
graduate
student
unions
and
I
think
it's
an
opportunity
to
continue
that
conversation
I
think
it's
also
an
opportunity
to
bring
in
a
lot
of
our
brothers
and
sisters
who
fight
against
racial
discrimination,
gender
discrimination
and
sexual
orientation
discrimination.
As
we
heard
from
many
of
the
students,
there
is
no
protection
unless
the
Union
is
there.
B
So
I
look
to
the
n-double
a-c-p
HRC
I'm,
looking
at
other
organizations
now
to
come
and
support
graduate
student
union
organizing
and
and
making
sure
that
they
have
a
voice,
because
those
students
will
not
have
a
voice
otherwise
to
fight
against
termination.
I
want
to
thank
all
the
labor
folks
who
came
out
here
in
solidarity.
It
was
beautiful.
B
It
was
absolutely
beautiful
to
have
folks
who
work
in
the
kitchen
who
work
in
the
hallways
who
work
in
the
university
stand
with
the
students
student
workers,
who
are
also
working
in
the
university
I'm
very
proud
of
this
hearing.
I
think
it's
one
of
the
best
things
I've
done
in
my
short
political
career
here
and
I
am
so
incredibly
proud
to
be
still
a
member
of
the
UAW
proudly
standing
with
my
brothers
and
sisters
today
for
all
for
social
justice.
Thank
you
so
much
for
coming
tonight.
Thank.
A
Thank
You
counsel,
redwoods
I,
just
think
it's
unfortunate
that
that
we
look
at
these
universities
as
liberal
thought,
leaders
and
in
in
bastions
of
new
ideas,
but
yet
they
want
to
talk
one
way
and
walk
a
different
way.
So
with
that,
thank
everybody
for
coming
out
tonight,
thanks
for
the
people
that
came
out
and
we're
on
panels.
Thank
you
for
your
advocacy
and
this
hearing
is
adjourned.