On Tuesday, February 18th, despite extreme cold, over three hundred graduate workers, faculty, undergraduates, staff, local unions, community organizations, and elected city and state officials gathered to demand that the UR administration honor their word and sign our agreement. After refusing for months to grant us a pathway to form our union, the administration has left us with no other option but to begin organizing for a strike. 

In less than 24 hours, over 100 of our coworkers have added their name to our Strike Pledge. We urge you to join them and invite your coworkers to add theirs.

Our campus and community supporters have made it abundantly clear that as we prepare to strike to win our agreement, they have our backs. In a speech to our rally, Undergraduate Senator Jacob Edwards said “if the time comes when our grads decide to strike, the undergraduate community is prepared to stand with them.” 

Similarly, dining and facilities workers at the University of Rochester, who are members of SEIU Local 200United, pledged to support us as well. In her speech, dining worker Tacarah Reyes said that “Last December, we took a one-day strike that involved 1800 union members who cook, clean, and provide essential care for patients walking out and demanding a fair contract. After only one day, we made such a great impact that the administration gave in and we won a historic contract… As you move towards a strike, staff will be with you every step of the way.”

Additionally, elected city and state officials have publicly stated their support for our campaign and committed to monitoring our efforts to ensure that our rights are respected. Lastly, over one hundred faculty have signed a letter urging the administration to respect our right to unionize. 

We acknowledge that those of us who are international students face unique challenges related to visa status in the current context. While we have not seen instances of retaliation at other institutions, we commit to standing together and taking concerted action to ensure that none of our coworkers face retaliation.

Building towards a strike is our only hope to win our union and ensure we are protected in these uncertain times. We are urging you to sign our strike pledge today.  If you have further questions, you can reach out directly or look at our FAQ page here. You can find coverage of yesterday’s strike announcement here, here and here.