Last modified on Wed 24 Feb 2021 12.52 EST
Graduate workers in America’s higher education system are organizing in response to high tuition fees, cuts to staff and faculty positions, reduced budgets and suppressed graduate workers’ right to organize unions. College and university administrations have introduced the measures in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Job losses have been substantial at US universities and colleges, as student enrollment has declined and reduced public funding for higher education at the state level is leading to drastic budget cuts.
The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center reported in December a decline in enrollment of students at postsecondary institutions of 2.5% compared with fall 2019, driven largely by sharp drops in enrollment of undergraduate freshmen at public two-year institutions.