Increased compensation, visa sponsorship, and benefits eligibility for non-tenure-track faculty and writing specialists are the main priorities of this bargaining session.
According to the UChicago Facilities unit of SEIU Local 73, the University’s current package cannot retain or attract qualified talent in a strong job market, leading to understaffing and high training costs.
Writing Faculty United (WFU), the union that represents University Writing Specialists and advisors, was given the right to join Faculty Forward by the National Labor Review Board (NLRB) at a two-day hearing in May. The union’s victory comes after Provost Katherine Baicker sent WFU an email on May 10, 2023, denying their request for voluntary.
WFU, representing social sciences core writing advisors, humanities core writing specialists, Little Red Schoolhouse lectors, and writing and research advisors, calls for job security, better pay and benefits, and transparency.