RA Bargaining Session Archives

Summary Archive

February 26 and 28, 2024: RA Union Update

The union began the 2/26/24 session by presenting their counter proposals on Placements and Management Rights. The university asked clarifying questions and then both sides took a caucus. Following the caucus, the university provided its own Placements and Management Rights counter proposals. After the sides discussed the changes in each proposal, the university provided a Compensation counter proposal. The parties discussed the provisions of the Compensation article and agreed to continue that conversation in the 2/28/24 session.

The 2/28/24 session was devoted entirely to discussions about compensation. After a caucus, both sides presented counter proposals on Compensation.

The next session was tentatively scheduled for 3/4/24. The union later informed the university that the date no longer worked. The university is waiting for the union to provide additional dates for the next session.

January 31, 2024: RA Union Update

A bargaining session was held on 1/31/24 at 10 a.m. The session began with the university explaining its modifications to the union security, terms of agreement, discipline and discharge, management rights, and placement articles in their latest counters. A tentative agreement was reached on orientation. Following the discussion, both negotiation teams caucused. After returning from the caucus, tentative agreements were reached on union security, discipline and discharge, no strikes or lockouts, and emergencies and natural disasters. The university offered possible dates for the next session, and the union indicated that they would reply with their availability for those dates as soon as possible.

January 18, 2024: RA Union Update

A bargaining session was held on 1/18/24. The session began with the union offering a new compensation proposal and answering the university's questions regarding the proposal.

The university then offered counter proposals on leaves of absence, shop stewards, orientation, and health and safety and the union presented a new counter on emergencies and natural disasters.

When the discussion ended, the parties took a caucus. Following the caucus, the parties reached a tentative agreement on leaves of absence and further discussed the most recent orientation and emergencies and natural disasters counter proposals. The university and the union also signed tentative agreements on health and safety, grievance and arbitration, job descriptions, and non-discrimination.

At the end of the session, the parties agreed to meet again on 1/31/24.

December 18, 2023: RA Union Update

A negotiation session was held on 12/18/23 at 10 a.m. At the beginning of the session, the university shared written counter proposals for the Grievance and Arbitration, Leaves of Absence, Placements, and Job Descriptions articles. The union shared a new counter-proposal for the Health and Safety article.

The parties took a caucus at 10:54 a.m. to review the new counter-proposals. Following the caucus, the university presented an additional counter for the union's Health and Safety proposal, as well as for Orientation and Shop Stewards. The parties reached a tentative agreement on Grievance and Arbitration and Job Descriptions and, after some discussion, the union withdrew its proposal on Sanctuary Campus. The union indicated an intention to provide a revised economic proposal at the next session.

The session ended at 12:08 p.m.  The next session is tentatively scheduled for the week of 1/8/24.

December 6, 2023: RA Union Update

The parties met on 12/6/23  at 1:30 p.m. The session began with a tentative agreement on non-discrimination. The union also presented a proposal regarding job descriptions and provided counter-proposals on grievance and arbitration and union security. The university took a caucus at 2 p.m. to review the new proposal and to discuss the union's counter-proposals. After the caucus, the university presented its counter-proposals on health and safety and emergencies. The university and the union continued discussions of the union's compensation and room and board proposals, with the university requesting examples of compensation from other colleges and universities. The session ended at 3:42 p.m. The next session is tentatively scheduled for either 12/18/23 or 12/19/23.3.

November 29, 2023: RA Union Update

The university and the union met on 11/29/23 at 1:30 p.m. The session began with discussion of several previous proposals, including Terms of Appointment and Management Rights. The union then offered new proposals on Seniority and Placements.  Following a caucus, the university presented a counter proposal for the Health and Safety article. The university and union also discussed several elements of the union's Emergencies and Natural Disasters proposal. The university asked clarifying questions regarding the union's Room and Board and Compensation proposals and asked for examples of compensation offerings from other universities to better understand the union's initial proposal, which will be on the agenda in the next session. The session ended at 4:45 p.m. The next session will be on 12/6/23.

November 8, 2023: RA Union Update

A bargaining session with the RA union was held on 11/8/2023. The session began at 1:40 p.m., and the university presented counter proposals on shop stewards, non-discrimination, terms of appointment, and grievance and arbitration. After a caucus, both sides returned to the session to continue discussions. The union offered the following proposals: health and safety, emergencies and national disasters, sanctuary campus, and leaves of absence. An additional caucus occurred. Following the conclusion of the caucus, the parties reached a tentative agreement on separability. Further discussion followed regarding the union's four new proposals, and the university answered the union's questions about the university's counter-proposals from earlier in the session. The session ended at 4:35 p.m. Bargaining will resume on 11/29/2023.

November 1, 2023: RA Union Update

A bargaining session with the RA union was held on 11/1/2023. The session began at 1:45 p.m. with a tentative agreement on “Recognition.”  The union then presented counter-proposals in response to the University's counter-proposals from the last session. After a caucus, both sides returned to the session to continue discussions. The union then offered proposals on Room and Board and Compensation. After a short caucus, the University asked several clarifying questions. The parties agreed to an additional meeting on 12/16/2023 and the session ended at 4:30 p.m. Bargaining will resume on 11/8/2023.

October 4, 2023: RA Union Update

The fifth negotiation session took place on 10/04/2023 from 3-4:45 p.m. The Union did not present any new proposals or counter proposals. The University made counter proposals on the following: Non-Discrimination, Terms of Appointments, and Orientation. The University also introduced two new proposals on Management Rights and No Strikes and Lockouts.

The parties agreed to hold additional sessions throughout the semester on Nov. 1, 8 and 29 and agreed to extend the time of each session to three hours. The parties anticipate meeting at least once more during the fall semester.

The Union informed the University that it planned to present its economic proposal at the next session.

September 6, 2023: RA Union Update

The Union shared counter-proposals with Fordham on the morning of the bargaining session on 9/6/23, which did not allow Fordham sufficient time to review and analyze them before the meeting at 2:30 p.m. The Union representative apologized for the delay, stating he had been traveling to Boston for the RA strike and negotiations at Tufts University.

Fordham started the session by offering three new counter-proposals related to Union Security, Separability, and the Labor Management Committee. The two sides then went into a caucus session, during which Fordham reviewed the Union counter-proposals shared in the morning, and the Union reviewed Fordham’s three new counter-proposals. The Union and the University exchanged comments about the other's counter-proposals for the remainder of the two-hour session.

The two sides reached a tentative agreement on the proposal related to the Labor Management Committee.

The Fordham negotiations team will meet with the RA Union every two to three weeks. The next session is scheduled for October 4th.

August 25, 2023: RA Union Update

In the RA Union bargaining session on 8/22/23, Fordham presented counter-proposals to the RA Union’s first round of proposals that were submitted at a prior session. The RA Union went into caucus for 1 hour and 15 minutes to discuss the proposed counters.

When we returned, Fordham used the last half hour to listen to the RA Union’s concerns regarding the counter-proposals. The RA Union will also follow up with written responses. During that time, the RA Union provided Fordham with five additional proposals, which the Fordham negotiations team will review before the next session.

The Fordham negotiations team will meet with the RA Union every two to three weeks. The next session will take place on September 6, 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.