FAQs Answered by Organized Workers on Campus

We are protected by federal labor law in our activities to form our union and join the nearly 3,000 already unionized employees at SU. This includes the right to talk to our coworkers about forming our union, distribute union literature, wear union buttons and t-shirts, talk about issues at work, and partake in other concerted activities. We can't be fired, disciplined, demoted, or penalized in any way for organizing our union. Though the upper administration at SU may at some future point try to dissuade us from coming together by sending out anti-union emails or holding anti-union meetings, it is our choice to form a union and only ours. We know it’s only by coming together that we will make real, lasting change at SU.

Union dues are how workers are able to sustain strong worker organizations with the resources needed for organizers, lawyers, office space, printing, and more. Union dues will be between 1.5-2% of our salary after we have ratified our first union contract. We will not pay dues until we first form our union, elect leaders among SU staff to represent us in negotiations with the upper administration, see in black in white improvements in a contract, and vote to ratify it. Would you vote to ratify a contract where the benefits didn’t at least outweigh the dues? Neither would we!

In the last few years, there has been a major uptick in organizing on college and University campuses. Staff, along with many other employees in higher education, have been able to win major improvements to pay, benefits, job security, and working conditions by coming together to form unions. At the University of Vermont, staff were able to win up to 37% increases in pay in their first union contract. At American University, staff won both protections and improved access to flexible and remote work schedules. At the University of Vermont, Columbia University, and Yale University staff won comprehensive healthcare insurance plans at no cost to employees. It’s time we had a real voice at SU!

Signing a union authorization card means you support forming a union at SU and that you would vote “union yes” in the event of an election. The card is confidential and will be used to establish a showing of interest with either the National Labor Relations Board or a neutral third party to form our union.

Service Employees International Union Local 200United is a union of thousands of members in higher education, healthcare, public service, and more in New York, Vermont, and Pennsylvania. At Syracuse University, Local 200United already represents over 1,1000 employees who work as graduate teaching assistants and research assistants, along with another 1,000 maintenance, grounds, food service, and library workers. Union members at SU and across the union strive for good wages, healthcare benefits, retirement security, safe jobs, and everything working families need to thrive.