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Senior researchers at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai overwhelmingly voted yes to forming a union with the UAW. Congrats, and welcome CalArts United and ROCS-UAW!
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— Researchers Organizing Committee at Sinai (@rocsuaw) April 11, 2025
Detroit, MI — Thousands of people across the country came together yesterday for Kill the Cuts, a national Day of Action to raise awareness and fight back against the Trump administration’s devastating attacks on research, health, and higher education. The events (see the full list here) were sponsored by a coalition of education, labor and health advocates, including UAW, SEIU, AFSCME, UE, NEA, AFT, CWA, AAUP, HELU, Labor for Higher Education, the Debt Collective, and more.
Researchers and educators who have had their funding cut spoke about the effects this assault on publicly-funded research is having at their institutions and across the country. Below is a collection of remarks and associated photography:
“NIH is the bedrock of American health,” said Haley Chatelaine, a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institutes of Health and member of UAW 2750, which represents 5,000 workers there. “I’ve spoken with patients whose lives depended on the groundbreaking research we do. Any delay–whether it’s due to pauses in grant funding or firings of federal workers–puts Americans’ health at risk. That’s why we, the workers who do the research, are standing up to protect it.” (Photos here, credit UAW)
“By cutting funds to lifesaving research and medical care, the Trump administration is abandoning families who are suffering and costing taxpayers billions of dollars,” said Rafael Jaime, president of UAW 4811, which represents 48,000 workers at the University of California. “These cuts are dangerous to our health, and dangerous to our economy.” (Photos here, credit UAW)
“Federal research funding is critical to my research into how neurons in our brains communicate, making it possible to develop better therapeutics for severe health conditions that range from cancer to depression to learning disorders,” said Dagan Marx, a Postdoc at Weill Cornell Medicine and member of the Weill Cornell Medicine Postdocs United-UAW Bargaining Committee. “Recklessly slashing funding that institutions like Weill Cornell depend on for medical breakthroughs and supporting researchers has devastating impacts on our research and our working conditions.” (Photos here, credit New York City Central Labor Council)
“I’m proud to be researching ways to better detect ovarian cancer after losing my mom to the disease two years ago. There are still no routine screening tests for ovarian cancer, which would save lives. Without funding from the NIH, breakthroughs won’t happen and that’s a tremendous loss for research and the general public,” said Mari Hoffman, an Academic Student Employee in Molecular & Cellular Biology at the University of Washington and member of UAW 4121. (Photos here, credit UAW)
President Trump has recently issued Executive Orders attacking the NIH, NSF, while dismantling the Department of Education. These attacks jeopardize medical and scientific progress and threaten the jobs of researchers across the country studying critical topics including climate change, renewable energy, cancer, viral pandemics, heart disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s. Not only do these attacks impede lifesaving care for millions of Americans, but delays in treatment are projected to cost the public billions of dollars.
More information about the National Day of Action and a list of rally locations can be found at www.killthecuts.org.
By cutting funds to lifesaving research and medical care, the Trump administration is abandoning families who are suffering and costing taxpayers billions of dollars.These cuts are dangerous to our health, and dangerous to our economy.
On Tuesday, April 8th, 2025 workers across the country are standing up and demanding NO cuts to education and life-saving research.
Taking collective action to stand up for our rights is fundamental to who we are as a union. As we have done throughout our union’s history, we fight for a more just and sustainable future for all with the knowledge that we are stronger together. Through strengthening our organizing structures, forging coalitions with other unions and progressive organizations, and building worker power across the broader labor movement, we defeated previous attempts to enact racist & xenophobic travel bans, tax graduate workers’ tuition stipends, curtail graduate workers’ rights to form unions, and more. And we will win again.
Dallas, TX — The UAW-represented staff at the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), which represents American Airlines Flight Attendants, have gone on strike following stalled contract negotiations and an unwillingness by APFA management to bargain in good faith. The unit, composed of 11 clerical, administrative, and support staff, unanimously rejected the latest contract offer after facing attempts to erode the bargaining unit, concessions, unfair wages, loss of staff positions, and other issues impacting their livelihoods. This marks the first strike and contract rejection in the unit’s history since joining the UAW in 1989.
The UAW-represented employees have long supported APFA’s efforts in securing better working conditions for flight attendants, but they now find themselves on the picket line to defend their own rights and economic security.
Their contract expired on October 1, with bargaining having begun only a few weeks prior. After six bargaining sessions, management dug in their heels and little progress was made on key issues that would protect staff positions, maintain fair representation, and ensure fair wages.
Kim Ramos, UAW Chairperson and a 38-year employee and UAW member, expressed disappointment in the breakdown of negotiations:
“We are saddened that APFA has refused to bargain in good faith, and now we walk the line in solidarity to better the livelihoods of the UAW-represented staff employees. We may be small, but we are mighty and 100% in solidarity.”
Cheryl Stubblefield, President of UAW Local 129, echoed these sentiments, calling out the hypocrisy of APFA’s stated values:
“I am beyond words to witness the utter disrespect our UAW T.O.P. workers have encountered. Their employer claims to want to ‘humanize’ workers and evolve the labor movement, but after days of talk, that promise has not been realized. We must stand for justice for all workers. We must stand for economic freedom. We must stand today to protect and advance all the rights that have been bargained for. Will you stand today in support of our labor movement?”
The UAW-represented staff are resolute in their fight for a fair contract and call on APFA to return to the table ready to negotiate a deal that respects the workers who have diligently served the union for decades.
As the first African American woman in the history of the UAW to be elected to the International Executive Board, I come before you with immense gratitude and a deep sense of responsibility.
My journey to this historic achievement has been guided by the wisdom and support of incredible mentors like Liz Jackson, Dottie Jones, and Eunice Stokes. Their unwavering belief in me and their commitment to lifting as they climbed have shaped my path and instilled in me the importance of paying it forward.
Today, as I reflect on my journey, I am humbled. Deeply humbled to be surrounded by incredible women who are making a difference in Michigan and across America. Together, we possess the power to lead and affect change in every sector we engage in. But let us never forget that our successes are built upon the foundation laid by those who came before us. It is our duty to honor their legacies by extending a hand to lift others as we continue to climb higher.
In recent years, we have seen a notable increase in women assuming leadership positions. In Michigan we elected women to the positions of Governor, Attorney General, and Secretary of State. These women serve as shining examples of what can be achieved when barriers are broken, and progress is fostered.
However, our work is far from finished. We must persist in sharing information, encouraging one another, and empowering our fellow sisters. Women from all walks of life recognize that an uneven playing field will never yield equality or justice. It falls upon us to raise our voices and double down on our efforts to promote fairness in our institution as well as others that we belong to.
I urge each of you to engage with your local standing committees, participate in women’s organizations supported by this International Union, and become politically active. Remember, a woman’s place is in her union, advocating for the rights and well-being of all workers. I encourage to find your seat at the table.
Together, let us continue to drive progress, champion equality, and stand in solidarity with one another on the journey towards a more just and equitable future.
In solidarity,
Laura Dickerson
TOP Department Director,
Region 1A Director
After an 11-week strike, 1,360 UAW members have voted by nearly 90% to ratify a new 3.7 year contract at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network. The agreement will run to May 1, 2027.
The deal secures historic gains for workers including a major reduction of seniority needed to reach the top pay rate reduced from 22 years to five years, significant wage increases, ratification bonuses, inflation protection bonuses, and improved job security language. All workers will receive a minimum 10% wage increase in the first six months of the agreement.
“I’m extremely proud of our members for standing strong for 88 days,” said UAW Secretary-Treasurer Margaret Mock, who also serves as the Director of the Union’s Technical, Office and Professional Departments. “Because of their courage and determination, we were able to win a record contract. This is a huge step in the right direction for our members, and one that we will build on moving forward.”
Workers walked out on strike on September 13 after company negotiators refused to take their demands seriously. The primary issues members wanted addressed during negotiations were ending the multi-tiered wage scale that required workers to acquire twenty-two years of seniority to reach the top pay rate and the company outsourcing jobs to outside contractors.
The UAW was able to make significant improvements on both fronts. The wage scale was shortened to just five years under the new agreement. Union negotiators were also able to secure contractual language that will strengthen the union’s hand in safeguarding worker jobs.
The contract covers UAW members from four local unions: Locals 2500 and 1781 out of Detroit, Region 1, Director LaShawn English, and Locals 2145 (Grand Rapids) and 2256 (Lansing) Region 1D, Director Steve Dawes.
WHAT: Strike Deadline at the Brooklyn Museum
WHEN: Wednesday, November 8, 2023
WHERE: In front of the Museum, 200 Eastern Parkway
October 27, 2023 – Unionized staff of the Brooklyn Museum, members of Local 2110 UAW, have set a strike deadline and will begin picketing the Museum on Wednesday, November 8, if no agreement on a contract is reached before that date.
“We have been trying to negotiate a fair contract with the Museum for two years and at this point, we feel we have no choice but to set a strike deadline,” said Elizabeth St. George, an assistant curator of Decorative Arts. “I love the Museum and what I do, but it’s a struggle to make ends meet.”
The staff’s union, Local 2110 UAW, has been in negotiations for a first union contract since January of 2022 and has held repeated protests at the Museum over its low wage offer and unfair labor practices. Workers say salaries at the Brooklyn Museum have been stagnant for years and point to an exodus of employees over the last two years.
“Low salaries and lack of real career development are making long tenure at the Brooklyn Museum unsustainable,” said Lauren Bradley, an associate conservator who has worked at the Museum for more than 8 years. “I’ve seen several extremely qualified professionals leave my department for better offers elsewhere. We’re responsible for the care of an incredibly important collection of more than a million objects; but, as a staff, we’re undervalued.”
The Union has filed numerous unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board over the Museum’s repeatedly changing employment terms without notice or bargaining and its assignment of union work to non-union workers, temporary staff and contractors. The Labor Board has issued a formal complaint against the Museum which is scheduled to go to trial before an administrative law judge.
“It’s not only that our salaries are low,” says Samantha Cortez, a Senior Registrar. “It’s the bad faith the Museum has exhibited. They’ve shown a real lack of respect for the contribution of the staff and for the union bargaining process itself. Our hard work is behind the Museum’s incredible exhibitions and programs but they don’t acknowledge it meaningfully.”
The Union has proposed increases totaling 19.5% over a four-and-a-half-year contract. The Union also wants part-time staff, including the museum’s educators, to receive the same percentage increases as other staff. The Union also wants the right to have an outside, neutral arbitrator review disputes over position grade levels and guaranteed minimum raises when an employee is promoted.
“Museum staff need to be recognized and compensated fairly,” says Owen O’Brien, Development Campaign Manager. “We work hard every day and we make the wonderful exhibitions and programs of this Museum possible.”
Staff of the Brooklyn Museum voted overwhelmingly to unionize in August 2021 with Local 2110 of the UAW, a technical, office and professional union that represents workers in museums, cultural institutions and universities. In recent years, thousands of museum workers have organized and fought for higher wages. Local 2110 recently settled successful contracts with the Whitney Museum, the Guggenheim, and the Hispanic Society Museum and Library.
Communicate with: Maida Rosenstein, Director of Organizing, maidarosenstein@2110uaw.org, 917.495.8492
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