Dean Paula McClain sent an email today announcing that SEIU has backed out! Knowing they were defeated (by almost a 2:1 margin!) they have quit the game and the victory is ours. Here is her full email:
Dear Ph.D. Students, Today, we received notice from the National Labor Relations Board that the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has withdrawn its petition seeking to unionize Duke Ph.D. students serving as teaching assistants and research assistants in The Graduate School. This marks the end of this unionization effort by the SEIU at Duke. Many of you have engaged for months on this important issue, and you have shared your perspectives and concerns with me and with each other. We are grateful for the seriousness with which you took this responsibility. While this campaign has been challenging on all sides, I want to express my appreciation for the attention you have given this issue and for participating in the democratic process. We take pride in the efforts we have put forth in providing strong, competitive support for our Ph.D. students. At the same time, the debate over unionization brought to our attention certain concerns among our students. We look forward to continuing to work with you as collaborative partners to enhance all aspects of your educational experience. Graduate students are at the heart of Duke University’s mission, and we remain committed to supporting your aspirations as students, scholars, and essential members of an academic community. Paula D. McClain, Ph.D. Dean of The Graduate School and Vice Provost for Graduate Education
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From the Dean:
Dear Ph.D. Students, I want to give you an update on the election held by the National Labor Relations Board to determine whether Ph.D. students who hold teaching or research appointments wish to be represented by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). At this time, the outcome of the election is inconclusive. Of the 1,089 ballots cast, 691 voted against representation (“NO”) by SEIU and 398 for representation by SEIU (“YES”). There were, however, 502 ballots challenged based on issues of voter eligibility. Because the number of challenged ballots is greater than the spread between the “YES” and “NO” votes, the challenges could determine the outcome and will be subject to post-election procedures of the NLRB. It could be some time before there is a final outcome. The process to review and resolve the challenge ballots will be determined at a later date. We will provide additional information as this process continues to move forward. Thank you. Sincerely, Paula D. McClain, Ph.D. Dean of The Graduate School and Vice Provost for Graduate Education There will be an informational presentation and Q&A today, at 4:30pm in Biological Sciences Auditorium 111.
We will be discussing the negative implications of a graduate student union at Duke and taking audience questions afterwards. We hope to see everyone there! As of 2017-Jan-20, the National Labor Relations Board plans to mail out the ballots on February 3rd. Ballots must be mailed back to the NLRB no later than 10 a.m. on Feb. 24. Subsequently, ballots will be counted and the vote will be determined by the majority of those who voted.
It is imperative that everybody vote in this election. The outcome will affect thousands of Duke graduate students for years to come. How can you guarantee that the NLRB will mail you a ballot? Update your home address. The NLRB requires that Duke provide the home address that is used for the distribution of W-2 forms. There are two ways to update this information: (1) Visit the MyInfo section on the Duke@Work website, at https://work.duke.edu, by midnight Tuesday, Jan. 24. Logging in will require multi-factor authentication as well as a SAP password. (2) If you are unable to log in, call Duke Human Resources at (919)-684-5600. Tell them you need to update your home address. They will ask you a few questions to verify your identity, but it should only take five minutes. This is the option I had to use when I found out that I had not been registered for SAP. (3) What if you did not update your home address in time and it is incorrect? You can still ask someone at the old address to forward you your ballot. If it is close by, you can drive over and pick it up. For further updates about the election, see https://sites.duke.edu/union/. |
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