Labor News & Commentary October 18, 2024 Boston University graduate workers ratify a contract after a seven-month strike
https://onlabor.org/october-18-2024/
By Holt McKeithan
Holt McKeithan is a student at Harvard Law School.
In todays News & Commentary, Boston University graduate workers ratify a contract after a seven-month strike, Kansas City tenants go on a rent strike, and Wal-Mart workers in Canada vote to form the companys first warehouse union in North America.
The Boston University Graduate Workers Union voted to ratify a contract after a seven-month strike. The strike was the longest such strike in at least a decade. The new contract includes a minimum hourly wage of $20 per hour, a 70% increase for the unions lowest-paid workers. It also includes subsidized transportation benefits for commuters, large improvements in child care support, and pledges to maintain health coverage for PhD students.
Weve won significant improvements in our wages and benefits, and that was only possible because of the strength of our membership and the support from the labor community, Freddy Reiber, a graduate worker in the Faculty of Computing and Data Sciences, said in a press release. Of course, the fight isnt over. Weve got a solid foundation and are already thinking about the next contract so that we can help create a more equitable BU.
FULL story at link above.