It’s been a while since we examined labor relations in higher education. Here’s a summary.
No shortage exists of recent examples of unions’ unclean hands and their tendency to develop sticky fingers. Teachers’ unions are no exception, and they have brought a pair of doozies this month:
- The Pennsylvania State Education Association has been accused by the Freedom Foundation of money laundering through the Democratic Governors Association. These allegations involve $1.5 million in teachers’ dues, which was apparently funneled to the gubernatorial campaign of current PA Governor Josh Shapiro. As a result, the union could be on the hook for violating state and federal laws, including running afoul of the IRS.
- The National Education Association (NEA), the largest labor union in the U.S. with over 3 million members, has been embroiled in a very bad look for at least six weeks. This mess began in early July when NEA staffers unionized with the National Education Association Staff Organization (NEASO) and went on a three-day strike. The NEA responded by locking out 350 workers while suspending their pay. Six weeks later, the resulting disputes have grown public, and the lockout has ironically prevented the NEA from rallying for one of its own members, VP candidate Tim Walz.
A particularly telling point of contention in this fight is that the NEASO accuses NEA President Becky Pringle of expensing $8,500 for hair styling during a three-day event.
On the student organizing front, NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo recently issued a guidance memo that covers cases when the NLRA collides with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA). In the last several years, the NLRB has certified dozens of elections for union representation involving student workers, with almost 50,000 workers represented by these unions. When student workers exercise their right to form a union, educational institutions must often disclose student-related information to a labor union that represents or seeks to represent those workers. In addition, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) protects the privacy of student education records and personally identifiable information contained therein.
This memo purportedly clarifies how colleges can navigate between laws when unions ask them to share student workers’ private information during periods of union activity. Abruzzo advocates for colleges to have students sign a consent form – by which they permit future release of certain info – when accepting employment. Considering the many pieces of paper that higher ed students must sign on a regular basis, it sure sounds like Abruzzo is hoping that the gravity of signing such a form will get lost in the shuffle. Unions would easily be able to gain information for recruiting purposes.
A few other notable stories will end this roundup:
Cornell University’s move-in week for 8000+ students began on Monday with a UAW strike by dining hall workers, janitorial staff, and groundskeepers. The union is demanding immediate wage boosts, bonuses, and additional financial incentives. At the DNC earlier this month, Shawn Fain used part of his airtime to draw attention to his union’s impending disruption of the Ivy League school’s fall semester.
According to a tweet on X this morning, the UAW reports that it and Cornell University have reached a tentative agreement, although details are scarce for now.
Syracuse University workers rallied ahead of a potential SEIU strike that could begin in September if the university and union don’t agree to raise wages to match inflation rates. Stay tuned for more developments on that story.
