NYC mayoral candidates urge Sexton to respect our majority

Five New York City mayoral candidates sent a letter to President Sexton today urging him to respect our majority choice for GSOC/UAW as GAs, RAs and TAs.  This letter adds to the growing public scrutiny of the current administration and builds on the open letter from more than 250 elected and community leaders back in May that also urged Sexton to respect our democratic union rights.

Signed by Christine Quinn, Bill De Blasio, William Thompson, John Liu and Sal Albanese, today’s letter says: “We urge the university to engage now in a fair process for graduate, research, and teaching assistants to choose UAW representation, including a public commitment by the university to remain neutral on their decision on unionization and to proceed immediately with good-faith bargaining upon certification that a majority have chosen UAW representation.”

Amid growing pressure from GAs, RAs and TAs last year, NYU told a delegation including Christine Quinn it would await action by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) before deciding how to proceed on the issue of unionization.

“Waiting for the NLRB is not necessary,” says today’s candidates’ letter.  “Moreover, continuing to delay graduate employees’ rights undermines the values of the university and will generate increasing rancor in the campus and surrounding community.”

The letter also highlights how NYU cutting our health benefits last year illustrates the ongoing cost of NYU’s denial of our democratic rights.

It is a testament to the longstanding and growing majority mandate of GAs, RAs and TAs for GSOC/UAW that we have generated so much recent support from the community.  This support from the broader community will continue to be a critical component in our campaign to get NYU to finally respect our right to choose collective bargaining regardless of whether the NLRB takes action on our pending case.

A COPY OF THE LETTER MAY BE VIEWED HERE.