It’s not exactly what they hoped for, but New York University students are celebrating.
After a battle spanning nearly a decade between students, the National Labor Relations Board and the administration of NYU, graduate students who also work as employees — most as teaching assistants — will be the first private school students allowed to join a national union and collectively bargain with their employer.
But unlike most unionized workplaces, NYU’s students won’t be covered under NLRB labor law. That's because, in a last minute decision, NYU students decided to ditch their petition to be recognized by the board, and instead worked out an agreement with the school itself to allow unionization without governmental recognition.
Now, assuming most graduate student employees vote in favor of the measure on Wednesday, the students will be represented by the United Auto Workers Union. Any disputes between the the students and NYU will be mediated by the American Arbitration Association instead of the NLRB.
While the decision is a few steps shy of the full-fledged federal union status many have spent years fighting for, NYU student organizers say they hope their alternative route to union representation will set a precedent for other private universities with graduate student employees who want better pay,