A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the status of the Memorandum of Agreement. The agreement has been signed and is being reviewed by the union.
As tension brews over negotiations with SENS-UAW and the status of cafeteria workers’ jobs, New School employees who work as Student Success advisors, financial aid advisors, Making Center staff and Information Technology support staff now have their first contract as union members. They voted to ratify a union contract at a March 27 meeting after more than a year of contract negotiations.
“It was a tough year-long negotiation with this employer, as we expected it to be. We did not think that The New School [would] just roll over and agree to all our demands,” said Nelson Nuñez, Recording Secretary of Teamsters Local 1205.
According to union members, the contract includes a raise of 8.5 percent over the next four years. Before unionizing, employees had no guaranteed wage increases.
”Workers have now guaranteed wage increases — but even more important than that is they now have representation,” Nuñez said. “They went from being classified as employees at-will, and subject to the mercy of the employer, The New School, to now having a voice on the job,” he said.
Other union members agreed that having a voice on the job was a big success. “Unity and protection” were motivations in their support for the union, said another worker, who requested anonymity.
The new unit represents 115 workers, according to the university’s communications office, though Nuñez noted that the number fluctuates regularly.
The employees make up the second New School unit of Teamsters Local 1205. The contract was derived from the contract that clerical staff, who unionized over three decades go, have through Teamsters 1205. Teamsters Local 1205 Clerical represents 113 employees at The New School, including librarians. The new unit joins part-time faculty, maintenance workers, security guards, student workers and the Teamsters clerical unit as union-represented New School employees.
In bargaining sessions, The New School was represented by Keila Tennent-DeCoteau, Associate General Counsel and Vice President for Labor Relations, and various department supervisors, according to Nuñez. The union was represented by Dan DeCrotie, President of Teamsters Local 1205, along with Nuñez and representatives from different departments.
Organizers originally hoped to have the new unit join the clerical staff with the same contract, but were unable to do so.
“Our first proposal was actually just [the clerical staff] contract. And their contract is actually really good, so there was a lot that was not going to fly,” said a Making Center employee, who is a member of the union and requested not to be named.
The contract includes grievance procedure called “progressive discipline.” Having this in the contract means that “In order to be terminated, the employer must have just cause and they have the burden of proof to substantiate their position,” Nuñez said. “If the union is not satisfied once we exhaust all of the steps in the grievance procedure, the union can elect to file for arbitration.”
“I think we were hoping to get 100 percent paid health care and larger raises, but The New School put a hard line on that,” said an IT worker, who asked to remain anonymous to protect their job.
The new unit’s contract will be up for negotiation again in December 2021.
The union and university declined to provide more information about the contract. A spokesperson for the university said they would provide the contract once the union reviews the Memorandum of Agreement. The collective Bargaining Agreement will be posted online once it is finalized.
While union members had hoped for more from their contract, many said this initial unionization is a step in the right direction. “It’s a step forward for our employees,” said an IT worker. ”It’s something that we’ve needed for a long time.”
Photo by Orlando Mendiola.