Our UAW Affiliation

UAW is The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America. UAW has historically been one of the largest and most diverse unions in North America. Through our organizing efforts in the past two decades, UAW has become the single largest union for academic workers across the US. There are over 80,000 workers in higher education who are UAW members. 

Notable among these are 5,000 University of California (UC) Academic Researchers. By joining UAW, UC Academic Researchers have democratically determined their priorities as a workforce and have joined together to win improved rights and benefits through collective bargaining.

In addition to the UC Academic Researchers, thousands of other academic workers across the country have formed unions through the UAW. Each union has won increases in pay, benefits, and workplace rights. Some examples are 7,000 UC Postdocs, 1,500 Columbia University Postdocs, and 1,000 UW Postdocs. 

At UW, UAW 4121 is the Local UAW chapter which represents all 1,000 UW Postdocs and all 5,500 Academic Student Employees (ASEs, largely graduate students who work as TAs and RAs). UAW 4121 is an Amalgamated Local Union. Our goal is to join Postdocs and ASEs as our own bargaining unit in UAW 4121.

UW Researchers will elect a bargaining committee made up solely of Researchers and will have a democratic bargaining process separate from Postdocs and ASEs. Once the Researcher bargaining team and the UW Administration bargaining team reach tentative agreement on a contract, Researchers in the bargaining unit (and only Researchers) can vote to approve or reject the agreement.

While Researchers will bargain with UW through their own democratic process, all the academic workers represented by UAW 4121 share many of the same basic values. By joining thousands of ASEs and Postdocs already in UAW 4121, Researchers will have greater collective strength – both in negotiating with UW and in making improvements to public policy.

In the past few months, members of UAW 4121 have worked to rescind an ICE directive targeting international students, formally bargained with the UW Administration to strengthen Postdocs’ and Research Assistants’ appointment security affected by COVID-19, and organized peer trainings on sexual harassment and gender discrimination attended by hundreds of UW workers. Having the same union represent ASEs, Postdocs, and Researchers at UW will empower us to affect even greater change, and will let Researchers draw on years of UAW experience representing UW employees.

To learn more about the relationship between UW Researchers United, UAW 4121, and UAW as a whole, please see our FAQs. We welcome you to contact us with any questions.