ITHACA, N.Y. -- Cornell University and the Cornell Association of Student Employees/UAW (CASE/UAW) reached agreements yesterday (July 11) that will allow a union representation election for the university's approximately 2,000 teaching assistants, research assistants, graduate research assistants and graduate assistants. The agreements define the bargaining unit, set dates for the National Labor Relations Board-administered election, and recognize that certain academic issues lie outside the scope of bargaining. The union and the university also agreed to procedures to be followed by both parties in the event that there are subsequent NLRB rulings that revise the present interpretation of the status of graduate student assistants as employees.

Under the terms of the Agreement, the proposed bargaining unit will include graduate research assistants, research assistants, teaching assistants and graduate assistants who are graduate degree program students under the jurisdiction of the Graduate School and who receive a stipend and at least a 25 per cent tuition remission from the university. Other individuals and employees are expressly excluded from the proposed bargaining unit.

The date of the proposed representation election was tentatively set for October 23 and 24, 2002.

Mary G. Opperman, vice president for human resources at Cornell, commented, "Today's agreement avoids a long and expensive series of administrative hearings to determine the scope of the proposed bargaining unit. It sets forth an orderly procedure for the conduct of an open representation election in October, and the University pledges to take all necessary steps to promote full and fair debate of all issues related to the election. I should emphasize that the University administration reserves its right during the course of the representation campaign to speak directly to the appropriateness of union representation for the designated graduate students."

Ariana Vigil, a teaching assistant in the English Department and a member of the CASE/UAW organizing committee, expressed satisfaction with the agreement. "We fought successfully to secure the right of Cornell teaching and research assistants to choose to be represented by CASE/UAW," said Vigil. "As a union, we can improve our wages, hours and terms and conditions of employment. Today's agreement gives us the opportunity to focus our attention on the coming representation election rather than on protracted and unnecessary legal hearings. This agreement is historic. It is the first time a private university has agreed to abide by the results of a NLRB union representation election. We are pleased that the university has agreed to bargain immediately in good faith with the CASE/UAW if we win the election."

Service and maintenance workers at Cornell are members of UAW, Local 2300. The UAW also represents over 15,000 teaching assistants and research assistants at the University of California at Berkeley and at Los Angeles, New York University and the University of Massachusetts. Appeals are pending regarding UAW-affiliated TA and RA elections at Brown, Columbia and Tufts universities.

The text of the agreement follows. A copy of the Stipulated Election Agreement, as faxed to the University Counsel by the Albany office of the National Labor Relations Board, is available in PDF format. at http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/July02/StipElectionAgrmt.pdf .

AGREEMENT

Cornell University ("the University") and the Cornell Association of Student Employees, UAW ("the Union") agree as follows:

1. The Stipulated Election Agreement ("Election Agreement") that the parties entered into today (and which is attached hereto) is incorporated into this Agreement by reference.

2. This Agreement does not limit the rights of the parties under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and the rules, regulations and procedures of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) with respect to the representation election agreed to by the parties. For example, both parties retain their rights under NLRB procedures to challenge ballots cast in the aforementioned election. Nor does this agreement in any respect limit the parties' rights under any other law.

3. The Union and the University are committed to fostering a positive relationship. Therefore, in the spirit of that cooperation, and in exchange for the University's agreement to bargain immediately in good faith with the Union if it is elected as the collective bargaining representative in the unit described in the Election Agreement and otherwise abide by its obligations under the NLRA, the Union agrees that, for a limited period of three years, it will not seek to represent any additional categories of graduate student employees or any category of undergraduate student employees at the University. During this time, the University agrees that it will not transfer the work of bargaining unit members with the purpose of eroding the unit.

4. The Union recognizes that the University's bargaining obligation is limited by statute to "wages, hours and terms and conditions of employment" of academic student employees. The Union recognizes that certain issues involving the academic mission of the University lie outside the scope of bargaining as defined by the National Labor Relations Act. These issues include, but are not necessarily limited to (1) conditions and requirements for the admission of students to graduate programs; (2) matters that pertain to the amount of any tuition, fees, awards or student benefits (provided that they are not terms and conditions of employment); (3) matters that pertain to the merits, necessity, or organizational structure of any academic unit, department, field, program, or course established by the University; (4) decisions relating to student financial aid (provided that they are not terms and conditions of employment); (5) decisions relating to the number of assistantships and the criteria for the granting of appointments; (6) decisions on a student's academic standing or progress (including removal for academic reasons); (7) matters that pertain to degree and certificate requirements; (8) matters pertaining to the content, teaching methods and supervision of courses, curricula and research programs.

5. The parties recognize that appeals have been brought by Brown and Columbia Universities in two representation cases (1-RC-21368 and 2-RC-22358) involving graduate assistants at those universities, and that those appeals are currently pending before the NLRB in Washington, D.C. In those appeals, Brown and Columbia request that the NLRB reverse its decision in New York University (NYU), 332 NLRB No. 111 (2000), in which it held that certain graduate assistants employed at NYU are employees within the meaning of the NLRA. The Union and the University agree that when a decision is rendered in these cases, the parties will meet promptly to discuss the effect, if any, of the decisions on the viability or the scope of the unit. In particular, the University and the Union agree to meet promptly after a ruling by the NLRB in the Columbia and Brown cases to discuss and attempt to mutually determine whether the decisions impact the parties bargaining obligations and/or the scope of the bargaining unit. If forty-five days following the issuance of the NLRB decisions, the parties are unable to agree on the impact of those decisions on their bargaining relationship, the University reserves the right to withdraw recognition of the Union, or to file a petition seeking clarification of the unit. The Union, in turn, reserves the right to challenge the University's withdrawal of recognition or petition for clarification of the unit. If the NLRB decisions are rendered at a time when there is a collective bargaining agreement in place between the parties, the Union and the University agree to honor the provisions of that agreement for its duration.

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