Pace Adjuncts Hit Year Four of Bargaining

In May 2004, adjunct faculty at Pace University voted 308-165 for union representation with the New York State United Teachers/AFT. Soon, the Union of Adjunct Faculty at Pace will mark the third anniversary of the date it sat down to bargain. At this point, the union will enter its fourth year of bargaining for a first contract—an ignominious record even by professional union-busting standards.

And that is what it’s all about isn’t it? The kind of stalling tactics on display at the privately run Pace University are designed to suppress the rights of workers who the university is already exploiting.

"This is just to see if we’re going to go away,” says John Pawlowski, UAFP president. Pace adjuncts earn about $2,500 a course—one-fifth or one-sixth or what full-time faculty get, says Pawlowski--and no benefits. They have not gotten a raise in two years. “To me the most crucial issue is job security,” he adds. “Without that, money and benefits are meaningless.”

This summer, hundreds of NYSUT members donned matching t-shirts and joined Pace adjuncts in demonstrating outside the office Pace University Board of Trustees chair Aniello Bianco, who is vice president at Hildebrandt International in Somerset, NJ. They waved signs reading: “It’s TIME for a fair contract!” The line is stolen from the slogan Pace is using to celebrate the university’s 200th year anniversary.

The university’s negotiating team is headed by an outside lawyer. “They’re bargaining just enough so you can’t accuse them of not bargaining in good faith, or surface bargaining,” says Pawlowski. Yet, they have not touched on job security, money or benefits—specifically health benefits.”  In three years!

Pace University has proven itself adept at the legal dance that blocks its employees from exercising their rights to free association. Shortly after the adjuncts voted for the union, Pace hired the union-busting consulting firm E-Team Communications to squash a burgeoning staff organizing drive. All but a unit of 20 drivers and mechanics fell away. That unit, the Pace Transportation Union/NYSUT/AFT, has won two National Labor Relations Board sponsored elections. But despite NLRB certification of PTU and consistent favorable NLRB rulings in response to university challenges, Pace refuses to bargain. The labor board is taking the university to court.

Pace continues to toy with the adjuncts, claiming that the rules that governed who would be in the unit for purposes of a vote (i.e., excluding those who had taught fewer than two years) would be the same rules defining the unit. Pawlowski notes that the stalling tactics at the bargaining table are targeted to the reality of the unit’s transitory nature. Adjuncts have busy lives teaching at multiple campuses. The university seems to be hoping the adjuncts, numbering about 1,200, and the drivers and mechanics—will give up.

“We’re not going away,” says Pawlowski.

Comments

[Phil Ray Jack]

Kudos to our union brothers and sisters at PACE! I'm impressed by your stamina, persistence, and steadfastness, but I'm especially impressed by your unity. The battle to form our local took place more than thirty years ago. While we still have members who were involved in the "Great Strike of '74," it is easy for many of us to forget the great sacrifices that were made.

I spent a good portion of the day today trying to find volunteers to fill a couple of our union committees. Everyone I talked to have so much going on that they just don't have time to take on another responsibility. And then I was inspired by your story.

While our environment is quite different than yours, and I'm sure you are dealing with a lot of restrictions I'm not familiar with, I would like to offer a couple of suggestions. Have you tried reaching out to some of the other unions in the state for support? We are affiliated with the Washington State Labor Council/AFL-CIO. At this summer's annual convention, we were asked to support the United Food and Commercial Workers, who were experiencing similar delay tactics in their negotiations.

The first thing we did was sign cards stating that if the workers went on strike or did informational picketing, we would refuse to cross the line. We took the cards to our locals, and then sent the signed cards to the UFCW. I'm not sure how many ended up being signed, but I do know that it had an impact on management when the union walked in with a large garbage bag filled with them, dumped them on the table, and said, "It's time to get some work done."

The new contract was ratified within a couple of months.

Your strength as a union lies in your ability to stand together, and it is increased a hundred-fold by your ability to build solidarity with other union brothers and sisters!

Good luck, and remember that we are behind you!

Phil Ray Jack

[Rosemary Teetor]

Stand strong, PACE! The first contract is the hardest and you'll be glad you did. We're with you in spirit!
Rosemary Teetor, President
Clackamas Community College Part-Time Faculty Association
Vice-President, Oregon Education Association Community College Uniserv Council

[John Braxton]

It is encouraging to see that the adjuncts at Pace are continuing to move forward in the face of staunch opposition. Organizing the adjuncts here at Community College of Philadelphia took about ten years before they won a first contract. It was worth the work that it required. Adjuncts now have a seniority system for hiring, increasing pay as seniority increases, employer contributions towards medical insurance and retirement, and lots of other benefits as a result of unionizing. Of course there are still lots of improvements that adjuncts deserve, but having a union provides the possibility of on-going improvements. So keep up the good work, Pace adjuncts!

John Braxton Co-President, AFT 2026

[Marcia Newfield]

Isn't it infuriating? Keep at it. Do you want adjuncts at other universities to sign any petitions, letters etc? What about students? Are they with you? Sometimes it's hard psychologically for adjuncts to
discuss their situation with their students. Maybe teams could help.
Marcia Newfield, Vice President for Part-time Personnel at PSC/CUNY

[Jane Arnold]

Good luck, guys. Having worked both union and non-union as an adjunct, union is definitely better! We can't have enough faculty standing up for being treated as serious professionals.