Penn State faculty hoping to unionize across the university said Tuesday they filed the paperwork and signatures needed for a vote, announcing the move at an event in the state Capitol Rotunda in Harrisburg.
“As a teacher, I know my working conditions are my students' learning conditions. That’s why we are forming a union — because we want a voice in the decision-making that affects us, affects our students and affects our work," said Kate Ragon, an assistant clinical professor in Penn State's School of Labor and Employment Relations.
She was one of the Penn State Faculty Alliance members, union leaders and politicians who spoke at the event. She and others pointed to workloads, job insecurity and pay as reasons for unionizing.
The faculty alliance would be part of the Service Employees International Union 668. To get to a vote on whether to unionize, at least 30% of qualified employee signatures are needed. Organizers did not say exactly how many faculty members support the effort, but the alliance website says they filed "thousands of union authorization cards to the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board’s office in Harrisburg, along with a petition to hold a union election for Penn State faculty.
SEIU Local 668 President Stephen Catanese said the Penn State union would represent about 6,000 faculty and related positions. He said it would be "the largest single union election in the public sector in the history of the Commonwealth — if not the last 50 years.”
He said faculty are unionizing for dignity, transparency and job security.
“And when major decisions happen, be it closures of campuses or massive systemwide buyouts, those workers should have a voice and that voice can come through the process in their union and their right to bargain and negotiate over wages, benefits and the terms and conditions of their employment," Catanese said.
Penn State is in the process of closing seven of its campuses in the face of declining enrollment. The university board of trustees approved the decision in May despite opposition from many community members.
The university did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the unionization efforts. But a university website says: "Penn State leadership seeks to maintain a positive, supportive work environment and values the contributions of university employees. We remain committed to an open and respectful dialogue."
According to the faculty alliance, the next steps will be to work with the administration and the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board to decide who will be eligible to vote, how the election will be administered and when it will take place.
The move by some faculty to organize comes as Penn State graduate students recently decided to unionize. That vote took place in October and results were announced in November, with about 90% of participating graduate students voting in favor of it, according to organizers.
Pennsylvania’s three other state-related universities — Pitt, Temple and Lincoln — have faculty unions.
