By Frank Petrignani
Stony Brook University research assistants are giving their employers exactly what they asked for by petitioning with the National Labor Relations Board their right to unionize.
What the petition does is put the matter on the NLRB agenda to review cases from both the employee and employer’s side regarding whether or not the employee’s cases are strong enough to cast a secret ballot election in which each worker decides whether or not they want to be represented by a union.
After all ballots are casted, the more popular vote would determine as a whole whether or not RAs at Stony Brook would be represented as a union or individually.
University RAs are saying their employer, the SUNY Research Foundation (SRF), is a well known union buster and notoriously known for trying to intimidate RAs not to join unions.
The foundation is a private, nonprofit educational corporation that works with SUNY to acquire, administer and manage external funds to advance research and education, and transfer technology from the campus to the marketplace.
Sep. 15 roughly 200 RAs—doctoral students—rallied at the university’s student activities center to publicize their desire to unionize and join Local 1104 of the Communications Workers of America. Slightly more than 500 of the approximate 800 Stony Brook research assistants signed an organizing mission statement saying they want to become part of the Local that already represents more than 4,000 teaching and graduate students throughout the SUNY system.
In response Paul Kelly, assistant vice president of the SRF, said his organization is not anti-union and what it would like the RAs to do is follow the process of petitioning with the NLRB and see if board members will grant a secret ballet election.
There is distrust from the RAs regarding the SRF’s tactics in trying to convince employees not to unionize. In a press release issued by Stony Brook University’s RAs it says: “In the past several weeks, the Research Foundation has set up an anti-union website, and has begun communicating with employees to convince them to reject the union. So far, the SUNY controlled Research Foundation has warned RAs that a union would hamper hiring decisions, would interfere in the functioning of the Foundation’s work, and be a “third party” only interested in collecting dues.”
In response, Mr. Kelly said not everything the RAs are saying about his foundation is true. He also said it is true the foundation is reaching out to students on campus to provide factual information and ensure RAs understand all the facts and aspects before making a decision.
Mr. Kelly also said the foundation believes working with each student on an individual basis is a better way to operate, rather than working through a third party.
However, many RAs are still skeptical of the foundation.
“We call upon the SUNY Research Foundation to agree to a quick election, and not use scarce publicity-funded research funds on lawyers to delay our votes,” said Matthew Engel, an RA from the biomedical engineering department within a press release issued by the RA.
Currently, a hearing is taking place this week with the NLRB and it will continue into next week, Mr. Kelly said. After the hearing ends, the SRF and RAs will have their chance to submit briefs to the NLRB board expressing each side’s point of view.
The process will most likely take the decision to a secret ballot, Mr. Kelly continued. However, he said “it is possible” because this matter is dealing specifically with graduate students the board could say they are not eligible to unionize.
“In our case we believe they are students first and provide a stipend to them to benefit their education,” Mr. Kelly said regarding the foundation’s stand point.
Tim Dubnau, an organizing coordinator for CWA, said going to a Labor Board decision is only delaying what everyone knows RAs already want.
“The only think keeping us from a secret ballet election is bringing this to the Labor Board and hoping they will win an appeal because otherwise we will win,” Mr. Dubnau said. “The Labor Board does not want this and the foundation just wants to delay. The RAs know what they want and they want to be unionized.”
