UCW-CWA Members Lobby for Collective Bargaining and Worker Representation

On January 17, over 60 members and allies of United Campus Workers-CWA (UCWVA-CWA) in Virginia traveled to Richmond to lobby their legislators on issues including collective bargaining for public workers and getting a bill passed to add worker representatives to the Board of Visitors for public universities. Other concerns include delayed graduate worker pay and the high cost of living near represented universities.

UCWVA-CWA represents workers at the University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, William & Mary, and Virginia Tech.

After lobbying, the members held a rally in the Capital Square where Public, Healthcare and Education Workers Vice President Margaret Cook, UCWVA-CWA Local 2265 President Harry Szabo, and State Delegate Amy Laufer addressed the crowd. Several graduate teaching assistants and professors from across the commonwealth, also shared powerful stories of their struggles without collective bargaining.

Cook energized the crowd saying, “We are going to fight to make sure we continue the long arc of progress and justice in this country. And I believe that what y’all are up to here will lead to a new day for Virginia’s public sector workers and campus workers as well. I know you’ve got that in you because I see a fire here. So let’s continue to bring the heat, United Campus Workers!”

On January 24, a coalition of public service workers, including members of UCWVA-CWA, the Service Employees International Union, and the Virginia Educators Association, held a press conference congratulating lawmakers as a senate bill addressing public sector collective bargaining rights passed out of committee. Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell’s bill updates legislation passed in 2020 to give public sector workers, including teachers, firefighters, home care workers, and employees of public universities the freedom to bargain collectively for a contract. Virginia House Democratic Caucus Chair Kathy Tran introduced the companion bill, HB 2764, in the House.

“We love our jobs and we don’t want to leave them,” said Szabo, who teaches at Virginia Commonwealth University. “But we need to secure basic workplace protections if we’re going to be effective. Hungry people can’t teach well. People who are afraid of losing their housing or their jobs aren’t going to be as reliable for our students as people who know that their jobs are secure. Collective bargaining for higher education will allow us to focus on what we came here to do: making a bright future for our students.”

 
UCWVA-CWA Local 2265 President Harry Szabo spoke passionately at a rally for collective bargaining held at the state capital.

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This post originally appeared on cwa-union.org.