Make your voice heard on the Maryland Senate Collective Bargaining Bill for Faculty, Post Doctoral Associates, and Graduate Assistants (SB0823)! 

SB0823 will provide collective bargaining rights to certain faculty, part-time faculty, post doctoral associates, and graduate assistants at certain State institutions of higher education; establishing separate collective bargaining units for the faculty, part-time faculty, post doctoral associates, and graduate assistants. Learn more about SB0823 here or review the CBB Bill Explainer. SB0823 will have a public hearing on March 7, 2024

A recording of the hearing on House version of the Bill, which was held on February 13 can be viewed here. Testimony supporting the CBB starts at 1:50:00 and the opposition testimony begins at 2:13:00. The Q&A session begins at 2:23:00.

Resources to walk you through creating an MBA account and submitting your testimony can be found here. You can use this google form to submit your testimony on the Senate Bill. 

Feel free to reach out with any questions to dadoug1@umbc.edu, UMBC's GSA Legislative Concerns Committee Chair, or the coalition at aaupmd@gmail.com.

Collective bargaining is the process of negotiating a contract between an employer and a group of employees. In the case of graduate assistants, this contract would cover matters such as wages, benefits, working conditions, and other terms of employment. Effective July 1, 2001, Senate Bill 207 gave certain University employees the right to bargain for wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment through negotiations between representatives of Management (Employer) and the Union (Employees). This right does not extend to GA’s. You can learn more about the current CBB rules here. 

The benefits of collective bargaining for graduate assistants include:

1. Improved wages and benefits: Through collective bargaining, graduate assistants can negotiate for better wages, health insurance, and other benefits.

2. Job security: A collective bargaining contract provides protection against arbitrary layoffs or other forms of job insecurity.

3. A voice in the workplace: Collective bargaining allows graduate assistants to have a say in the decisions that affect their working conditions and employment.

4. Legal representation: If there are disputes or disagreements, graduate assistants are represented by their union during the collective bargaining process.

The Maryland Senate will be hearing Senate Bill 823 on 3/07 at 1:00 p.m. Learn more about SB0823 here.

Congratulations to all grad students who reached the end of the Fall 2023 semester and a special shout out to all of today's graduates! Your hustle and hard work got you here, and we're cheering you on for what's next!

For those of you remaining in the area over the holiday break, Retriever Essentials Retriever Essentials will continue to host free farmers markets every Thursday from 2:15 to 2:45 outside the AOK Library.

Wishing you all a restful and cozy New Year! 

-GAAC

Did you know that all UMBC GAs are eligible for membership at the State Employees Credit Union (SECU)?

Credit unions are nonprofit institutions that are owned by their members, so they tend to offer lower fees and better rates. You can remain a SECU member even after your GAship ends. There is a SECU ATM on-campus at the University Center building.

SECU is offering a promotion through December 31, 2023 in which new and existing members without a checking account will receive $250 for opening a Total Checking and Rewards account.

Learn how to become a member on the SECU website.

No member of GAAC is benefiting from sharing this information.