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I am an international student. So, I can't work outside the UNM.
Therefore, a better stipend certainly will help me to be less stressed about how to live in the US without worrying about "surviving."

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I would be able to take better care of myself BEFORE there's a crisis - timely and maybe even preemptive health/dental/vision care, regular therapy, investment in hobbies and other activities that make me healthy, etc.

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Multiple people in my department have outed me as trans. Title IX has left "sex based rights" up to interpretation by different administrations, and combined with a political climate currently hostile to trans people, I am terrified of seeking recourse and expect to be jerked around by OEO because the importance of respecting trans people's dignity is often trivialized. A non-discrimination policy that explicitly protects gender identity (and like folks have mentioned, things like caregiver and pregnancy protections) would make me feel like I am actually protected like UNM says I am. 

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Multiple people in my department have outed me as trans. Title IX has left "sex based rights" up to interpretation by different administrations, and combined with a political climate currently hostile to trans people, I am terrified of seeking recourse and expect to be jerked around by OEO because the importance of respecting trans people's dignity is often trivialized. A non-discrimination policy that explicitly protects gender identity (and like folks have mentioned, things like caregiver and pregnancy protections) would make me feel like I am actually protected like UNM says I am. 

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UNM is arguing that the law is immutable and that we are already protected by federal and state laws from discrimination - but the overturning of Roe v Wade is proof that this isnt true. We need to be protected in OUR CONTRACT because the law can be overturned.

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We are in the board room - about to start bargaining today! 

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Loved our action in January 2021, which had the COVID-safe option of participating in the action from the safety of your car.

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"Hungry minds, not hungry students" read one sign at Wednesday's protest organized by the University of New Mexico's graduate student union decrying the University's recent attempts to block graduate student workers from unionizing.

The protest started with a rally outside of the University House, with students socially distanced, as well as a parade of cars with signs taped to the side that drove around the area.

Students' chants echoed across the campus, saying things like "Trump and Stokes may not agree, but who are we? Employees" and "We. Are. UE."

The pedestrian rally began with a short speech from Len Beké, a Spanish and Portuguese teaching assistant.

"Yesterday, I was up until 11 (p.m.) recording lectures for my classes. Is that labor?" Beké said. The crowd chanted "Yes!" in response. "The week before, I was creating forums on the Learn page for class. Is that labor?" Beké then asked. The crowd again chanted "Yes!"

Beké's speech was followed by another from geography teaching assistant Ramona Malczynski, who spoke more on the struggles graduate student employees face.

"Graduate students have to commit to poverty wages during their studies and hope that their hard work pays off when they enter the job market," Malczynski said.

The protest came after UNM filed a to block graduate students from being able to unionize, citing a law passed under the Trump administration that employees must be employed for an indefinite period of time to have the ability to organize.

"Given the defined short period of assistantship status, graduate students are not regular employees under the definition of the PEBA (Public Employee Bargaining Act) and, therefore, are not eligible to organize," UNM's petition reads.

also requires that, for a union to exist, the members of the union should be in certain occupational groups or share a "community of interest." UNM argued that research assistants and teaching assistants do not share job responsibilities and thus should not be in the same bargaining unit.

Lindsay Morrone, a linguistics teaching assistant and an organizer of Graduate Workers United, said she believed the amount of work that graduate students do should be enough for them to count as employees.

"We are graduate students, but we are also employees," Morrone said. "We're teaching undergraduate classes, managing labs, studios, conducting research, grading papers, organizing conferences. That stuff is labor."

When asked about what sort of road blocks the union might face if they are recognized, Morrone said, "They are required by law to bargain with us, so we are hoping that they will follow the law and bargain with us."

The more than 1,000 graduate workers who signed on to unionize make up a supermajority of the 1,600 fall 2020 graduate student employees. The Public Employee Labor Relations Board (PERLB) said that the request was "facially valid" and "supported by a sufficient showing of interest."

"We have over 1,000 graduate workers signed. That's a big deal," Samantha Cooney, a graduate assistant in political science, said. "UNM seems to think that they can decide whether or not we unionize, but we have already decided."

As the demonstration came to a close, American studies teaching and graduate assistant Axel Gonzalez made a final speech before the cars drove around one more time.

Morrone hopes that the protest will help them finally achieve their union status and the University listens to what their students have to say before a potential work stoppage.

"If the University doesn't stop stalling and allow us our right to unionize, then we will be forced to strike," Morrone said. "We really hope it doesn't come to that."
John Scott is a freelance reporter at the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @JScott050901

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Grad students protest at president's house for right to unionize

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"Hungry minds, not hungry students" read one sign at Wednesday's protest organized by the University of New Mexico's graduate student union decrying the University's recent attempts to block graduate student workers from unionizing. The protest started with a rally outside of the University House, with students socially distanced, as well as a parade of cars with signs taped to the side that drove around the area.

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The average minimum stipend for graduate workers at .5 FTE is ~$14,000--FAR below the cost of living in Albuquerque, which is $32,600 for a single adult. Some under-funded departments only have .25 FTE assistantships available for most students. I have had to take on second and third jobs outside of my department, which fall well outside my field of study that ostensibly the university wants me to be focused on. I have also had to take on side hustles beyond second and third jobs like selling drugs to get by. Higher stipends would allow us to give more attention to our fields of study--less distractions from the extra things we have to do to pay for basic necessities.

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A non-discrimination article is common in CBAs and Dina is ridiculous for giving the bargaining team a hard time about this.

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I am thankful for the protests and winning the right to bargaining.   Also, mutual aid through the pandemic has been and remains essential--mask and test distribution will be needed, along with peer education and discourse.  I would hope that the union take intersectionality as its core organizing value and centers those most at-risk in its advocacy--including caregivers, parents, elders, the disabled and the bereaved. 

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I am thankful for the protests and winning the right to bargaining.   Also, mutual aid through the pandemic has been and remains essential--mask and test distribution will be needed, along with peer education and discourse.  I would hope that the union take intersectionality as its core organizing value and centers those most at-risk in its advocacy--including caregivers, parents, elders, the disabled and the bereaved. 

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It would allow me to focus on school, invest in my grad program, reduce debt, and take the poverty wages off the table.  Right now I earn minimum wage at best, if not below, considering the lack of benefits increasing costs out of pocket for any other care or needs (sick, bereavement, or family leave).  Further, due to health insurance, I feel that I must accept what is available that allows me to do caretaking, school, and part-time grad work.  

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It would allow me to focus on school, invest in my grad program, reduce debt, and take the poverty wages off the table.  Right now I earn minimum wage at best, if not below, considering the lack of benefits increasing costs out of pocket for any other care or needs (sick, bereavement, or family leave).  Further, due to health insurance, I feel that I must accept what is available that allows me to do caretaking, school, and part-time grad work.  

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Primarily this clause would matter to me if "carers/caregivers" are included as a class.  I care for my mom with Alz and that is the largest accommodation I must struggle to find--I left one position because of this and am in another that is more considerate.  

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Primarily this clause would matter to me if "carers/caregivers" are included as a class.  I care for my mom with Alz and that is the largest accommodation I must struggle to find--I left one position because of this and am in another that is more considerate.  

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With a higher stipend, I could afford to go to the optometrist regularly in order to keep up with my changing prescription. I would be able to afford to change my contacts more regularly, which increases eye health and comfort. I wouldn't think about whether I could afford the medical care I need; with a higher stipend, I would go and get the medical/dental/vision care I need without constantly worrying health professionals are going to perform a procedure or use a tool that I likely need but will have no way of affording after the fact.

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The current options for reporting discrimination are ineffective to the point of being useless. Supervisors know that they can get away with discrimination because it will get tied up in OEO until the employee probably quits or is ‘fired for cause’. A strong anti discrimination clause enforced by union negotiation is important for all of us! We can’t trust UNM to ‘investigate’ itself.

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The Union has been crucial to put out our collective as well as individual objectives, anxieties, and struggles to the university in the most efficient manner. The meetings as well as the protest rallies have been instrumental in achieving these goals.

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Increased wages would make a huge impact on my life. One of my greatest worries in grad school is the financial stress that comes with underpaid programs. As an international student, to see my family, I often come under heavy financial burden in summer, when I have to purchase tickets, pay for the rent, and sustain myself while not getting paid for two months (July & August). Increased wages would help immensely in this regard.

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Better Support and Guidance for International Students & Their Particular Circumstances

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Better Support and Guidance for International Students & Their Particular Circumstances

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As an international student, we are not eligible for the same funding opportunities and are further restricted by special visa rules. This puts us in a subordinate position to our American co-workers. While I understand that not all rules are made by the university in regards to the external funding, the UNM could recognize this disadvantage and discrimination and provide international students with better and substatial - even if not equal - funding opportunities.

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Last year I worked a full 50-hour a week job in addition to my graduate duties. I shouldn’t have to do that to survive.

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Money changes lives. Period. An increase to my stipend could mean new shoes for my kid, the ability to attend conferences even when I lose out on funding from other sources, and would help me attend doctors appointments, instead of putting them off because I can't even afford my $25 copay

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Money changes lives. Period. An increase to my stipend could mean new shoes for my kid, the ability to attend conferences even when I lose out on funding from other sources, and would help me attend doctors appointments, instead of putting them off because I can't even afford my $25 copay

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Though pregnant women and new parents are protected under Title IX, I was discriminated against after giving birth to my son 5 weeks early. Not only was my advisor rude and uncooperative to me during a time when I was literally dying and had to throw out my original birth plan (and measly 2 week unpaid leave that is all that is provided to us in our contracts) but when I returned, clearly suffering from the affects of having a newborn in the hospital and struggling, she made a point of telling me my priorities were wrong because I was choosing to focus on my premature child. She even told me to stop taking my antidepressants because they weren't helping (spoiler alert, it was her judgemental BS that wasn't helping). I started losing out on opportunities I was promised when I was first accepted into the program, such as teaching at the summer program and coordinating events. I was a new to UNM, new to graduate school, and the only person of color in my department, so I didn't know what to do. I was afraid to complain because I didn't even know who to complain to! She was my professor and the graduate program advisor for the department, so I was stuck under her thumb. In the end my mental health hit the floor and I was nearly hospitalized because of the string of insults she would hurl at me. A grievable non-discrimination article would not only help people like me in the future, but having a union backing us up and informing us that we have these things at our disposal will make a huge difference for grad workers who are struggling with dealing with discriminatory advisors. 

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Though pregnant women and new parents are protected under Title IX, I was discriminated against after giving birth to my son 5 weeks early. Not only was my advisor rude and uncooperative to me during a time when I was literally dying and had to throw out my original birth plan (and measly 2 week unpaid leave that is all that is provided to us in our contracts) but when I returned, clearly suffering from the affects of having a newborn in the hospital and struggling, she made a point of telling me my priorities were wrong because I was choosing to focus on my premature child. She even told me to stop taking my antidepressants because they weren't helping (spoiler alert, it was her judgemental BS that wasn't helping). I started losing out on opportunities I was promised when I was first accepted into the program, such as teaching at the summer program and coordinating events. I was a new to UNM, new to graduate school, and the only person of color in my department, so I didn't know what to do. I was afraid to complain because I didn't even know who to complain to! She was my professor and the graduate program advisor for the department, so I was stuck under her thumb. In the end my mental health hit the floor and I was nearly hospitalized because of the string of insults she would hurl at me. A grievable non-discrimination article would not only help people like me in the future, but having a union backing us up and informing us that we have these things at our disposal will make a huge difference for grad workers who are struggling with dealing with discriminatory advisors. 

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I could quit one of my 3 other jobs. Maybe I could finally save some money for the future and stop living paycheck to paycheck.

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I would be able to afford more opportunities for professional development in my field!

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I would be able to afford more opportunities for professional development in my field!

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I really loved the rally we held last September! Looking forward to more actions like this one. 

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I really loved the rally we held last September! Looking forward to more actions like this one. 

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I once taught a class with a white male student who continuously spoke over me, laughed at my lectures, rolled his eyes, and even turned in a transphobic paper. I went to the chair of my department, my supervisor, the Dean of Students, and OEO. I never felt safe teaching this student, knowing he held alt-right, incel ideologies and me being a queer WOC. None of the people I spoke to helped me or took me seriously, and I went to class everyday in fear. A grievable non-discrimination article would make sure that situations like this don't get swept under the rug by administrators and supervisors. 

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I once taught a class with a white male student who continuously spoke over me, laughed at my lectures, rolled his eyes, and even turned in a transphobic paper. I went to the chair of my department, my supervisor, the Dean of Students, and OEO. I never felt safe teaching this student, knowing he held alt-right, incel ideologies and me being a queer WOC. None of the people I spoke to helped me or took me seriously, and I went to class everyday in fear. A grievable non-discrimination article would make sure that situations like this don't get swept under the rug by administrators and supervisors. 

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Less stress to focus on my teaching and own studies

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Less stress to focus on my teaching and own studies