By
Associated Press
NEW YORK - For the first time, a private university has agreed to recognize and begin bargaining with the union that represents its graduate student workers.
New York University's graduate students voted to organize with the United Auto Workers last April, but the university had argued that some ballots were wrongly excluded, possibly affecting the outcome. The school also had appealed an earlier decision on unionization.
University Vice President Robert Berne said the matter was finally settled Thursday because "there was wide agreement about the need to protect our important academic values."
In a letter to the school, the union agreed to withdraw its unfair labor practice complaints filed with the National Labor Relations Board. It also agreed that graduate students workers who don't receive stipends would not be involved in bargaining. The union also said it would consider excluding research assistants funded by private grants.
As part of the agreement, the union said it would not pursue such issues as curriculum, course work, degree requirements, tuition and fees and student benefits that are not terms and conditions of employment.
In November, the labor board granted graduate students at NYU and other private institutions the right to form unions, overturning a 2-decade-old precedent. Graduate student workers at public universities are governed by state labor laws and many are already unionized.
Others trying to unionize include Yale University's approximately 2,200 graduate students.
