About Us
We are SLU graduate workers forming a union to improve the graduate worker experience at SLU and to increase our voice as graduate workers locally and nationally.
Graduate workers make essential contributions to the world-class research conducted at SLU, but many of us still struggle to pay high housing and other costs in Saint Louis, lack secure rights in the workplace, and face increasing uncertainty about our futures given the precarious nature of science funding and unstable regulation of visas and work authorization in recent years.
We join a growing national movement of academic workers forming unions with the UAW to improve our lives and our work. UAW graduate student and other academic workers across the country have made a difference advocating for science research funding, fair visa and immigration policies, and better working conditions in all academic institutions.
Lou Vinarcsik
Healthcare Ethics
A graduate worker union at SLU (SLUnion 🙂 is the structure that we need to really leverage our collective power. SLU can’t thrive without us, and we can’t thrive without a living wage, health insurance, protected time off, and family leave… so let’s get them to the bargaining table!
Alyssa Coleman
Public Health
I started my PhD program during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. I had a surgery in the first semester and received a chronic disease diagnosis right after. I want a union so that SLU graduate workers can have a wage and health insurance that supports them during acute and chronic health crises. I also want to lessen the burden of finances for graduate workers to that they can focus on their research and advancing their fields.
Ángel Flores Fontánez
History
Nothing short of a living wage is acceptable for SLU workers. Anything else is economic exploitation. We are underpaid and struggle to meet our most basic needs. SLU treats that as if it’s normal and acceptable. It’s time to organize. It’s time to get the respect we deserve.
Katey Hunt
Molecular Microbiology and Immunology
I want a union for SLU graduate workers because we need a voice in health insurance decisions that affect us!
Eric Richmond
Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
Due to burnout and a major loss in the family, my motivation and overall mental health took a nosedive in the Fall of 2023. I was extremely stressed and was very worried about losing my funding, something which I absolutely needed to continue with my education. I want there to be some form of funding security for students who have gone through situations like I have. It is extremely stressful to deal with a loss and have to worry about your funding being taken, I don’t want other students to have to deal with that – as one’s mental health should be the focus during a period of bereavement, not pumping out research results.
Natalie Hernandez
Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
I support organizing a union because all graduate workers deserve healthcare, fair pay, and fair working conditions. By collectively ensuring these basic needs are met, we can make graduate education accessible rather than precarious or impossible due to poor working conditions.
Celia McGhiey
Chemistry
I truly love my program and have enjoyed my time in the graduate school at SLU, but this excitement is quickly curbed by how difficult it is for us to live. Not only do we make far below a living wage, but I cannot trust the university to look out for our best interest after not raising our wages for over a decade. This lack of respect and care for graduate students must come to an end, and with a union we will have the ability to represent ourselves at the negotiation table, with the support of a reputable organization backing up our best interests. The university will never put our needs first. They will always find another place to allocate funds, so it is up to us to fight for what we deserve.
Mich Gomez
Biology
I want a union for SLU graduate workers because I want to afford my rent, bills, and other expenses. I strongly believe that every graduate student should be able to afford housing and groceries. I want better healthcare so I can afford my medications.
Mike Lhotak
Law School
SLU graduate workers are essential for our departments to function and succeed. Currently, the wages/stipends that we are paid are insulting! While our supervisors publish articles and our departments earn rewards from using our research, we do not make enough to provide for basic needs like food and transportation. This is immoral and not what our Jesuit Mission inspires to.
Jack Friedrich
Psychology
SLU graduate students deserve a say in how/what decisions are made about them at the university. In addition, there are sizable disparities in the assistantship funding that many graduate students receive, however no matter the size the amount they receive is frequently far from enough to live on. I believe a union is a step in the right direction towards addressing funding issues and ensuring we have a seat at the table in decisions made about us going forward.
Anjali Patel
Law School
Most importantly, I want SLU graduate workers to receive a livable wage and proper health care. It is unacceptable to expect that they have to take on the stress of being grad students AND worry about their financial/mental/physical health.
Alexander Zhang
Philosophy
As a central part of the teaching community at SLU I believe we deserve equitable treatment in recognition of SLU’s value of Cura Personalis.
Madeline Gehrig
Law School
When we come together in solidarity, our power is strengthened and allows us to fight for the rights that we all deserve, such as a livable, sustainable wage and quality healthcare. A union would protect our graduate student workers and give them just compensation for the contribution they make to both our community and in promoting SLU’s mission of collective well-being and growth.
Carrie Burnett
Psychology
I think there needs to be a better system of accountability protecting the rights of graduate students. I want to fight for healthcare rights for graduate students and transparency at the university level on decisions regarding funding for health care. I believe graduate students need better access to accommodations and resources to succeed in graduate school. I believe that in order to support for students from diverse backgrounds we need systems that ensure fair living wages and access to resource accommodations where needed. I want systems of accountability for when these things are ignored and a system in place for students to report and address these issues where needed.
Spencer Schmid
Healthcare Ethics
I want a union for SLU graduate workers so we can legitimately be stakeholders in the success of our university. SLU doesn’t work without us, and it’s time that our collective voice has equal representation regarding decisions that affect us!
Katie Quinn
Law School
People deserve a living wage and proper health insurance. The union for SLU graduate workers is a step toward equalizing the power imbalance against an educational institution.
Reagan McGuffee
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
My peers who were also accepted into the MD/PhD program should not receive lesser stipends while having the same responsibilities as others. As graduate students, we should have universal, minimum, and concrete leave structure.
Peijun Hou
Computer Science
We need a better work environment so we can study better. Especially as an international student, we cannot work off campus, live cost is really not affordable with out paycheck.
Sebastian Arteaga
Chemistry
Competitive stipends and equitable health insurance for all graduate students are two reasons I support the creation of a graduate student union at SLU. I believe a union will put in place structures that ensure stipends are consistently competitive with like institutions and ensure that all graduate students have access to 12-month health insurance with other necessary healthcare coverage (like vision and dental) at low out-of-pocket costs for graduate students.
Emily Quartarone
American Studies
The decision to change the SLU student health insurance has had a major negative impact on SLU graduate assistants. We were given no say in the matter, nor a heads up that there would be a change in prices for health services. There are graduate assistants who have already spent more than the $3500 raise we got this year just in health service fees that would not have been nearly as high on the old plan. We need a seat at the table so we can have actual negotiating power for our wages and benefits. A union is the only way to reach this goal.
Gracie Ricci
Law School
While the list goes on and on of current discrepancies and shameful working conditions between SLU and its graduate workers, significant change cannot occur without Unionization. Unionization ensures access to a democratic process where graduate workers voices are heard and interests are protected. Be on the right side of history and show your support for SLUnion!
Ahlam Jaber
English
CAS Graduate students struggle to make ends meet while the university abuses our time. I want a living wage, I want dental insurance, I want to be able to be able to be a student and not have my time and efforts abused by the university’s expectations for cheap labor while they pour millions into STEM and the gentrification of the Saint Louis area around the campuses.
Stella Hoft
Molecular Microbiology and Immunology
I want a student union to provide more clarity for leave and vacation. I would also like students to have support and representation for cases when individual mentors or even departments fall short. I would also like for healthcare coverage and pay to be equal across all graduate departments.
Mindi Allison
Public Health
SLU can do a better job of defining a GA role before offering it to students. There should be a job description and set expectations created before approaching students about these roles.
Monica Goodland
Pharmacology and Physiology
Having a union for graduate workers would give US the power and authority to collectively speak for ourselves when determining pay, benefits, and working conditions. There are massive pay/benefit gaps between graduate workers across campuses, forcing many in our community to rely on public/charitable assistance. It is unjust for people working and pursuing an education simultaneously to not have the appropriate compensation to pay for food and housing. Unionizing would not only allow us to demand better for ourselves and our siblings but would also protect us from potential retaliation, which has prevented too many people from speaking out.
Jaclyn Whalen
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Graduate workers are a critical part of SLU; we contribute to the teaching of undergraduate students and bring prestige to the university through our research. SLU expects the best from us, but it’s hard for us to provide it when we’re constantly worrying about how to pay for basics like rent, medical bills, and food. I want a union for SLU graduate workers because I believe that all workers deserve to be fairly compensated for their work. SLU needs to increase the base pay of all graduate workers to meet the cost of living.
Dakotah Kinsella
Healthcare Ethics
I want this union to promote fair and equitable work environments for all graduate students at the university. Specifically in terms of stipend, work hours, health insurance, parental leave, child care support, etc.
Eileen Schaub
Biology
Finding out that there had been 12 years between stipend increases and that more than one of my fellow grad students were routinely selling blood plasma to make ends meet was horrifying. Grad school doesn’t have to be like this. I know because I have been in grad school before and received a living wage and full health insurance, including dental, and that was because a union made it happen.
Jacob Zimbelman
Philosophy
I want stipends and healthcare that reflect the value we bring to the university. And it isn’t right to pay thousands of dollars in “student fees” to the school that’s supposed to be supporting us. Our academic community can’t flourish unless grad students are healthier and happier.
Arlinda Shehu
Psychology
Graduate students are integral to the university and recognizing issues regarding wages that meet the cost of living, funding, healthcare, etc is important to address. This will impact our success and what we can contribute to the university, which will be beneficial to other students and the university!
Maya Dunlap
Engineering
Graduate students deserve to be able to pursue their academic passions without having to forgo a livable wage.
Grace Wang
Education
I want a union for SLU graduate workers so that graduate workers can have livable, equitable pay and other reasonable benefits for the work and labor they provide to SLU. The graduate workers of SLU are important to SLU’s operations, so they should be compensated justly.
Roberty Bagley
History
SLU is no longer competitive in graduate student market with salaries, benefits, and cost of attendance.
Emily Cybulla
MD PhD
I want a union for SLU graduate workers to ensure that all trainees are supported with a living wage, healthcare insurance coverage that includes dental and vision benefits, protected time off, and standardized parental and family leave policies. I want all trainees to be able to focus on their course work, research, and educational goals without sacrificing their physical, emotional, and financial wellness.
Bree Smith
Law School
As a former Union member, I understand how important collective bargaining is. I know it is the best way for us to address the problems SLU graduate workers face. We are stronger together!
Lily McMorrow
Health and Clinical Outcomes Research
Graduate student workers are a vital part of education and research at SLU. We deserve compensation that meets cost of living standards, comprehensive year-round health insurance, and fair labor treatment. We deserve to be part of the decision-making process when SLU has converations about graduate student-worker conditions.
Dimitra Tziarli
Social Work
SLU graduate workers have been doing an amazing job of creating a culture of hard work and discipline, which is why it’s worth investing in them.
Rebecca Stokem
American Studies
Given the essential labor that we perform for SLU, grad workers deserve equitable compensation that doesn’t result in us choosing between basic needs like food, housing, and healthcare.
Wes Schoenthal
Center for Advanced Dental Education
As a graduate student, it’s easy to become so focused on your own sector, that you forget we’re part of a larger community. My hope for this union is to help connect each and every graduate department— no matter how small— and unite us on issues that we all may face. None of us should feel alone, and all our voices should be heard.
Alexandra Hucker
Healthcare Ethics
As “men and women for others,” SLU’s graduate workers contribute valuable labor to help our undergraduate students, faculty, and greater community flourish. In return, we receive wages which can’t support saving for the future or independent living–much less a family. Working for SLU shouldn’t require workers to put their lives on hold.
Darby Ratliff
American Studies
My dentist went to SLU for school, and we’ve talked about how much he enjoyed his time there (at least as much as one can while at the dentist). Yet, I have to pay extra for dental care. If we’re committed to care for the whole person, then that’s just one of many things that should be included in a holistic healthcare package. I think a union for SLU graduate workers is a great way to advocate for this and other very real problems that we face.
Carly Finegan-Dronchi
Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
The financial burdens associated with the low stipend amounts we receive get in the way of being a good student and producing high quality research. I want for myself and my peers to be able to focus on our studies and research without the added stress of wondering how we will pay our bills.
Salvatore DiBono
English
In order to be successful graduate workers and contributors to our respective fields, we need to be financially secure, better medical coverage, and have our labor rights clearly defined and protected.
Clara Wilson
Law School
Without graduate workers, SLU wouldn’t be able to function at full capacity to serve its students. The skilled labor of graduate students needs to be recognized and rewarded by the university, and I believe in the power of workers to ask for what they want and need from their employers. Things like health insurance and parental leave are essential needs for all workers.
Adriana (Ari) Hutchinson
English
Graduate students need the ability to negotiate their contracts with SLU admin. Livable stipends and dental insurance are my top two priorities.
Zackary Davis
American Studies
I am deeply troubled by lack of compensation afforded to graduate students despite the critical role we play in the operations of the university. Without us SLU would grind to a halt, and yet we are treated with disregard and disrespect by a paternalistic administration that spends more time patting themselves on the back than addressing the concerns of their laborers.
Caitlin Helmus
Law School
Graduate school is expensive enough, work that we do for the school should be more than adequately funded.
Sai Kiran Ramanujam
Public Health
As a graduate worker at SLU, I believe forming a union is essential to address concrete issues such as fair wages, access to adequate healthcare and other benefits. These are not just individual concerns but collective challenges that affect all of us in our academic and professional journeys. By uniting, we can ensure our voices are heard and our work is valued, leading to a more equitable and supportive environment for all graduate workers.
Jack Sharp
Law School
Graduate school is a critical part of how our society creates highly skilled workers needed for critical fields like healthcare and engineering. The existing financial barriers reduce the number of skilled workers we produce and their overall quality. Student employment is one way to circumvent these barriers and their work is critical to the universities function as an institution, and so they should be represented and compensated accordingly.
Elisabeth DeMarco
Health and Clinical Outcomes Research
I believe graduate workers deserve a living wage that adjusts for cost of living, regardless of their field of study or the college/school in which they work.
Ryan Powers
Philosophy
Graduate workers shouldn’t need to take out credit card debt or sell their plasma just to make ends meet.
Siobhan Perry
Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
The current stipend and benefits package offered to graduate workers at Saint Louis University does not currently support a stable way of life in an uneasy and overinflated economy. Unionization is the best way we can fight for higher wages and better health care while ensuring work conditions improve for each successive wave of employees. We are stronger together. Let’s organize!
Gabriel De Castilhos
Communication
To get better conditions for all workers, particularly those that are international students and have to scrape to make ends meet with a salary that was barely increase in a decade.
Paige Dobbyn
Political Science
As a graduate assistant for the last 2 years, I have had my fair share of struggles, especially financially. Although my overall experience in the political science department has been great and every single advisor and faculty member has been very supportive, I have noticed that there are limits to how much they are able to do in regard to making sure graduate assistants are receiving the support they need monetarily. I believe a union for SLU graduate workers would help alleviate both the financial strain that many graduate workers face as well as the burden that falls on departments to advocate for their own workers.
Scott Sinamon
Law School
I grew up in a blue-collar union family here in Saint Louis, and grew up recognizing the benefits that a union provided my family! Now, I recognize that SLU students deserve so many of those benefits, including a higher wage.
Mitchell Stevens
Theology
After SLU unilaterally changed our insurance policy resulting in major costs and headaches, I knew that union power is the way to achieve a seat at the table and win concrete policy changes.
J. Seevers
Medical Family Therapy
I am criminally underpaid as a minority student in the DEI department.
Yue Zhang
Computer Science
A union will help us to negotiate for fair payback that reflect our valuable contributions to the colleges academic community and ensure that we can pursue our studies and research without the constant stress of financial.
Ryszard Koziel
Psychology
It’s important for us to stand in solidarity to ensure that students across departments have the stability and financial security to pursue their educations and to provide important services to students and the university.
Nathanael Bolin
Mathematics and Statistics
Being a graduate student is a full time job and the contracts were given should reflect that. we should receive 12 month contracts as graduate assistants. Especially for international students who can only work for the university.
Tom Webb
Law School
Today, graduate workers at Saint Louis University play a crucial role in providing the services that contribute to the school’s top-notch education for our peers, students, and faculty advisors. Despite the hard work of the graduate worker population, this excellent education has been achieved amid significant challenges. Factors such as rising tuition fees, stagnant graduate worker wages since 2012, and increasing healthcare, childcare, and housing costs have left graduate workers in an untenable position. I am proud to be a member of SLUnion, and I hope that SLU upholds the tenets of its own mission: “Fosters programs that link University resources to local, national and international communities in collaborative efforts to alleviate ignorance, poverty, injustice and hunger; extend compassionate care to the ill and needy; and maintain and improve the quality of life for all persons.”
Gabriela Soltys
Biology
I want a union for SLU graduate workers because I want the students who work so hard each and every day get what they deserve for what they put in. It is not just about raising the stipend, but also looking into better health insurance policies for students along with better working conditions. As prices for not only gas, but groceries, phone bills, and housing utilities rise, the stipend that the university gives its student is not feasible for a stable/comfortable living condition. Graduate students should also have the right to choose to work a second job if needed and have the opportunity to undergo summer/winter internships to get better experience and not be shut down by the university. I want to make a change where an incoming masters or PhD student can be happy and not complain about the progam.