Our new offer

Eight days ago, the College falsely claimed that the Union and College are deadlocked, and subsequently cancelled bargaining. We responded to the College in a letter and indicated we were prepared to continue to advance toward agreement and offered to bargain this week, and the College did not respond to our letter. Today at 11:30 AM, we sent the College a proposal for a 1-year contract (linked here). We are glad to report that the College has now agreed to bargain tomorrow, April 17.

If the College is willing to reach an agreement on this one-year contract, we are prepared to go back to our classrooms today. The College has already agreed to maintain our current workload for the next academic year—the duration of our proposal. With a one-year contract, the Union and the College are already in agreement on Workload, and we believe we can quickly reach agreement on the outstanding issues if the College chooses to engage. 

A one-year contract benefits the entire College community. The College’s proposal for BUEs to teach 5 classes per year requires significant changes to how we deliver our curriculum to students. We advise 760 students, supervise 140 independent studies and senior theses, and 14 BUEs serve as program directors. Who will cover this labor if we teach another class? What will happen to students who rely on us? The College has offered no transitional plan to address this massive shift in how our labor is allocated. In order for us to seriously consider the College’s proposals on Workload, we need to see a plan for how this substantial change would affect our faculty, our students, our departments, and the fabric of our community.

The College’s plan for Workload is a drastic change to the current system at Wellesley, which has operated with a four-course teaching load for decades. In any given semester, less than 30% of our unit teaches five courses. From our perspective, the College’s proposal necessitates changes in the way departments and administrators assign advisees, approve independent studies, allocate teaching credits for time-intensive labs and classes, and grant course releases. A one-year contract gives the College time to develop a workable proposal that we can consider, while ensuring students receive the education they deserve.

We need you now to urge the College to do the right thing: agree to our proposal for a one-year contract. Every day that passes, students lose the education they were promised. Here’s what you can do to help:

Everyone: 

Continue calling and emailing the President, Provost, and Board of Trustees to demand the College agree to a one-year contract and end the strike. 

Join us on the picket line every weekday!

Alums: 

Don’t cross our picket line! Let the College know that you will not attend events or reunion unless we reach an agreement. Sign this letter from alums in support of our campaign. 

If you want help organizing or connecting with other alums, email woaw.uaw@gmail.com and we will connect you

Parents:

Continue calling and emailing the President, Provost, and Board of Trustees every day to demand a refund for your child’s lost education and to demand they reach an agreement that maintains the quality of the education Wellesley has promised.