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Syracuse University’s Student Association passed its “Supporting Student Unions” bill, which will establish SA as a “support mechanism” for unionizing student groups across campus, during its Monday meeting.

The bill, which SA President William Treloar first presented during its April 15 meeting, aims to put into writing SA’s stance on student workers’ unions on campus — outlining the association’s commitment to offering resources and support to groups looking to unionize or undergoing the unionization process.

“Whether you’re a student worker or not, whether this union might affect you or not, it is important that we as an organization commit to our ideals,” Treloar said.

SA’s approval of a statement backing on-campus workers unions comes amid an increase in unionization efforts at SU and other higher-education institutions across the country.

During a Feb. 7 Graduate Student Organization meeting, SU hourly food service workers presented their plans to form a union and received an official endorsement from GSO. A month later, the group told The Daily Orange that more than 30% of student food services and library workers had signed union cards.

These workers will vote for SU’s recognition of their union this Tuesday and Wednesday.

Other on-campus employees — including SU’s administrative, professional and technical staff — also announced their plans to unionize this year. This group aims to hold their elections to unionize by the end of May.

At SU, many student groups announced their plans to unionize following the ratification of Syracuse Graduate Employees United’s first agreement with the university, which came after seven months of negotiations and more than two years of organization efforts.

SA Speaker Kennedy Williams said the passing of the bill will help the association “(open) doors” for student unions. While she believes SA’s statement will not lead to any “direct mobilization” efforts on campus, Williams said she hopes the legislation will demonstrate to workers that they have “the faculty and support from Student Association.”

Though the passing of the bill is not directly correlated with SA’s initiatives to increase engagement with the association, Williams said she hopes it will also help make the general student body aware of the capabilities and resources SA offers.

“The graduate students just had their union … and they came in and spoke with us, and we spoke to them about things we can help them with,” Williams said.

While the bill was passed amid ongoing unionization efforts, Treloar said SA’s stance is not associated with any specific union. Rather, he said he wants the passing of the bill to exemplify the association’s “consistent support” for on-campus unions.

“We hope that our office can be a place where people who are pursuing a union can find a place of support from fellow students, whether they’re within the union or not,” Treloar said.

Other business:

• SA Vice President Yasmin Nayrouz said that SA will appoint the next speaker pro-tempore for its 68th session during its final assembly meeting on April 29
• SA’s Sustainability Forum will host tree planting on Saturday, April 27, in collaboration with the SUNY ESF Earth Week Committee, Nayrouz said. The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 640 Skytop Road on South Campus.

Published on April 23, 2024 at 12:16 am

Contact Claire: cksamsta@syr.edu