FAQs About Graduate Student Unionization

The NLRB's Regional Director decided to use the original voter list, but recognized that the parties remain free to challenge voters.  Thus, Dartmouth will be challenging the eligibility of those students who are not "employees" under the MIT decision based on their functions and relationship to Dartmouth.

All students who received the Notice of Election – which was distributed to everyone on the original voter list – should vote. 

You can still cast a ballot, but your vote may be challenged by the Board or the parties for lack of eligibility. 

No.  Dartmouth agreed with GOLD-UE that the bargaining unit should include "[a]ll graduate students enrolled in Dartmouth College degree programs who are employed to provide teaching and research services."  After carefully reviewing the MIT decision, Dartmouth determined that certain graduate students are not "employed to provide teaching and research services" and therefore submitted a revised voter list.  The students who were not included were those who closely resembled the MIT fellows in function and relationship to Dartmouth, that is, students who do not receive funding tied to federal research grants (e.g. receive funds from Dartmouth or from training grants), and who are in programs where students are required to teach or conduct research regardless of funding and where students receive a grade for teaching or research.  The amended list still included students who are funded in whole or part by federal research grants or provide hourly research and teaching services in exchange for compensation from Dartmouth. In submitting this amended list, Dartmouth did not rely on nomenclature or designations on student paychecks or elsewhere, but instead looked at whether students were required to perform services for Dartmouth in exchange for funding.  
 
For more information about Dartmouth's reasons for submitting the amended voter list, please see Dartmouth's statement to the NLRB at the following LINK

If the NLRB makes a final determination that certain graduate students are ineligible to vote, that means they will not be part of the bargaining unit.

No. They should all vote at next week's election and the NLRB will collect and tabulate their ballots separately to determine whether they would influence the outcome of the election. If so, there will be a hearing to determine whether they are eligible to vote. If they are, then the ballots they have already cast will be included in the election count.

Date: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 

Place: Graduate Lounge, Anonymous Hall, 
64 College Street, Hanover, NH 
Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. & 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. 

AND 

Place: Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Williamson Translational Research Building, 
Level 5, Dartmouth Institute Conference Room, 
1 Medical Center Drive, Lebanon, NH 
Hours: 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. AND 

Date: Wednesday, April 12, 2023 

Place: Graduate Lounge, Anonymous Hall, 
64 College Street, Hanover, NH 
Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. 

AND 

Place: Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Williamson Translational Research Building, 
Level 5, Dartmouth Institute Conference Room, 
1 Medical Center Drive, Lebanon, NH 
Hours: 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The union that has been agreed to is described as: "All graduate students enrolled in Dartmouth College degree programs who are employed to provide teaching and research services."  Dartmouth has submitted a list of individuals who meet that definition under the current applicable standards, and you will receive an email from the College with a Notice of Election. 

Dartmouth conducted an expedited yet careful review of the March 13, 2023 MIT decision by the Regional Director for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), Region 1, which also covers the College.  Based on that review, Dartmouth identified graduate students who are identical in all substantive respects to the MIT Fellows the Regional Director found were not "employees," including students paid entirely by Dartmouth Fellowships or Training Grants. Accordingly, on April 4, 2023, Dartmouth provided a revised voter list to the NLRB and GOLD-UE that does not include these students, but still includes students paid in whole or part by externally funded research grants, along with a statement explaining its reasons for doing so. As the NLRB will not rule on this until after the elections, we strongly encourage all students to vote on April 11th or 12th, regardless of the source of your stipend funding.

A union is an association of employees formed to negotiate with their employer with respect to matters regarding terms and conditions of employment, including pay, hours, and other employment-related conditions. The union is the exclusive negotiating agent, meaning no other individual, body, or organization is permitted to work with the employer on matters relating to employment.

Union representatives negotiate with employers through a mechanism called collective bargaining. The results of this process are contained in a collective bargaining agreement (CBA), and both parties are bound by the terms of this contract during its term or until a new CBA is in place. The union remains the exclusive representative for members of the bargaining unit until and unless (1) the union disavows interest in representing the unit, or (2) bargaining unit members voluntarily sign a petition seeking to decertify the union (after which a vote would be taken).
 

Union dues are a fee charged to bargaining unit members by the union and are calculated by the union to cover the costs of the union representation work, including contract negotiation, administration, and disputes. The dues may be a flat rate or a percentage of wages. They may also be used for the purpose of organizing at other employers and for making political contributions. Unions may seek to require non-union members to contribute an "agency fee" (sometimes called "fair-share" fee), typically a small percentage less than full dues, which is calculated by the union.

Unions support themselves through the assessment of union dues or fees collective from bargaining unit members.  Although the collection of dues are often facilitated by employers through a dues checkoff card, the money paid in dues must come directly from the employee.  Unions can set their own dues through internal mechanisms, but GOLD-UE has stated on its website that "dues are generally less than 2% of the stipend."  Although GOLD-UE commits to pursuing a stipend increase that exceeds its dues amount, it remains to the bargaining process to determine what, if any, stipend increases will occur.
 

Unions normally seek to require that all members of the bargaining unit pay dues or an agency fee. Although we do not know the exact amount, at other schools this is around $500/year, or up to 2% of the stipend.

This will be subject to the collective bargaining process.  However, most unions, including the UE, seek to have the payment of dues or fees be a mandatory requirement for holding a position covered by the bargaining unit.  In most contracts, the union attempts to obtain a penalty (including potentially being fired from the bargaining unit position) for any workers who refuses to pay required dues or fees. 

GOLD is an organization of graduate students at Dartmouth that voted in July 2022 to become affiliated with the United Electrical Radio and Machine Workers of America, and is now known as GOLD-UE.

Yes. All students who are part of the bargaining unit are represented by the union. This includes international students. Membership in the union has no impact on immigration status or visa conditions. Individuals who are not "members" of the union are still exclusively represented by the union and bound by the terms of the CBA. 

A collective bargaining unit (CBU) is a group of employees whose terms of employment share a community of interest, and who are represented exclusively by the union in employer-worker negotiations over the terms and conditions of employment. 

No. Once the positions in the CBU are mutually agreed upon by the union and the employer, those positions will be represented collectively by the union in the event of an election win for the union.

An authorization card is used to gather support for union representation. At least 30% of the workforce are required to sign authorization cards for the NLRB to approve an election.  The NLRB has determined that this threshold has been met and has scheduled the election. 

No. You are able to vote either in support for or against union representation even if you signed an authorization card. Your signature simply indicates your support at that time. You also retain the right to revoke your authorization card.
 

Yes. You are able to vote either in support for or against union representation even if you have not signed an authorization card, as long as you are a member of the proposed collective bargaining unit at the time of the election.

Union authorization cards are written declarations signed by members of the potential collective bargaining unit in support of forming a union. The authorization cards are collected as part of a unionization drive to demonstrate interest in having a union serve as the exclusive bargaining agent for the collective unit. The union must present cards from at least 30% of the proposed bargaining unit to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to request a secret ballot election. Once an authorization card is signed, , the union can use it to show sufficient interest in unionization to seek the NLRB election; however signatories are free to vote however they wish in the election.

Once the union has received signed authorization cards from at least 30% of the proposed bargaining unit they may send a formal request to the NLRB to determine by secret-ballot election whether a majority of individuals in the proposed bargaining unit wish to be exclusively represented by a union for the purposes of collective bargaining. The NLRB region representing New Hampshire is Region 1: Boston.

The employer is required to provide information about those in the proposed bargaining unit to the NLRB in response to any petition for representation that is filed. The union will also have access to this information, which includes job classification, names, addresses, cell phone numbers, and personal email addresses.

Dartmouth's FERPA Policy and an explanation of FERPA may be found at this link.

It is generally up to students to challenge the release of their information in the event of a lawfully issued subpoena, as FERPA allows for the release of information without a student's consent in response to a lawfully issued subpoena.  The National Labor Relations Board issued Dartmouth a subpoena pursuant to its authority under 29 U.S.C. § 161(1) for the purpose of processing GOLD-UE's February 24 petition and conducting an election. Dartmouth is obligated to notify the student of the release of non-directory information pursuant to a lawfully issued subpoena and provide a reasonable amount of time for the student to seek a protective order. Students seeking to prevent the release of the information listed in this communication may retain their own legal counsel and seek relief from a court. Dartmouth's FERPA Policy and an explanation of FERPA may be found at this link.  

This subpoena was issued by the National Labor Relations Board.  The information contained in the subpoena is required as part of the NLRB's established process for reviewing GOLD-UE's February 24 petition and conducting an election, and will be used by the NLRB in that process.  (The rules for this process can be found at 29 C.F.R. Part 102 Subpart D.)  This information is also considered student information contained in "education records" protected by FERPA.  The NLRB has requested this information via a valid subpoena conferring the authority to obtain the information contained in student education records.

When Dartmouth receives a validly issued subpoena or court order seeking personally identifiable information in a student's education records , Dartmouth will attempt to notify the student involved, unless prohibited by the terms of the subpoena or court order. If the student does not then take legal action to invalidate the subpoena or court order, Dartmouth may disclose this information to comply with the subpoena or court order, in accordance with FERPA regulations and Dartmouth's policy, without seeking further consent from the student. Dartmouth's FERPA Policy and an explanation of FERPA may be found at this link.

Once a preliminary investigation has concluded that there is sufficient evidence indicating support for unionization for an appropriate bargaining unit, the NLRB Regional Director would direct a secret-ballot election to be held on a specific date within specific hours at accessible points on campus. The election would permit graduate students to exercise their free choice, respecting their privacy in an environment free of coercion or pressure.

The NLRB representatives would oversee all aspects of the secret-ballot election, the outcome of which would be decided by a simple majority. This means if 100 out of 800 eligible students voted, the result for all 800 would be determined by 51 voters. As in political elections, those who do not vote leave their fate in the hands of those who do.

Eligible voters are people who are part of the defined voting unit at the time of the election. The outcome of any election is determined by a majority of eligible voters who actually vote, not the majority of those eligible to vote. The result of the vote is binding on all individuals in the bargaining unit as well as those who occupy union-represented positions in the future. 

No, but we encourage everyone who is eligible to vote in the election to do so because the outcome affects everyone in the bargaining unit. The outcome will be determined by the majority who cast a vote. If you are in the CBU and do not vote you will be directly affected by the outcome.

No, eligible voters are people who are part of the defined voting unit at the time of election.

If the majority voted against union representation, after certification of the election a new election could not be held for one year. As is true currently, without a union as the elected representative, Dartmouth would be able to continue working with individuals, groups, and other bodies, including the Graduate Student Council, on matters regarding stipends, benefits, and other issues relating to research and training.

If the majority voted for union representation, after certification of the election union representatives would enter into collective bargaining process to determine the collective bargaining agreement, which both parties would be legally bound to honor. The union would be in place for at least one year, in accordance with the NLRB ruling, and can only thereafter be changed or removed through a decertification process involving the NLRB.

If the majority of eligible votes cast (50% plus 1) are in favor of union representation, the union becomes the sole representative of the collective bargaining unit. Representatives from that group will be selected to represent the group in negotiations with the employer on conditions relating to the work environment. These may include allowable work time, benefits, and grievance procedures. These will not include conditions not related to the individuals' terms and conditions of employment. 

Once the voting results are certified, Dartmouth would continue to respond to graduate student concerns through existing mechanisms, including informal conversations with PIs and through the Graduate Student Council. Twelve months would have to pass before another election for union representation could be held, if 30% of the proposed collective bargaining unit sign authorization cards and petitioned for another election.

Yes, but a union decertification election is barred by the NLRB one year after the original vote. Further, if the employer and union reach a collective bargaining agreement, a decertification election cannot be requested in the first three years of the collective bargaining agreement, except for during certain time-periods post agreement. 

If the election outcome is in favor of union representation, then all future students who are part of the CBU will be represented by the union. They will not have an opportunity to participate in a democratic decision about whether the union represents them. Future students would be eligible to seek a union decertification election during the periods described above.

Communication and collaboration between faculty and graduate students will always be encouraged, but there will be limitations if a union is successfully formed.  Under federal labor law, graduate student teachers/researchers are deemed "employees," and their advisors are deemed "supervisors." Normal discourse that takes place between faculty and students with respect to assistantships could be altered, as the union would be the exclusive bargaining agent for students in the bargaining unit on all issues related to the terms and conditions of employment.

Whether stipends and benefits increase or not is wholly dependent on the outcome of the negotiations. Negotiations will determine the Collective Bargaining Agreement which will be ratified by each side. See more about the CBA below. 

The CBA is a labor contract between the union and the employer that memorialize the parties' agreements concerning wages, hours and working conditions of members of the CBU.  Mandatory subjects of bargaining as determined by the law and the NLRB include: wages, overtime, grievance procedures, termination of employment, discharge and discipline. Permissible clauses may be negotiated by each party. The final Agreement lays out specific expectations between employer and employee and typically run for a period of three or four years.

Not unless defined by the collective bargaining agreement or agreed to between the union and Dartmouth.

The student representatives chosen by the union will negotiate on behalf of the students in the collective bargaining unit. Some unions will decide the representatives by a vote, others use a different process. Dartmouth will also be represented at the negotiation table.  
 

Both sides come to the negotiating table to listen to each other and understand each other's priorities and demands. There is no expectation that negotiations begin from any pre-established point or convention –either side is free to set its goals are priorities and present them for negotiation. For example, either party could propose a new grievance policy during negotiations, or the parties could agree to revise certain policies that are already in place.  
The terms of the agreement are negotiated in this way until both sides agree on a tentative agreement which is then taken to the bargaining unit for a ratification vote. If the agreement is not ratified, it is not implemented and the parties would need to return to the bargaining table.

It is difficult to say – the parties must continue to meet and bargain in good faith until an agreement is reached or they are impasse.  According to Bloomberg Law Labor Data, between 2005 and 2022 the average amount of time between an NLRB election date and first collective bargaining agreement is 460 days.

Before a CBA is in place, Dartmouth must maintain the status quo concerning all work-related benefits, including time off and vacation.  These cannot be unilaterally modified by discussions between an individual bargaining unit member and their PI.

The GSC will continue to exist, but it can have no role as the representative of bargaining unit members related to the terms and conditions of their employment at Dartmouth.

Dartmouth feels that unionization is counterproductive to addressing the needs of our graduate students. Over the years, Dartmouth and the Graduate Student Council have had a productive and successful partnership in advocating for graduate student needs, and this collaboration has produced a number of positive results including stipend increases, policy revisions, decreases to health benefits costs, expansion of graduate housing, and improvements in mental health support. We feel that collective bargaining may actually slow down our ability to respond quickly and decisively to situations that arise; the process may also introduce additional costs, time, and bureaucracy to making decisions that directly affect graduate students.

GOLD-UE has a website presenting their perspective at:

https://sites.google.com/view/goldartmouth
 

Yes, Dartmouth is committed to free speech and faculty and staff are free to discuss their opinions about unions, or experiences with unions, with students. 

What is not appropriate is TIPS: Threats to students about action that might be taken because of their unionization; Interrogation of students about their thoughts or intentions with respect to unionization or voting; Promises of things that will be granted if students do not unionize; and surveillance of students in order to determine who might be working with or for the unionization process.
 

Yes, it is possible that the collective bargaining process could result in a limit on the number of hours a graduate student could spend in a lab or in the field related to their compensated employment.

All PhD and a number of master's students at Dartmouth receive a stipend to help offset the cost of living. For the 2023 academic year, this is $35,196, and the Guarini School has requested support to increase this 13.6% to $40,000 for 2024. For the ~800 stipend-receiving students, Dartmouth also pays for the student health plan ($4,163/year); the health access fee ($412/year); and for international students, the international student fee ($428/year).

Stipend-receiving graduate students also receive full tuition scholarships, which for a year (four terms) total $80,916.

PhD students normally receive this support for five years, so altogether Dartmouth invests about $600,000 in training each graduating doctoral student.

Stipends at Dartmouth are funded from various sources. In AY22, graduate students received about 700 12-month stipend equivalents, totaling more than $22 million.

About $10.9 million of this funding came from either Guarini School's ~200 Dartmouth Fellowships (DFs) or other internal funds such as faculty startup accounts or departmental and faculty reserve accounts.

Over half of stipend funding came from external grants, including individual or program training grants ($1.3 million) and research grants to faculty ($9.9 million).

Dartmouth pays the international student fee ($428/year) for stipend-receiving students.

Dartmouth's Office of Visa and Immigration Services (OVIS) hosts at least three bus trips each fall term, and one bus trip in the winter term, to the Social Security Administration office in Concord, and provides additional resources regarding the Social Security Number application process:

https://ovis-intl.dartmouth.edu/taxes-legal/social-security-number

OVIS provides access to Sprintax tax preparation software and hosts a tax workshop with a tax attorney each winter term. OVIS staff are not authorized to give specific advice or assist with tax filing preparation. OVIS provides resources about U.S. taxes on their website:

https://ovis-intl.dartmouth.edu/taxes-legal/taxes

OVIS provides resources for obtaining a NH or VT state driver's license:

https://ovis-intl.dartmouth.edu/taxes-legal/drivers-licenses

OVIS provides immigration documents for dependent family members of students (spouses and children under 21). OVIS is not authorized to provide immigration assistance to individuals outside of our sponsorship. See:

https://ovis-intl.dartmouth.edu/immigration/f-1-students/dependents

OVIS provides one-to-one immigration advising to all international students, as well as regular workshops and Q&As on topics such as curricular practical training (CPT), optional practical training (OPT), and visa options after graduation. OVIS is not authorized to give legal advice but can provide immigration attorney referrals upon request for such matters as U.S. permanent residence, criminal issues, asylum, DACA, and immigration assistance for family members (parents, siblings, etc.).

The Council on Graduate Studies (CGS) meets quarterly and comprises faculty representatives from each of the graduate programs overseen by the Guarini School, the president and vice president of the GSC, and Guarini School dean and assistant deans.

The Guarini School dean and assistant deans meet monthly with GSC leadership.

The assistant dean for Graduate Student Affairs meets regularly with the GSC, and liaises with the GSC Executive Board and the Guarini School deans.

Two representatives from the GSC leadership board sit on the Student Liaison Committee, a group of student leaders that meets regularly with Dartmouth senior leadership (including the provost and executive vice president) and the Board of Trustees Committee on the Student Experience.

Dartmouth provides graduate students with stipends to help offset the cost of living expenses while students are enrolled as students in their programs of study and training. In contrast, other students at Dartmouth, including MD, MBA, MEM, MPH, many MS, and of course, undergraduate students, do not receive stipends and are also charged tuition. With health insurance, fees, and tuition factored in, stipend-receiving graduate students receive about $120,000/year in support, and, of course, also receive a PhD or MS degree upon the successful completion of their studies.

While Dartmouth does not consider stipends to be only a wage, the MIT Living Wage Calculator indicates that for Grafton County the "living wage" is $33,424/year. Graduate students currently receive a stipend of $35,196/year and also have health insurance paid for by Dartmouth. The stipend is currently planned to increase to $40,000/year in July 2023.
 

While the union would likely negotiate for a formal grievance process, it may not ultimately be more effective than the current process available to students, which has been revised, clarified, and expanded in recent years. The current process in place starts with informal resolution, but if this is inappropriate for the situation or fails to resolve it, students have access to their research advisory committees, the Guarini deans, the Title IX Office, the office of Institutional Diversity and Equity, the Dartmouth ombuds office, and the offices of the faculty deans, to assist them though the process and resolve any situations that arises.

The union would be the sole authority and exclusive agent empowered to negotiate with Dartmouth for issues related to compensation, hours worked, and other conditions of employment. In the past, the GSC has worked effectively with Dartmouth on reviewing and addressing some of these issues, but it would no longer be able to do so.