GOLD-UE Bargaining Update

Dear Guarini community, 

I am writing to update you on the current status of negotiations with GOLD-UE. Our goal is to reach a fair and equitable contract as soon as possible.

As you may know, we have two more bargaining sessions scheduled. I believe we have made good progress since bargaining began in August 2023. We have taken students' concerns seriously and have offered generous proposals in the hope that we can wrap up negotiations by GOLD-UE's end-of-spring-term deadline. The seriousness with which we have approached this process reflects how important students are to our academic and research mission.

Currently, we have 17 tentative agreements and have responded to all of GOLD-UE's demands. At our last session, we proposed comprehensive funding support that increases stipends by 17.5% in the first year (to $47,000) with an annual cost of living adjustment tied to the national CPI, and no lower than 3%.  

Current Economic Offers Proposed by Dartmouth.

• Increase in the current child care stipend from $3,000 to $4,000 for up to three children in accordance with the Guarini Child Care Subsidy Policy.
• Establishing a Graduate Student Employee Support Fund of $100,000 in the first year of the contract, and increasing it by $10,000 a year to assist students with medical expenses.
• Establishing a Graduate Student Employee Dependent Support Fund of $50,000 in the first year, and increasing it by $5,000 a year to assist students with the medical expenses of covered dependents.
• An additional one-time payment of $1,200 for international students on F student visas to assist with paying for various fees and costs associated with their international status.
• A one-time payment of $1,200 for incoming international students on F student visas during their first term of enrollment.
• Graduate student participation in the Supplemental Retirement Account on a voluntary basis, and they can make pre-tax or post-tax (Roth) contributions to the SRA.
• Establishing a Graduate Student Employee Relief Fund of $150,000 in the first year of the agreement, increasing by $10,000 per contract year for all bargaining unit members to help defray costs GOLD-UE members find prohibitive, such as: 
  • Costs related to caring for children or other dependents;
  • Transportation, or transportation-related expenses;
  • Heating and essential utilities;
•  Continue to guarantee five years of funding for PhD students

We will continue to offer full tuition remission for PhD students (currently $84,912), and fully cover the medical insurance premium (currently $4,123). We expect the new contract to increase the total compensation to more than $136,000, including the proposed stipend increase. We have moved the negotiating process forward on many other articles as well. 

Despite all this recent progress, we are concerned the process will stall. GOLD-UE's response to many of our economic proposals remains pending – with some of their counter proposals exceeding their initial requests, hindering progress. We would like to continue building on the recent momentum with both parties working in good faith to secure a contract as soon as possible. To that end, we added an additional bargaining session for April 18, in addition to the session scheduled for April 22. We look forward to GOLD-UE joining us at the bargaining table, working with us in good faith to support the graduate-student experience at Dartmouth.

We firmly believe that Dartmouth's offers are generous and align us with peer and Ivy+ institutions. As we continue to work diligently and respectfully to conclude these negotiations, we will update you on our progress. For more information about the bargaining process, including FAQs about unionization and strikes, please see the provost's website. 

Thank you for your important work to advance our academic mission.

Sincerely, 
David Kotz
Provost