Dear Colleagues,
Our fifth bargaining session with the administration concluded late last night with some progress made, as well as a clear sense of the work that still needs to be done to create an Augsburg contract with Augsburg values.
We’ve been showing up, and the administration has noticed. They know our strength and they know that the majority of us support this union effort. That work we’ve done to make our voices heard had an impact last night. The administration agreed to our full preamble. This preamble is an important step in enshrining our values as Augsburg staff into a contract. It will serve as an ongoing statement that our contract is in service of mutual benefits for staff and the Augsburg community.
It is time for the administration and their lawyer to begin putting in the same amount of time, effort, and seriousness in the bargaining process that we are as staff members. It is disappointing when the administration shows up to bargaining sessions unprepared, appearing to reflect a disinterested work ethic that would not be tolerated in our own job performances. We see this in the attorney’s often repeated phrase: “We have nothing to present.” We have offered to meet the administration two days each week going forward so we can reach a conclusion and agreement on a first contract in a timely manner. We hope the administration will agree to these dates so we can move the process forward together with more dialogue.
The administration continues to decline providing substantive responses to our proposals creating wage equity, benefit improvements, and affordable healthcare, but we are laying the groundwork to achieve these important changes as the negotiations continue. We will only achieve these if we stay united.
Let us continue making our voices heard as a group. When we speak up and stick together, we win.