Know your rights: protect yourself !
Many grads maintain their funding and good standing throughout their time at Brown. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. Since we won our union, we’ve had to take action to protect colleagues facing discrimination or mistreatment. Here are some proactive steps you can take to stay informed and protect yourself as we strive for a grad school culture of transparency, consistency, and equity.
The SIX-Year Guarantee Is NOT a Guarantee
In some departments, graduate workers are responsible for securing an advisor with funding. When advisors lose funding or move to another institution, grads have been left with ultimatums to find new funding sources or leave their programs. Brown’s six-year funding guarantee does not mean the University will provide funding in all such cases.
Get It in Writing
Don’t rely on verbal promises. When you speak with your advisor, committee members, or administrators about your exams, funding, grants or appointments, ask for confirmation in writing. After meetings, it’s a good idea to send a follow-up email summarizing what you understood to be the takeaway of the meeting, and asking for confirmation.
Talk to Your Colleagues
Grads at Brown unionized to ensure that no one has to be isolated when they face problems. By sharing our experiences with one another, we can learn when rules are applied inconsistently, and help each other to find solutions that we couldn’t find alone.
Get to know your GLO steward! If you don’t know who your steward is, reach out to organizing@glounion.org or the lead organizer for your discipline: physical.science@glounion.org, humanities@glounion.org, life.science@glounion.org, social.science@glounion.org.
Know Your Contract
GLO’s Collective Bargaining Agreement with the University sets out protections for grads when we are employed as Teaching Assistants, Teaching Fellows, Research Assistants, and Proctors,
including the number of hours we can be expected to work as well as protections from discrimination and harassment. When grads face discrimination or overwork, we can file a grievance, and if necessary address the issue before an independent arbitrator. It’s up to all of us to enforce our contract! You can read our contract at glounion.org/our-contract.
Know your Weingarten Rights
During semesters when you’re appointed as a Teaching Assistant, Teaching Fellow, Research Assistant, or Proctor, you’re protected by our contract. This means that you have the right to be joined by your GLO steward in any meeting that could result in discipline as a worker (this does not apply to academic matters). If you’re asked to meet regarding your work as a TA, TF, RA, or Proctor, you can say “I respectfully request that my union representative or steward be present at the meeting. Without representation, I choose not to answer any questions.”
Use the University’s Resources
In some cases, grads who run into difficulties with funding or advising are able to find a solution through the University’s formal channels. Unfortunately, such processes don’t always lead to a solution. Even so, it can be important to show that you tried to solve your problem through official channels if we have to take action. Talk to your GLO steward if you need help navigating these resources!
Student Accessibility Services: SAS@brown.edu
Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity: Institutional_Diversity@brown.edu
Title IX Office: titleixoffice@brown.edu
Office of Intl. Student and Scholar Services: oisss@brown.edu
REport a workplace issue to glo
If you have, or believe you have, experienced a violation of our contract by Brown University, please fill out this form to report a workplace issue. Our grievance committee can speak with you about filing a grievance, which would be an avenue to resolve the violation with support and representation of GLO.
Join GLO!
Our union is only as strong as its members! The more grads are united and ready to have each others’ backs, the stronger our voice and our ability to protect each other.
You can sign an online membership card here!