Academic specialists are not often included in the university’s decision-making process — we deserve a voice at the table. By standing together as union members, we will have strength in numbers and can be more effective when it comes to advocating for the needs of students, our families and our university.

What does it mean for us to form a union?
With a union, we will have the power to be equal partners in making decisions that impact our workplace. As it stands, academic specialists are subject to decisions made by administrators, with or without consultation or our consent. Forming a union will allow us to come together with one voice and advocate for the priorities we care most about.

Why should academic specialists unionize? Why now?
Over the past few years, our university has experienced high levels of destabilization. We’ve seen changes in campus leadership and public dissension amongst and between university administration and the Board of Trustees. These events and changes have significantly impacted policies and practices that affect our daily work and our students.

We are one of the very few groups at MSU who do not yet have a union, and therefore we cannot collectively bargain a contract. This creates a significant disparity between and within colleges in terms of salaries, benefits and working conditions.

What safeguards and benefits can a union provide?
Right now, we are at the mercy of our employer. Joining together and forming a union will ensure our rights are robustly protected and safeguard against management overreach. Being in a union will give us the right to legal representation for workplace-related conflicts and provide us the right to a fair and swift grievance process if we find ourselves at odds with the university.

These protections will be part of our union contract. Union contracts are an agreement between the employer and the employee group to address both mutual and competing interests. In addition to workplace protections, having a union contract will allow us to use our collective strength to negotiate critical issues such as:

• Increasing compensation and protecting our raises.
• Protecting and improving health care and retirement benefits.
• Increasing job security and transparency in promotion and reappointment.
• Preserving and increasing job flexibility.
• Addressing advising workloads and course overloads.
• Protecting intellectual property rights.

Once we successfully form our union, the status quo will be preserved until we collectively bargain our new contract and it takes effect. Every union member has the right to vote on the contract, as well as on any subsequent changes. As a union member, you will be part of a true democracy in the workplace.

Who else at MSU has a union?
MSU is a highly unionized campus. Academic specialists are one of the few remaining groups at MSU that do not have a union.

Are faculty and academic staff organized at other universities in Michigan?
The vast majority of state universities and colleges in Michigan have unionized groups, including academic advisors, teaching faculty, academic staff, librarians, administrative professionals, facilities staff, and many others.

Tenure stream faculty are also unionized at numerous R-1 universities, such as Rutgers, UMass Amherst, Oregon, Oregon State, the University of Pittsburgh, the University of New Mexico, as well as throughout the entire SUNY, University of Florida, and Cal State systems.

How is a union different from ASAC?
Advisory committees are precisely that — advisory only. For example, the Academic Specialist Advisory Committee and other advisory committees on campus can make suggestions and recommendations to the administration. Still, the university remains in complete control of whether to implement any committee recommendations.

Meanwhile, a union has legal and bargaining power. Without a union, the employer can make unilateral decisions on the employee handbook, governance, committees, wages, working conditions, and just about anything else. By forming a union, you will have a seat at the decision-making table.

This is where having a union makes a significant difference. Having a union will provide academic specialists with enforcement power to ensure the administration follows the contract. By working hand in hand with ASAC, our academic specialists’ union will be able to still make recommendations to the administration, as well as have the right to negotiate with the university on decisions that impact our working conditions.

I’m a teaching specialist. Am I already covered by the UNTF contract?
The Union of Non-Tenure Track Faculty’s collective bargaining unit only covers the teaching portion for fixed-term academic specialists. If an academic specialist has a portion of their appointment in other areas (research, advising, outreach, curriculum development), that portion is not covered under the UNTF contract. If a specialist enters the continuing system and achieves continuing status, they are no longer part of UNTF.

Won’t MSU oppose us if we try to form a union?
No. MSU leaders have publicly and officially pledged to remain neutral. In December 2021, the Board of Trustees adopted a “neutrality agreement” resolution that affirms their commitment to remain neutral “on any collective bargaining activities, to be cooperative in the determination and recognition of bargaining units, and to set notification of agreements.”

In comments regarding the neutrality agreement, MSU Board of Trustees Chair Dianne Byrum said, “It is in the best interest of the university to be able to have our employees be able to collectively bargain.” Trustee Brianna Scott added, “this gives university staff a voice and an opportunity to be heard.”

How much would it cost to be in the union?
Dues are essential to building and maintaining a strong organization that can advocate for academic specialists and make our voices heard. Once we form our union and successfully negotiate a strong first contract, we will vote as a body on our local dues. The MEA has a graded dues structure, which is a percentage of our annual salary capped at 1.6% or $655, whichever is less. For example, someone making $46,406 or more would be capped at $655 annually for MEA dues. NEA dues are fixed at $200 annually. As always, membership is voluntary under federal law. Members will only pay dues once our contract is negotiated, approved in a vote of the entire membership and implemented.

If a union is formed, would I have to join it?
Joining a union is and always will be voluntary.

What does signing a union authorization card mean?
Signing a union authorization card indicates your desire to join your colleagues in forming a union. By doing so, we can negotiate collectively with the university administration over our wages, hours, and working conditions and have expert representation in personnel matters. The authorization card is not a membership card and does not obligate you to pay dues.

Your decision to sign an authorization card is a private decision — authorization cards will not be seen by MSU administrators. A legally-appointed independent third party or the Michigan Employee Relations Commission (MERC) will validate that a majority of your colleagues have signed cards. At that point, MSU will recognize our union.

We will then begin to build our union by signing membership cards and encouraging our colleagues to do the same. Successful unions start with strong membership levels. The more members we have, the more power we will have at the negotiating table.

How do I join the effort?
If you are an academic specialist at MSU, the first step in joining your colleagues is to download and print an authorization card. After signing the card, please take a photo and submit it to MSUunion@mea.org.

If you’d like to learn more and help engage your colleagues about what forming a union means for faculty at MSU, please include a message in your email, and a member of our faculty organizing committee will contact you.

How do we form a union?
There are two pathways to forming our union. We must either:

1. Collect authorization cards from 50% + 1 of all academic specialists, which will show MERC that we have sufficient interest in unionizing and being recognized outright; or
2. Collect authorization cards from 30% of academic specialists, after which MERC will coordinate an election in which all academic specialists are eligible to vote. To win a union, the election must result in 50% + one approval from those voting.