UAW Region 9A Weekly Newsletter: December 12
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LOCAL & ORGANIZING UPDATES
Maine Legislators & UAW Grad Workers Hold Public Forum on Affordability in Maine
On Tuesday, the UMaine Graduate Workers Union-UAW hosted a public forum on the crisis of affordability faced by Mainers and in particular how this has affected workers within the University of Maine System. A panel of graduate student workers were joined by Sen. Mike Tipping and Rep. Ambureen Rana. University leadership, including UMS Chancellor Dannel Malloy, were invited to participate in the panel, but declined to attend.
Topics spanned worker wages, housing instability, healthcare challenges, obstacles faced by international workers, and more. Legislators weighed in on the current state of these issues across Maine and how, despite being a public institution with significant taxpayer resources, the University of Maine System does not provide working conditions that can sustain the research and teaching that the UMS mission calls for.
Andrea Tirrell, PhD student and graduate worker in Ecology and Environmental Sciences summed up the economic conditions of UMS graduate workers: “Graduate worker pay starts at less than $1,900 per month…and after things like healthcare, rent, food, heat, all of our expenses, many of us hit zero in our accounts every month.”
UMGWU-UAW continues to negotiate with the University of Maine System for a first collective bargaining agreement. UAW-endorsed candidate for U.S. Senate Graham Platner recently released a video update in solidarity with UMGWU’s fight. Read more in the Maine State Labor News, and follow UMGWU on Instagram for the latest updates.
New School Unions Mobilize to Kill Administration’s Proposed Budget Cuts
On Wednesday, hundreds of UAW members and supporters rallied outside The New School’s board meeting to protest sweeping budget cuts impacting faculty and academic programs. UAW Local 7902 represents part-time faculty, student workers, and health service employees at the university.
The administration is proposing a radical "restructuring" that would include eliminating over 30 programs primarily in the sciences and humanities, pausing almost all doctoral program admissions for 2026–27, and issuing massive faculty layoffs. Workers are instead demanding that the school rescind all voluntary separation package agreements, institute a $200,000 salary cap, and call a public meeting between the board and the entire school community.
As the New School Part-time Faculty Union (Local 7902) pointed out, numerous high-level administrators received massive pay increases on their already high six-figure salaries in recent years. “The New School’s $30.3 million deficit could have been a $7 million surplus if spending on administrative costs, professional services, and facilities had grown at the same rate as revenue,” the union wrote.
Read more about workers’ fight at The New School in Gothamist, Hyperallergic, and ARTnews—and support New School workers by signing their petition to stop the cuts!
More Region 9A Locals in the News
“‘What's been happening at the bargaining table is not just frustrating, it is unacceptable,’ said Silvia Hernandez, a former Cardiology Postdoctoral Researcher on the union’s bargaining committee. The ERU claims the university delayed contract negotiations and ‘regressed’ on terms that they had previously agreed to.”
- WNY Labor Today: UAW-Represented Postdocs in the Bronx are ‘Pushing for Fair Contract After One Year at the Negotiating Table’ (Dec. 10)
“The union organizing wave at museums and other so-called cultural institutions has reached a new height as hundreds of workers at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City seek an election.”
- Law360: Museum Organizing Wave Surging As Met Staff Turn To Union (Dec. 2)
FROM REGION 9A
Sign up for LSAT Prep for UAW Members in Spring 2026 in NYC
Tuesdays, February 3 - March 24, 2026 | Sign up by January 10
The UAW Region 9A Workforce Training Center is excited to release the course offering for Spring 2026. This 8-week intensive LSAT prep course is intended for members and their families who plan to attend law school.
When offered by for-profit institutions, these courses can cost students $2,000 or more—but through the Workforce Training Center, you will have the opportunity to take this course for free with other UAW members.
Session B will be held in New York City on Tuesdays from 6 - 9 PM beginning February 3 and ending March 24. Session C of this course will be held April - May 2026. Register by January 10 to join!
Higher Ed Labor United Northeast Regional Bargaining Summit
January 9-10, 2026 | UMass Amherst, Amherst, MA | Register by December 15
Join us in January in Amherst for HELU’s first Northeast Regional Higher Education Bargaining Summit. In the Northeast, where we have deep collective bargaining traditions, we have an opportunity to learn from each other and build power to fight for our shared goals and values. This Bargaining Summit brings together higher ed unions from across the northeast to build a common agenda for our region–to set new floors on wages, working conditions, and quality education.
Learn from one another’s experiences, with time dedicated to learning from others across the full range of job categories and institutions, including community colleges, 4-year universities, and research institutions. There will be breakouts on wages, workload, job security, safety, and more. Together, we’ll start developing a shared bargaining platform — common goals and demands that we can fight for collectively, strengthening our voice across states and across sectors.
COMMUNITY ACTION PROGRAM (CAP)
NYC UAW Members Release Report & Rally for Universal Child Care
On Friday, over 100 UAW members and our allies rallied outside Governor Hochul's office in Manhattan in support of universal child care for all New Yorkers—following this morning's release of a new report authored with New Yorkers United for Child Care.
The report proposes including an initial investment of $2 billion in next year’s state budget, due to be negotiated and finalized by the end of March 2026, to guarantee universal preschool access to three- and four-year-olds statewide. This guarantee would alleviate an estimated $4.4 billion in child care costs for New York families and yield a projected $26 billion long-term return.
UAW member leaders addressed the rally, including Jane Fox of the Association of Legal Advocates and Attorneys (UAW Local 2325), Tanya Nauvel of the Researchers Organizing Committee at Sinai (ROCS-UAW), and Region 9A Director Brandon Mancilla. “Putting an average of $20,000 a year back in families’ pockets is the best investment our state can make toward achieving the affordability agenda,” Mancilla told the Albany Times-Union.
Read the report and sign the petition to expand NYC’s 3-K and Pre-K For All programs to 2-year olds.
Maine AFL-CIO Town Hall with Gubernatorial Candidate Troy Jackson
Sunday, January 11 | 3 - 5 PM | Teamsters Local 340, South Portland, ME
The Maine AFL-CIO, Southern Maine Labor Council, and other unions are hosting a town hall with UAW Local 2320 member Troy Jackson, our endorsed candidate for Governor. This will be a participatory and fun event and food will be provided. This is a great opportunity to meet Troy, ask questions, and learn about why we have endorsed him to be our next Governor!
For the past two decades, no one has done more to support unions and workers in Maine than Troy Jackson. Troy has consistently shown up on picket lines, pushed pro-labor legislation forward and helped workers organize. Troy has a stellar record of legislative accomplishments including strengthening collective bargaining rights, winning free school lunches, making childcare more affordable, taking on big Pharma and lots more. Troy has also won in a tough district and can build a broad working class coalition with the best shot to win the general election.
Bill to Bring PFML & UI to Grad Workers Advances in Massachusetts
After a successful lobby day by over 30 UAW members and our allies, our proposed legislation (H1336/S747) to expand paid family and medical leave and unemployment insurance to cover graduate workers in Massachusetts was reported favorably out of committee! This would not have been possible without the contributions of UAW members who helped organize and testify in person, online, and in writing.
The bill is now eligible to proceed to the legislative floor for debate, amendments, and ultimately a vote—but that won’t happen without our continued pressure. Want to join the coalition to pass PFML and UI for grad workers? Email James Taylor at jhtaylor@uaw.net to join our next meeting this Monday, December 15, at 4 PM on Zoom. We will discuss which members on both the House and Senate Ways and Means Committees we will approach next to build support for this legislation.
Email Connecticut’s Gov. Lamont to Spend Emergency Funds for Families
In the past few months, thousands of Connecticut residents met with legislators, sent emails, made calls, delivered postcards, talked to neighbors, and held rallies—demanding a clear response from Governor Lamont and the state legislature to federal attacks. Together we secured a $500 million emergency fund for housing, food, healthcare, and other basic needs.
Now Connecticut for All is calling on Governor Lamont and the legislative leadership to spend the funds before the February 4 deadline. If they fail to spend the money, it will once again go to Wall Street. Our goal is to send 1,000 emails before the end of the year—send your email today!
UAW is part of the Connecticut For All coalition, which was formed five years ago to unite labor, community, and faith groups across Connecticut. Ahead of the 2026 legislative session, our allies in the CT For All coalition are organizing regional roundtables with local legislators to urge them to raise revenue to protect working people from the cuts at the federal level. Join a roundtable near you—meetings are being set up from Stamford to Coventry and in cities and towns across Connecticut.
FROM THE INTERNATIONAL UAW
Update Your Membership Records with the International UAW
The International UAW is committed to improving our member records. This effort is led by the UAW Membership Department. Maintaining accurate member records allows the UAW to effectively represent and communicate with active and retired members, provide relevant educational and training opportunities, better allocate resources, deliver targeted support, and facilitate International and local union elections.
Please take a moment to enter your contact information by completing the quick online form available at myinfo.uaw.org. Updating your mailing address now will help ensure that you receive a ballot to vote in the 2026 UAW International Officer Election, as well as other important communications and union updates in a timely manner. Download a flyer to share with your fellow members.
Register for the 2026 Financial Officers Conference
February 22-27, 2026 | New Orleans, LA | Register by January 17
The Secretary-Treasurer’s office will hold the annual Financial Officers’ Conference in February 2026 in New Orleans. Participants will have an opportunity to attend core classes that offer in-depth training and resources specific to the duties of their elected position. These classes provide extensive training on targeted topics like step-by-step instructions for completing and electronically filing LM and 990 forms, administrative roles and responsibilities, and trustee training. Plenary sessions will cover topics of interest to all participants. Local unions responding early with a completed registration form and non-refundable fees will have the best chance of being placed in their workshops of choice before capacity is reached. Be sure to register early!
Save the Date for UAW Education Department Conferences in 2026
The UAW International Education Department conducts many conferences and institutes throughout the year at the Walter and May Reuther UAW Family Education Center in Onaway, Michigan, also known as Black Lake.
Our conferences and institutes are designed to focus on a variety of different topics including membership empowerment, leadership development, collective bargaining, contract enforcement, and local union standing committee enrichment.
Save the date for next year’s conferences at Black Lake, and learn more about the UAW’s Education Department at uaw.org/education.
SOLIDARITY REQUESTS
AFL-CIO Frontline Solidarity: A Mass Deportation Fight-Back Toolkit
The AFL-CIO released a new edition of Frontline Solidarity: A Mass Deportation Fight-Back Toolkit for Union Activists and Organizers, which is an educational resource to fight back against the mass deportation agenda impacting workers. Union activists and organizers can request a copy of the toolkit, which includes know your rights materials, expanded employer engagement guidance, and updates on travel, termination of status, and detention.
Labor Notes Webinar: Workers Organize to Resist ICE
Wednesday, December 17 | 8 PM ET | Online
Join this online panel to hear from union members who’ve been on the front lines of the resistance against immigration raids, and from others who are preparing to defend their cities and communities. Hear about the networks they’ve built and how they built them, the workshops and trainings that have best prepared members and the community, and the strength that emerges in union-community solidarity. Panelists will include representatives from the Chicago Teachers Union, Oakland Education Association Rapid Response Team, and Hands Off NYC.
NYC Association of Legislative Employees Rally
Thursday, December 18 | 12 PM | City Hall Steps, New York, NY
The NYC Central Labor Council, an umbrella for over 300 local unions representing over a million workers, and other individual unions and locals will officially release a public letter to the New York City Council on December 18, urging Council Members to refrain from using a contractual provision to target and terminate staff on January 1. Also on that day, Council staff unionized as the Association of Legislative Employees and their labor allies will rally on the steps of City Hall at noon. They will be calling on the City Council, and all individual Council Members, to honor the spirit of the historic contract which staff and management agreed to last year. Join them!
Maine AFL-CIO Worker Candidate Training
January 24-25, 2026 | Augusta, ME
Have you ever considered running for public office someday? Do you want to see more working class people in Augusta, on town council, or school board? Would you like to help others with their campaigns? Come to the Maine AFL-CIO’s 2026 Worker Candidate Training in January in Augusta!
To win important labor victories like stronger collective bargaining rights, living wages, tax fairness, affordable housing, child care and health care, we need more union members and working-class allies making the decisions that affect us all. We know that union members make great candidates and will often carry labor's vision into elected office.
At our Worker Candidate Training we'll spend two days going over everything you need to know to run a campaign for elected office. You’ll learn how to create a campaign plan, knock on doors, speak in public, qualify for Clean Elections funding, develop a message, build a team of volunteers, and other key aspects of campaigning. You can attend if you are interested in running for office, learning more or helping out on campaigns.
Sign the Petition to Support the Massachusetts State House Employee Union
The Massachusetts State House Employee Union is calling for supporters to sign onto a letter to the Labor and Workforce Development Committee in support of S.1343/H.2093, An Act Relative to Collective Bargaining Rights for Legislative Employees. These bills would extend to State House staff the same right to unionize that almost all workers in the Commonwealth enjoy. Please add your name to show your support for the Massachusetts legislative staffers.
Union Hiring Hall
- NOLSW Local 2320 | West Coast Servicing Representative | CA, NM, WA, CO, NV
- UAW International Union | International Representative, CAP Dept. | Washington, DC
- UAW International Union | Assistant Director, CAP Dept. | Washington, DC
- New Yorkers United for Child Care | Organizer | Manhattan & Bronx, NY
- New Yorkers United for Child Care | Communications Director | New York, NY
- Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union | Organizer | Newark or New Brunswick, NJ
- Emergency Campaign to Support Higher Education | National Campaign Director
- Emergency Campaign to Support Higher Education | National Organizing Director
UPCOMING EVENTS
2026 AFL-CIO Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Civil and Human Rights Conference
January 15-18, 2026 | Baltimore, MD
UAW National CAP Conference: Building Power for the Working Class
February 8-11, 2026 | Washington Hilton, Washington, DC