University of Minnesota graduate assistants voted overwhelmingly this week to form a union, the Minnesota Bureau of Mediation Services said Friday.
After a 2,487-70 vote, U graduate student workers will now join a growing number of students across the country who are organizing as they call for higher pay and stronger worker protections.
Graduate assistants are enrolled in the university as students and also work for it, often helping with teaching or research. Hourly wages begin at $20.74 and average about $25.14. The number of hours that graduate students work varies, though many are scheduled for about 20 hours per week.
State data estimates it would take working full time at about $17.80 per hour to cover the basic needs of a single adult working full-time in Hennepin County.
U administrators told graduate assistants in an email that they plan to work with the union "to determine the timing and next steps in the bargaining process." They said they expect to have more information in the coming weeks.
