We have set a strike deadline for November 10th because Harvard has engaged in unlawful behavior and our members urgently need a fair contract that addresses these core issues:

• Fair compensation: Wages that keep up with the cost of inflation and retirement benefits for all full-time employees.
• Family support: Family and childcare benefits equivalent to those given to tenure-line faculty.
• No Carveouts: Inclusion of all workers in our union, including fellowship-supported or “stipendee” postdocs.
• Real recourse for harassment and discrimination: Enforceable protections for workplace discrimination and harassment through the Union grievance and arbitration procedure, to protect workers failed by the Title IX process.
• Strong Union: Right to a strong union through a union security clause that requires all workers who receive rights and benefits from the contract to chip in for contract enforcement.

HAW is the union for Harvard’s non-tenure track faculty, postdocs, and researchers; HGSU is the union for Harvard’s graduate students. While we stand in solidarity with one another, we are two separate unions.

Our strike deadline has been set for November 10th. HGSU’s has been set for October 27th. 

Our work stoppages might therefore overlap, but they’re powered by two different unions.

We will only strike if Harvard admin presents no other path to a fair contract. We’ve been bargaining for over two years, we delivered a majority petition, we rallied. We don’t want to strike, but Harvard has demonstrated that they will not move until we show enough collective power. If we demonstrate that enough of us are ready to strike, we hope Harvard will understand that our cause is just and quickly negotiate a fair contract with us. Then we won’t need to strike. This has worked for many other unions. But if Harvard does not offer a fair contract by November 10, then we will go on strike.

We have narrowed our disagreement to a few key issues that we believe we can resolve with management before a strike. At our bargaining session on 10/19, we presented our version of a full contract, much of which we already agree on with management. Contract provisions that management has agreed to include*:

• An end to time caps for teaching assistants, lecturers, and preceptors
• A new promotional ladder for lecturers, preceptors, and postdoctoral researchers
• Pay parity between HMS and FAS postdocs ($74K minimum salary for FAS postdocs and $87K minimum salary for current research associates)
• Dental insurance for TAs
• 5 days off for visa processing for international workers
• Guaranteed 1 year postdoc contracts
• Just cause protections for discipline and termination for all workers
• Severance pay for layoffs for all workers
• 3% yearly cost of living adjustments guaranteed (we are fighting for 3.25%)
• $1000/year guaranteed professional development funds for full time teachers (we are fighting for $3000)
• Consideration for green card sponsorship (Harvard previously would never sponsor green cards for any of our members)
• Strong workplace Health & Safety protections
• Extended email and library access after the end of a worker’s appointment, ensuring continuity of access for workers during the summer or as they transition to new jobs
• We have enshrined the status quo in our contract for policies and benefits that our workers already like, including: our current health insurance plans; transit subsidies and the bicycle benefit; and flexwork arrangements 

*Note: some of these are not officially tentatively agreed to yet, but reflect the most recent management proposals

A strike is a complete work stoppage. During a strike our members would not perform our work duties and instead would participate in picket lines to increase the visibility of the strike. Check out picket line information and sign up for picket shifts here. You must sign up for at least 15 hours of picket duties in the first week to be eligible for strike pay, and 20 hours for each subsequent week if the strike continues.

A strike will last until Harvard offers a meaningful contract proposal that members find acceptable, or until union membership decides to cease striking.

A picket line is a daily, in-person demonstration that signals our dispute and encourages other community members to join in solidarity. We can increase the impact of a strike by encouraging colleagues and community allies not to cross the line if possible and avoid activities that weaken our strike.

If Harvard forces academic workers to strike, all non-tenure track teaching and HAW research workers should cease all work duties and participate in strike duties. This includes but is not limited to postdocs (including stipendees), research fellows, research associates, staff scientists, preceptors, lecturers, instructors, and teaching assistants.

If you are not sure whether or not your position is part of HAW-UAW, please reach out to harvardacademicworkers@gmail.com and we will be happy to figure it out with you.

Right now, Harvard’s refusal to offer academic workers fair wages and benefits has significantly disrupted the research enterprise by adding undue stress into all of our lives. Our research output brings Harvard prestige, funding, intellectual property income, so Harvard will feel it if we stop our research. A strong strike threat could give us the leverage to reach a fair contract that would ultimately allow us to do our jobs more effectively. At other universities, research strikes have resulted in long term protections, job security, and wage increases, all of which will improve our research abilities.

We can explain to them why we are striking: it’s to save the quality of their education! This depends on our ability to teach them–and our ability to teach them well depends on our working conditions. While students may miss out on class time and be anxious about their grades, ultimately, the long term protections, job security, and wage increases for our members will allow us to be better teachers in the future. We can also help our students to understand our strike as a consequence of the administration’s actions, invite them to our picket line, and encourage them to call on Harvard’s leaders to bargain fairly to end a strike. The more of us that strike, the more likely it is we can resolve negotiations quickly. 

For researchers, you should communicate basic maintenance requirements for the time you are out and inform them of what essential duties will need to be covered. While it is helpful to the impact of our strike if you inform your PI that you are striking, this is not required.

You can also encourage them to take actions to help end a strike quickly:

• Speak to their department chair
• Contact the Provost and President
• Join us on the picket line

There are ways that you can prepare for a potential strike. These could include advance-planning your experiments or informing supervisors that they may need to make alternative plans to take care of these subjects. Strike Captains can assist you in making plans and answering questions specific to your context. Harvard also will still be required to follow legally mandated lab animal care in your absence.

It depends. Supervisors are not protected under the NLRA, however, Harvard has told some workers that they are supervisors who we do not believe fit the legal definition. If you are not actually a supervisor under the NLRA, then you are protected from retaliation for striking. Harvard is using an extremely broad and inconsistent definition of supervisor that does not follow the NLRA. 

If you have been told that you are a supervisor or if you believe that you are a supervisor please fill out this form to share more information about your situation. An organizer will get in touch with you to talk more about whether or not you qualify as a supervisor.

If you receive a W-2 tax form from Harvard, even if you are paid by a fellowship for all or part of your salary, you are not considered a “stipendee” and the rest of this answer does not apply to you.

Harvard’s current position is that “stipendees” are not Harvard employees. By their logic, Harvard has no ability to discipline or fire stipendees without undermining their position. Our position remains that stipendees ARE Harvard employees and therefore have the same protections as all other academic workers.

If you are unsure whether or not you are a stipendee or would like to discuss your situation more, please fill out this form and an organizer will get in touch with you.