Victory for Higher Ed Members!
12/4/2023
It took far too long, but it is done: today the House and the Senate passed and the Governor signed a supplemental budget that funded the contracts of 60,000 public sector union members, including all the outstanding MTA Higher Ed contracts.
Your activism was crucial to this finally getting done. Thousands of MTA members worked alongside colleagues from other unions making phone calls, sending emails, signing petitions, and showing up to events, both on their campuses and at the State House. The solidarity of public-sector workers was beautiful to behold. Legislators felt the heat for their inexcusable inaction.
There is no doubt that the pressure you all exerted helped bring this to a successful conclusion.
Congratulations to all for finally getting well-earned raises, which start to make up for what has been lost to inflation and subpar raises during the previous administration.
One of the silver linings of this campaign was seeing a growing solidarity with other public sector unions, backed by the excellent new leadership of the AFL-CIO, President Chrissy Lynch and Secretary-Treasurer Kevin Brousseau. We want to build on that solidarity in the coming months and years.
Today we celebrate. Tomorrow, let’s redouble our efforts to win an outstanding three-year contract, to win passage of the Cherish Act making lasting investments in YOU, our staff and faculty, your pay, benefits and job security; and in our students through debt-free access and supports to help them graduate on time; and in green and healthy buildings where you work and where our students learn.
Congratulations. Enjoy a well-deserved (and better compensated!) holiday break and we will see you in the new year.
In solidarity,
Max and Deb
Attachments:
