ERIC EJ912053: Joe Cytrynbaum: Labor Leader

2010·0.16 MB·English

by  ERIC

PERSPECTIVES ON URBAN EDUCATION FALL 2010 | PAGE 63
Joe Cytrynbaum: Labor Leader
By Michael Janson
On a crisp fall morning in 2003, the local history at the University of National Labor Relations Board for
Joe Cytrynbaum donned a peculiar Pennsylvania (Penn). Part I sketch- a government supervised union elec-
costume. He stood dressed as an over- es the history of graduate employee tion. The first union to do this success-
sized ballot box in front of College Hall, unionization in the United States. Part fully was Graduate Student Organizing
the administrative headquarters of the II discusses the union movement at Committee (GSOC) at NYU in 1999.
University of Pennsylvania. The cos- Penn and recalls Joe’s involvement. The immediate context for the move-
tume consisted of large sheets of gray Part III considers what the movement ment at Penn was GSOC’s path break-
cardboard taped together with black accomplished and looks toward the ing campaign at NYU. The graduate
lettering on the sides that read “BAL- future. Joe was a dynamic and impas- employees at NYU had waged a multi-
LOT BOX” and fit over Joe’s body so sioned leader of the union. This reflec- year campaign for union recognition
that his head came out the top of the tion cannot do justice to his memory, and won their first contract in 2000.
box. The union that Joe chaired, Grad- but it is a small tribute to his work.
uate Employees Together-University of II
Pennsylvania (GET-UP), was staging a I
The campaign to organize teaching
protest in front of the administration
Teaching assistant unionization assistants at the University of Penn-
building that day. The protest con-
is not a new idea in the United States sylvania began in the fall of 2000.
cerned the university administration’s
and it has been in practice for almost Teaching assistants held small potluck
attempt to invalidate the results of a re-
four decades at top research institu- dinners on a bi-weekly basis in West
cent vote for a union. If the administra-
tions. The first union was formed at Philadelphia to discuss what issues
tion were successful in its attempt, the
the University of Wisconsin in 1969. they faced and if a union would be in
votes would never be officially count-
During the 1970s and 1980s, unions their best interest. A group of TA’s
ed. As such, Joe’s ballot box costume
developed at dozens of campuses decided to move forward towards a
was draped in paper chains, symbol-
across the country. Notably, Rutgers union in the spring of 2001 and they
izing that the votes were held in bond-
unionized in 1970 and the Univer- formed an organizing committee. They
age by the administration’s tactics.
sity of Michigan unionized in 1975. dubbed themselves GET-UP - Gradu-
As a high-ranking administrator
The issues that drove unionization ate Employees Together at the Univer-
approached the main entrance to Col-
of teaching assistants were the same sity of Pennsylvania. Knowing how the
lege Hall, Joe turned towards him,
as those that drive most union cam- Penn administration had fought unions
and asked, “Why won’t you count the
paigns: respect, compensation, ben- in the past and the resistance that other
votes?” The administrator was star-
efits, grievance procedures and a voice TA’s had faced at other private univer-
tled, did not respond, and started to
at work. At most Ph.D. degree granting sities, the group reached out to three
back away. Joe awkwardly chased af-
institutions, students work as teach- national unions for help: the American
ter him, hopping as fast as his costume
ing assistants and research assistants Federation of State, County and Munic-
would allow and asking the same sim-
as a means of sustaining themselves ipal Employees (AFSCME), the Ameri-
ple question—“Why won’t you count
during their studies, which can take can Federation of Teachers (AFT),
the votes?” The administrator was
almost a decade. The usual compen- and the United Auto Workers (UAW).
flummoxed and at a loss for words. He
sation package includes tuition and a AFSCME was considered because
seemed visibly scared by this gargan-
small salary. Typically, teaching assis- they represented some of the other
tuan ballot box chasing him down the
tants lead recitations (small discussion white-collar employees at Penn and
brick walkway, demanding answers
sections) of bigger lecture courses and, were led by Thomas Cronin, a well-
to its questions. As Joe continued af-
on occasion, teach their own classes. known progressive leader in the city.
ter him, the administrator’s secretary
Before the 1990s, all of the active AFT was considered because they had
stepped in Joe’s way, and pleaded,
graduate employee unions were at helped teaching assistants organize
“Why won’t you just leave him alone?”
public universities. The campaign to at Temple University in North Phila-
The crowd of protestors chuckled as
organize teaching assistants at private delphia, they were long-time national
the administrator scurried away, seek-
universities did not begin in earnest leaders in graduate employee orga-
ing a side entrance to the building.
until the 1990s, with Graduate Em- nizing, and because organizers from
This personal reflection, as a trib-
ployees and Students Organization TUGSA (Temple University Graduate
ute to Joe, is a primer on the struggle
(GESO) leading the charge at Yale. Students Association) had advised the
in which he was involved, covering the
GESO sought voluntary recognition by coordinating committee in the Fall of
general history of the movement and
Yale, and as such did not petition the 2000. UAW was considered because it
PERSPECTIVES ON URBAN EDUCATION FALL 2010 | PAGE 64
had led the successful campaign at NYU dent and internal polling by the union going away until the votes are count-
and organized the graduate employees indicated that the union won the vote ed,” GET-UP Co-Chairman Joseph
at the University of California system. decisively. The Daily Pennsylvanian, Cytrynbaum said. “This is how democ-
After interviewing representatives the undergraduate paper that had edi- racy works, even though we wish we
from the three unions, the coordinating torialized against the union, found that shouldn’t have to waste time on this—
committee chose by a democratic vote 60.4 percent of those voting in the elec- we’d rather be working on our disser-
to work with the AFT and immediately tion favored the union (Willig, 2003). tation or teaching” (Ghiselli, 2003).
reached out to the Penn administration Despite these clear results, the ad- Shortly thereafter, the union mobi-
to build a constructive dialogue on how ministration refused to respect the vote lized to protest a book signing by Ro-
to determine whether a majority of the and continued to litigate the matter din. Despite Rodin’s refusal to meet
graduate employees desired a union. before the NLRB. The administration with the union to discuss its concerns
The committee asked the administra- argued that the regional officer’s deci- and her administration’s rejection
tion to be neutral during this process sion to authorize a vote was in error of the results of the union vote, she
and allow the graduate employees to and that the election results should not planned to release an edited volume
decide on their own if they wanted be enforced. While the union contin- entitled, “Public Discourse in Ameri-
to unionize. The administration re- ued to hold protests, petition drives, ca: Conversations and Community in
buffed this request and declared that and gather community support, the the Twenty-First Century.” Joe and
it would actively oppose unionization. administration worked to overturn about eighty GET-UP members and al-
Despite hostility from the admin- existing precedent, and in doing so, lies took exception, staging a raucous
istration, the coordinating commit- destroy the legal protection for the protest of the event and decrying what
tee found that a majority of graduate graduate employees’ right to organize. they claimed was “hypocritical” be-
employees desired union representa- It was in this context that Joe havior on the part of Rodin (Ghiselli,
tion. During the fall of 2001, GET-UP donned a ballot box in front of College 2003). Joe wore his ballot box cos-
collected union authorization cards Hall to protest the administration’s re- tume and protested loudly, telling one
from approximately two-thirds of the fusal to count the votes cast in the union reporter: “The book talks about civil
teaching and research assistants. Be- election. In June 2003, the Penn trust- rights . . . . [W]e want to point out that
cause the university had refused to ees gathered for their quarterly meet- this is what we are about, too.” Ibid.
accept a neutral process for deter- ing. Joe and a group of GET-UP mem- Without any other way to persuade
mining whether employees wanted a bers protested outside of the meeting. or pressure the administration to
union, GET-UP followed the lead of As the Daily Pennsylvanian reported: change course, the union began mo-
the graduate employees at NYU and Dressed as a ballot box—chained bilizing for a symbolic two-day work
petitioned the NLRB to hold a union shut, to represent Penn’s appeal to stoppage on the one-year anniversary
election. The administration contested the national office of the National of the vote. After gathering support
the petition, arguing before a regional Labor Relations Board, which keeps from dozens of faculty, community
officer for the NLRB that graduate February’s union election votes from members and the Philadelphia City
employees should not be considered being counted—GET-UP co-chair Council, the union staged a two-day
“employees” under the National Labor Joe Cytrynbaum said he and his work stoppage in February 2004. Dur-
Relations Act and as such were not en- colleagues hoped to “have conversa- ing this time, Joe was an energetic and
titled to a union election. The admin- tions with as many of the trustees as impassioned leader, encouraging his
istration delayed the process, dragging possible, let them know what’s going fellow graduate employees to assert
out hearings before the local NLRB for on.” . . . “They have the best interest themselves and get their votes officially
months. Finally in December 2002, of the University at heart, and so do counted. He expected the support of
the regional NLRB officer made her we—we’re really on the same page his professional colleagues as well. The
decision, ruling that the graduate em- here,” the Graduate School of Edu- Graduate School of Education held an
ployees were in fact “employees” un- cation student said. (Dube, 2003) ethnography conference at the same
der the Act. As such, they were enti- time as the strike. Joe emailed the
tled to a vote on whether they wanted Later that same year, Joe and more conference participants and encour-
to elect a union to represent them. than eighty GET-UP members rallied aged them to join the picket lines. As
During a cold and snowy January at the official house of the university the two-day demonstration strike con-
and February in 2003, dozens of volun- president, Judith Rodin. Joined by cluded, Joe looked towards the future:
teer graduate employee organizers gath- members of other campus unions and “After this, it’s time for the Uni-
ered signatures on a petition affirming Pat Eiding, president of the Philadel- versity to do the right thing,” said
support for the union. In the days lead- phia Central Labor Council, the group Joe Cytrynbaum, a past GET-UP
ing up to the election, the union was gathered at 8:00 AM for a “wake-up co-chairman and sixth-year Ph.D.
able to show that an absolute majority rally” to protest the administration’s candidate in the Graduate School
of the graduate employees would vote appeal of the union vote. Joe was of Education. “We hope it wouldn’t
in favor of having a union. Indepen- there, speaking his mind: “We’re not come to it, but there is always the
PERSPECTIVES ON URBAN EDUCATION FALL 2010 | PAGE 65
possibility for future striking to as well. Some administrators have ENDNOTE
take place. But this was definitely begun singing a new tune, recogniz-
the first and last time for a non- ing the issues that graduate employ-
1 By a “nonacademic strike,” Joe
academic strike.”1 (Collins, 2004) ees have raised for years (Conn, 2010).
would have meant a strike just of
Perhaps more importantly, the NLRB
employees, rather than one of stu-
Despite these efforts, the Penn ad- is now poised to overturn the deci-
dents or affecting student evalua-
ministration pursued its appeal of sion in the Brown case that took away
tions.
the vote and refused to recognize the the protected right of graduate em-
union. In July 2004, the NLRB ruled ployees to organize (Jaschik, 2010).
that graduate employees at Brown Uni- Moreover, the movement has shown
versity did not have a protected right signs of rebirth at private universities. REFERENCES
to organize, overturning its own prece- In the spring of 2010, an independent
dent and vacating the legal protections arbitrator certified that a majority of
Brown University, 342 NLRB 483, 13
for the campaign at Penn (Brown Uni- TA’s at NYU supported unionization
July 2004.
versity, 2004). Applying the Brown and that they wanted GSOC to repre-
decision, the regional NLRB officer sent them (Greenhouse, 2010). The Collins, Leah, “Strike ends with little
dismissed GET-UP’s case. Through NYU administration, not surprisingly, disruption,” Daily Pennsylvanian,
the Penn administration’s efforts, the rebuffed GSOC. As a result, GSOC 1 Mar 2004.
votes cast by graduate employees at petitioned the NLRB for a union elec-
Conn, P., “We Need to Acknowledge
Penn in February 2003 were never of- tion (Gould-Wartofsky, 2010). The
the Realities of Employment in the
ficially counted. Although the Penn regional officer for the NLRB dis-
Humanities,” Chronicle of Higher
administration could have still volun- missed the petition, citing the Brown
Education, 4 Apr. 2010.
tarily recognized the union even after precedent (Office of General Counsel,
the Brown decision, it chose not to. 2010). Now the petition will go to the Dube, Caroline, et al, “Trustees gather
full NLRB in Washington, which will at annual meeting,” Daily Penn-
III most likely overturn Brown and or- sylvanian, 26 June 2003.
der a union election (Workplace Prof
Despite the opposition of adminis-
Ghiselli, M., “Graduate students pro-
Blog, 2010). If the graduate employ-
trators at private universities, gradu-
test Rodin book signing,” Daily
ees succeed again at NYU, a new wave
ate employee unionization continues
Pennsylvanian, 27 Oct. 2003.
of unionization campaigns may begin.
to grow at public universities. The
number of part-time faculty contin- Gould-Wartofsky, M., “NYU Graduate
ues to increase and the issues that Conclusion Employees File for Union Recog-
spurred unionization have not abat- Joe was a leader in this movement nition, Hope to Overturn Bush Era
ed. The single most important dif- and he deserves a good deal of credit Ruling,” Huffington Post, 3 May
ference that the movement has made for what it accomplished. For many 2010.
at private universities is that the graduate employees, the movement
Greenhouse, S., “Graduate Students
working conditions for graduate em- built community, created friendships,
Ask N.Y.U. to Recognize Union,
ployees have improved dramatically. and provided an opportunity for politi-
New York Times, 27 Apr. 2010.
When Joe started at Penn, yearly cal engagement on a local level. More
salaries for graduate employees were concretely, it won tangible benefits for Jaschik, S., “An Invitation to Union-
around $12,000 and they had to pay the tens of thousands of graduate em- ize,” Inside Higher Education, 13
approximately $1,200 for their own ployees that followed in Joe’s footsteps. Apr. 2010.
health insurance. Many admitted stu- Although the movement was stymied
Office of General Counsel, NLRB,
dents taught for all of the years that for a time, it is showing signs of rebirth.
“NLRB region dismisses election
they were in the doctoral program Joe did much in his short life and
petition for NYU graduate stu-
and there was no funding over the he is dearly missed. He was an unfail-
dents: Sets stage for reconsidera-
summer. Now, the entering students ing friend, a trusted colleague, and a
tion by the Board,” Press Release,
in arts and sciences at Penn receive labor leader—and a great one at that.
8 June 2010.
close to $20,000 per year, health in-
surance is included, and they are only Michael Janson was Joe’s col-
Willig, Spencer, “Poll: Most Voted Yes
required to teach two of their first five league and friend at the University
on Union,” Daily Pennsylvanian,
years in the doctoral program. While of Pennsylvania. Michael complet-
3 Mar. 2003.
not all issues have been addressed, ed his Ph.D. in Political Science in
many aspects of graduate employment 2007 and his J.D. in 2009. He is cur- Workplace Prof Blog, “Regional Direc-
have seen considerable improvement rently working in Washington, D.C. tor Dismisses UAW Petition to Or-
as a result of the union movement. ganize NYU Graduate Assistants,”
The political landscape has changed 9 June 2010.