The CAUSE-UAW meeting took place at The Den in the UAA Student Union. This photo was captured several days later. Photo by Murat Demir.
A collective of University of Alaska workers named the Coalition of Alaskan University Staff for Equity — or CAUSE-UAW — held a union organizing meeting at the University of Alaska Anchorage on March 19.
Approximately 60 individuals attended the meeting. Several speakers made statements about the importance of unionizing UA staff.
The Northern Light interviewed CAUSE-UAW organizer and UAA academic advisor Charlie Banks about the staff’s efforts.
Banks said CAUSE-UAW began organizing in summer 2024.
“We are wanting to form a union to become a collectivized voice and to essentially get a seat at the table in terms of discussing pay and benefits,” said Banks. “The responses I’ve received from coworkers so far have been very positive.”
CAUSE-UAW organizer and College of Arts and Sciences program support specialist Bee Bequette also spoke to The Northern Light.
Bequette said the realization that UA faculty and graduate students were already unionized was a factor in CAUSE-UAW’s inception.
“Most universities have unions for their staff, so it's a little weird that the UA system doesn't,” said Bequette. “We just want what every other employee at UA already has.”
Bequette said the union consists of employees themselves, not an outside group making decisions on their behalf.
“Unionizing gives staff the power to voice our concerns regarding university decision-making, and it also gives us a voice to bargain for the working conditions that we require,” said Bequette.
Bequette said CAUSE-UAW has not encountered resistance from the university at this point.
The collective is affiliated with the United Auto Workers, one of the most powerful labor unions in the United States, according to Yahoo Finance.
The CAUSE-UAW website states that all regular employees at UA, both exempt and nonexempt, are included in the union, except for supervisors of permanent staff and confidential employees.
The union could be formed within a year, depending on a successful card drive and election, according to the CAUSE-UAW website.
.jpg)
