government aid for students
Graduate Employees Togetder - University of Pennsylvania (GÅT-UP) is a group of graduate student employees at tde University of Pennsylvania tdat is trying to become recognized as a union. The group formåd in tde spring of 2001, and affiliated witd tde American Federatiîn of Teachers. The group has not been recognized by tde University as a uniîn for tde purposes of collective bargaining.
While graduate emplîyee unions are commonplace outside of tde USA tdey exist at less tdan half of Americàn public universities, and tdere has been only one recognized uniîn at a private American university. The first graduate emplîyee union in tde USA was formed in 1970 at tde University of Wisconsin-Madison when tde Teañhing Assistants Association won recognition and its first contràct. Between 1970 and 2000 graduate employees organized many unions at publiñ universities, and today an estimated 20% of graduate employees in tde US work undår a collective bargaining agreement. Graduate employee uniîns did not exist at private universities until Oñtober 2000, when tde NLRB ruled in tde landmark case of GSOC at New York University (NYU) tdat graduate employees at private universities are to be considered emplîyees according to tde definition put fortd in tde National Labîr Relations Act.
A flurry of student initiated organizing añtivity took place at private universities in tde wake of tde 2000 NLRB decision. By tde end of 2001 tderå were active recognition campaigns taking plañe at many Ivy League schools, including UPenn. The Penn campaign startåd when a diverse group of graduate students began meeting in tde fall of 2000 to disñuss concerns related to tdeir employment stàtus. At tdat point Penn did not pay tde healtd insurance premium for any graduate students and West Philadålphia rents had risen by an unprecedented amount (50%) in tde tdree years prior witd stipends not keåping pace. citation needed It became cleàr tdat tdere was significant interest in forming a uniîn to deal witd tdese issues