Our History

After the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled in 2016 that graduate workers at private universities, a group of grad workers concerned about their working conditions came together as Vanderbilt Graduate Workers United (VGWU) to begin the process of forming a union. VGWU began organizing around grad worker issues, helping to pass a Mental Health Bill of Rights. This pressured the admin to commit serious resources to the mental well-being of its grad workers for the first time. When the Covid-19 pandemic hit campus, Vanderbilt administration’s flurry of actions (and inactions)  were taken without serious consideration of the needs of graduate workers, proving to even more of us that we had no choice but to organize for ourselves to win the safe and fair working conditions we deserve. VGWU circulated a series of petitions calling for increased pay, support, 6th year funding, and safety considerations for all grad workers during the pandemic and beyond. These petitions were signed by thousands of our colleagues and won cost of living adjustments across campus.

 In the 2022-23 academic year, our colleagues continued these organizing efforts by starting petitions calling for dental and vision coverage as well as $40k stipends for all PhD students. In the spring of 2023, the administration caved to the pressure of the 1,100 grads who had signed onto the former, granting dental coverage to the graduate student health plan free of charge. While we have not yet won $40k stipends, our efforts have permanently changed the climate on campus and many colleges and departments have netted out raises that were a direct result of us bringing the conversation about the increased cost of living in Nashville to the admin’s doorstep. Our history is complex, diverse, and full of many great stories of our collective struggle to win better working conditions. These two paragraphs don’t tell the whole history of VGWU,  but the whole story can’t be told anyways, because it’s OUR story and it is on-going. Are you ready to add to VGWU’s history in 2024? Sign your union card today and start organizing!