The UMD Graduate Labor Union voted against a labor contract proposal brought forth by the University of Minnesota on Oct. 8. 

The proposal, which called for a $25/hour wage for graduate students and a one-time payment of $750 to offset fees, was considered insufficient by the UMN-GLU. 98% of the union voted against the proposal, arguing that these proposals do not meet the needs of its members. 

Wages and fees have been the top two issues for the UMN-GLU in their ongoing negotiations with the University. Daniel Banegas, a grad student and labor committee member, said that while there was improvement on behalf of the university, it was not enough. 

“They wanted to give everybody a raise up to [$25], which, I think, in Duluth could sound good…up from [$22] potentially up to [$25], that’s better,” said Banegas. “But we had a big CAT [Contract Action Team] meeting…what was discussed was like, even if it’s [$25], it’s way below a living wage for somebody who’s single, and that’s not even taking into account people with kids and other responsibilities.”

The UMD “Cost-of-Attendence” website shows that graduate students are charged $1,650 per year for “required fees.” Under the rejected proposal, graduate students would be given a one-time payment of $750 to help offset that. To Banegas, the offer was “insulting.” 

The UMN-GLU has one more round of negotiations with the university. If the parties are unable to come to an agreement, the UMN-GLU will vote on authorization for a strike.