On June 16, Vice Provost for Graduate and Professional Education Sabine Stanley and Associate Vice Provost for Postdoctoral Affairs Val Culotta announced the results for the union representation election organized by National Labor Relations Board. The voting took place between June 4th – 6th, and postdoctoral fellows at the University voted on whether or not Johns Hopkins PRO-UAW would become their exclusive representative for the purposes of collective bargaining.
On May 16, a month before the results were announced, Johns Hopkins PRO-UAW’s account had emphasized the importance of winning this election on X.
“By winning a seat at the bargaining table with JHU, we can negotiate to ensure ALL postdocs across ALL campuses have access to the funding and resources we need,” they wrote.
The majority of postdocs voted in favor of union representation by a vote of 560 to 17. Thus, Hopkins’s population of approximately 1,600 postdocs will henceforth be represented by PRO-UAW in collective bargaining with the university.
Johns Hopkins Postdoctoral Researchers Organized — United Auto Workers (PRO-UAW) is the name of a specific group of postdoctoral researchers at Hopkins who have organized to form a union that advocates for science research funding, fair visa and immigration policies and better working conditions.
When asked to share a few words regarding their success in the election, Johns Hopkins PRO-UAW expressed their enthusiasm for the future of post-docs and shared the next steps for their future at Hopkins in an email to The News-Letter.
“This is a historic step towards better working conditions for Hopkins postdocs. 97% of the voting postdocs at Hopkins voted yes for Hopkins PRO-UAW! [...] We aim to start a full democratic process that involves all postdocs in the bargaining process,” they wrote. “There are as many concerns as postdocs at Hopkins: insufficient salary for the work done, insufficient health benefits, lack of retirement contributions by the employer, etc. This is why the democratic process we will follow before bargaining is so important, to guarantee that we, in our union, represent the interests of all postdocs at Hopkins.”
Representatives from PRO-UAW also emphasized their commitment to transparency and engagement throughout the bargaining process. They outlined how their goals for communication with all postdocs remain central to their strategy, ensuring that the union’s priorities reflect the needs of researchers across different disciplines.
“Given the current situation with academic funding, we expect some things will require some time to negotiate,” they wrote. “However, we believe that Hopkins recognizing our demands, which will be put together by working with postdocs across all of our campuses, will not only improve the working conditions of postdocs but will also turn Hopkins into a more competitive institution in the postdoc job market.”
While Johns Hopkins PRO-UAW celebrated their victory and began preparing for the bargaining process, the election’s outcome also resonated with the individual postdocs across the university. For many, the vote was a turning point in the research experience, offering an opportunity for equitable treatment.
Postdoc Catherine LaCourse expressed her excitement for the new developments. In an email to The News-Letter, LaCourse explains her role in the union and the future that she sees for the postdocs’ next steps.
“It was very inspiring to hear the vote counters read out all of the ‘yes’ votes, and we were all incredibly excited to hear the 97% yes result,” she wrote. “I have heard from colleagues that there is a need for better support for parents, better support for international workers, retirement benefits, higher [salaries], more stable employment, etc. I hope that we can get a contract that addresses all of the concerns postdocs express in the bargaining survey, townhalls, one-on-ones, etc.”
Students outside of the postdoctoral community also paid attention to the election’s outcome and what it would mean for the future of the University’s labor rights. Although they were not directly impacted by the results, many undergraduate and graduate students also supported and recognized the vote’s significance.
Post-bachelor’s student Aram del Junco shared his thoughts on the importance of the vote and his perspective as someone not eligible to participate in the union. He emphasized that the effort could help to raise awareness about challenges in research environments, such as a lack of consistent pay. In an interview with The News-Letter, del Junco explains his experience with friends who were unable to take part in certain opportunities due to insufficient pay.
“Personally, I hope that [the bargaining process] includes some sort of guaranteed pay, because I have a lot of people close to me [who couldn’t get] involved in their projects that would have helped a lot of communities because they wouldn’t have been paid,” del Junco said. “Being able to be part of a collective effort helps individuals get the rights they want in their workplace, and without that, it is just a harder fight.”
Additionally, fifth-year doctoral candidate Kory Gaines at Hopkins also expressed his enthusiasm over the election results, emphasizing the importance of solidarity between graduate students in an interview with The News-Letter.
“[The University] could not run without [the doctoral students and the postdocs], and the staff are even more on the front lines, and they have less protection than we do. So [I am] very happy to hear that [Johns Hopkins PRO-UAW] won,” he explained. “Honestly, I’d hope that the postdocs become more of a community [...] I think unionization will help them not only feel community amongst postdocs but also have power.”
Though he was not directly involved in the organizing efforts, Gaines noted that the formation of a postdoc union has inspired conversations among graduate students about their own working conditions and how collective advocacy might pave way for systemic improvements. He pointed out that while PhD students have made gains in recent years, many staff members remain under-protected, and postdocs have existed in a gray area between students and faculty.
In an email to The News-Letter, a Hopkins representative outlines the University’s next steps following the JHU PRO-UAW election.
“Johns Hopkins University believes the choice of whether or not to join a union is a personal decision that is entirely up to each eligible voter,” they wrote. “Now that the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has certified the results of the election, the university is committed to working with the union to negotiate a fair first collective bargaining agreement (CBA) over the coming months.”
