We are excited to announce that we have reached an election agreement with SVA and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB); and dates for our union election have been scheduled! You can read the full election agreement from the NLRB here.

Our election will be a mail-in ballot. Please take note of these important dates:

• Ballots sent out Tuesday, April 15th
• Ballots due Tuesday, May 13th

RSVP here for our next SVA/FAC-UAW Town Hall on Saturday, March 29!

Please join our next SVA/FAC-UAW town hall this Saturday, March 29th at 12:30PM on Zoom. It is important that we do the work to make an informed decision on this important question. Our numerous town halls over this year, and the last few semesters, have provided energetic discussion and shared knowledge of the many reasons so many of us want a union at SVA.

As faculty, we have a historic opportunity in this election. If a majority votes “yes” for our union, SVA Faculty United - UAW, SVA will have a legal obligation to negotiate with faculty as equals over our pay, benefits, and working conditions. The more of us who participate in this important decision and vote yes, the more effectively we will be able to negotiate for improvements with SVA.

Now more than ever, it’s more important that we have an organized voice. As we approach our union election, we encourage you to keep in mind some basic information about collective bargaining:

1. Unions provide a stronger collective voice. Thousands of faculty and arts workers in the UAW have used collective bargaining to negotiate improvements at colleges and cultural institutions across the country — from enhanced compensation and benefits, to stronger rights around job security, professional development, and more, so that faculty don’t have to fend for ourselves alone. Read about some of the gains unionized faculty have won at other institutions here.

2. Unions provide a democratic voice. As SVA faculty, we make up our own union. We will elect a bargaining committee of our peers to negotiate with SVA, we will collectively decide and vote on our bargaining priorities, and we will vote on any contract before it goes into effect. Other faculty unions have consistently shown that robust democratic participation helps establish stronger rights, protections, and improvements through collective bargaining.

3. Unions enhance our ability to continue to make SVA a better place to teach and to learn. We are part of a growing national movement organizing in academia and the arts, with 120,000 college and university workers who have already become part of the UAW, including New York Film Academy, Barnard College, NYU, and Parsons (The New School) in NYC.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at svafacultyunited.uaw@gmail.com, or check out our website FAQs. We will be sure to keep everyone informed with any additional information.

Best,

Joan Hilty, BFA Comics
On behalf of SVAFAC-UAW Organizing Committee