FAM-T Bargaining, Day 4

We’re taking action on ICE

We formed our union in order to preserve Miami’s educational mission and fight for what’s right for librarians and faculty at Miami. Today, we continued that legacy by introducing new language that would protect all employees at Miami in the event that they encounter federal immigration enforcement agents, including ICE. Our new Memorandum of Understanding on Immigration Enforcement Access and Information Sharing would: 

1. Prohibit management from sharing immigration or citizenship status except as required by law (in keeping with current practice); 
2. Require management to provide information and training to all personnel regarding protocol for interaction with ICE or other federal agents, including guidance that has already been shared with faculty and is captured on our website; 
3. Require management to designate a representative from the university that should be contacted in the event of an encounter with ICE or other federal agents; and
4. Require management to provide Know Your Rights information and/or training to all employees by the end of this calendar year. 

We also reached our first Tentative Agreement today: on Non-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment. And we passed across counters on Appointments and Association Rights, and new versions of our proposals on Shared Governance and Artificial Intelligence. These articles protect our members’ job security, academic freedom, and intellectual property around AI and allow members to provide input into Miami policy and procedure. 

Management presented a counter on Compensation, increasing their previous offer of 1% annual increases per year to just 1.25% per year. Management’s counter would also limit which of our members would be eligible for even that measly amount based on annual evaluations. We are committed to continuing to fight for fair raises for all bargaining unit members, especially given that real average wages for full-time faculty members nationally decreased 0.4 percent in 2025 and still haven’t returned to pre-Covid-19 pandemic levels (according to preliminary findings from AAUP’s annual Faculty Compensation Survey).

Finally, management proposed drastic changes to our existing Grievance and Arbitration article, attempting to limit our ability to enforce the contract and protect our members. They are clearly frightened of our successful grievance game.

We need YOU to help us move management at the table: 

• Come to next week’s bargaining sessions: April 21 and 22 (FAM-L); April 23 and 24 (FAM-T)!
• Find out more and get the inside bargaining scoop at our April General Membership Meeting: Tuesday, April 28, 11:40-12:40 on Zoom. 
• We’re gathering at Cook Field on May 1st 11:00am-1:00pm for a Funeral Party 🎉💪. Not to mourn, but to organize!

As we say a loving goodbye to Cook Field and the valuable academic programs that management is choosing to sacrifice, we’ll celebrate and grow our collective power to fight for the Miami we want.

When we fight, we win. Write info@famiami.org with questions or to get involved!