In light of our unit voting to reject the Tentative Agreement between Columbia University and our Bargaining Committee (BC) on April 30th, 2021, it is crucial that we come together to win a strong contract. We believe that the most democratic way to build our unity and power is for every member to decide who will represent their interests at the bargaining table in the next phase of negotiations.

With this in mind, we, the undersigned members of the Graduate Workers of Columbia (GWC), call for the immediate reconstitution of the BC. Upon the dissolution of the current BC, an election period will open, consisting of at least four weeks of open nominations, and two weeks of voting on nominated candidates for all 10 seats on the BC. All candidates will be given equal access to GWC communication channels to spread word about their candidacy, and unit members will host at least two public debates among candidates. All GWC members, including current BC members, shall be eligible to run in this election. The election will be supervised exclusively by GWC members on an Elections Committee (determined at a General Body Meeting), excluding those candidates seeking office.