We, the undersigned postdoctoral researchers of PRO-UAW Local 2322, undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, staff, and community members, are writing to affirm the fundamental role postdocs play in carrying out research at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. We support their quest for a contract that accounts for the rising cost of living in the time since their previous contract expired in 2022.

Postdocs come to UMass to further the world-class research that the university exalts. Postdocs perform experiments, mentor graduate and undergraduate students, coordinate collaborative projects, collect and organize data, write grants and fellowship proposals, and disseminate research results. In the past 3 years, postdocs have brought in nearly $5 million of independent research funding. That includes nearly $2 million of overhead, going directly to the university.

We support PRO’s key demands, including:
A living wage. We’ve presented data from our members and the Social Security Administration outlining the need to adjust wages so that they keep up with inflation. Management refuses to work with us to find a reasonable number, saying that a true living wage would not be “competitive.”

Address the housing crisis. PRO has asked for access to University family housing (i.e. University Village), but management has rejected our proposals outright, stating that “housing is a personal choice.” Every postdoc knows that housing is scarce and rents have skyrocketed in the area, especially for those seeking family housing.

Equity for postdocs with families. We requested parental leave be increased from only 8 weeks for all postdocs, to keep up with global standards. We also proposed to reduce the burden of coinsurance on postdocs who use our family plan.

Dignity and respect for all postdocs. We have proposed a number of changes to our contract that would establish necessary accommodations for postdocs to do their research. We want every postdoc to have an office space they can use outside of a lab. We want to increase the funding for visa reimbursements for international postdocs. And we want UMass to work with PRO to plan a yearly symposium where we can share the research we’re doing—and highlight the value and prestige we bring to UMass Amherst.

Improving the contract in these ways is necessary to adequately support postdoc labor and mitigate the currently untenable cost of living in Amherst and surrounding communities of Western Massachusetts. Many of the contract proposals are aimed at helping postdocs who have families, are rent burdened, and/or incur extra visa expenses. If UMass wants to competitively recruit postdocs to research labs, such protections need to be memorialized in the contract.

UMass Amherst is a public university and we acknowledge it has a responsibility as such to remove barriers and improve access for all postdocs to live and work in the Amherst area. Instead, the administration has made their perspective clear: postdocs should consider the training and prestige as more important than a salary that accounts for the actual cost of living in the area. We stand in solidarity with the postdocs of PRO and urge the university to acknowledge the experience postdocs bring to their research groups and the vital role they play in advancing the university’s research agenda by meeting their reasonable demands for a fair contract.