From Brendan McGovern, UUP Binghamton Chapter President
ITHACA, NY – Members of UAW Local 2300, representing around 1,200 custodians, groundskeepers, cooks, food service workers, mechanics, greenhouse workers, gardeners, and other essential workers at Cornell’s Ithaca campus, have just ratified a new four-year contract. This followed a strike that started August 18 and ended September 3. Higher education unions, particularly members of United University Professions (UUP) from nearby Binghamton and Cortland, stood in solidarity with the UAW 2300 workers both before and during the strike. UUP is a member of Higher Ed Labor United (HELU).
With a decisive 77% vote in favor, the new contract is a game changer. In addition to significant wage increases of up to 25.4% and a first-ever cost of living adjustment (COLA), it introduces comprehensive improvements to workplace safety policies, inclement weather procedures, and time-off policies. Notably, it eradicates the two-tier wage system, a long-standing grievance among workers, which had created unequal pay scales for employees based on their hiring date.
“This is a victory for all workers who deserve fair wages and conditions,” said UAW Local 2300 President Christine Johnson. “Our members showed immense strength in their unity and commitment to fighting for the contract we deserve. By standing together, we forced Cornell to meet our demands and recognize the value of our contributions.”
The strike pushed Cornell to invest an additional $6 million beyond its original offer, bringing the total wage and benefit increases to $43 million over the life of the contract. Initially, Cornell had offered $37 million, a figure the workers found inadequate, given the rising cost of living in Ithaca. The university’s endowment, which surged by 39% in just four years to nearly $10 billion, combined with a 13% tuition increase in recent years, underscored the disparity between the university’s financial growth and the declining real wages of its workers.