Dear Grad Workers,
Our next bargaining session is on May 7th, just over a week away. Our previous bargaining session made clear that NMSU isn’t interested in bargaining in good faith (see the previous update for details), but we still believed that NMSU planned to come to the table and try to reach a mutual agreement. It looks like we were wrong.
In less than an hour, the Board of Regents will meet to vote on a proposal for the 26-27 fiscal year budget (see for yourself in their posted agenda). The thing is: How could they vote on a proposed budget if they don’t yet know the outcome of the agreement we’re currently negotiating?
It seems like they knew we would have questions, so they elected not to hold public comment at this meeting. The only reasonable conclusion is this: NMSU has decided they’re going to force grads to accept an effective pay cut. They seemingly have no intentions of bargaining in good faith, and no intentions of giving our proposals any thought.
NMSU hopes you’re not paying attention so they can ram this through. In order to win more than a pay cut for grads, we need everyone to get involved. Check your email for details on how to do so. We’ll see you soon.
In Solidarity,
Your Bargaining Committee