Resident assistants begin four-day strike at BU
Resident assistants at Boston University went on strike for four days starting Friday, contributing to already boiling tensions on a campus where many graduate workers have been on strike for nearly three weeks.
The decision to strike came after nearly four months of negotiations with BU for a first contract, the union said. The union formed a year ago and represents 300 “Residence Life,” or “ResLife,” workers including resident assistants, graduate resident assistants, and graduate hall assistants, according to a spokesperson with SEIU Local 509, which represents both the residential and graduate workers striking for better pay and benefits.
“Between unpaid training time and managing the high RA-to-student ratios, many of us are struggling to find financial and academic stability,” said Jasmine A. Richardson, a second-year resident assistant. “BU has the resources to invest in us as workers, and settling a fair contract would bring us closer to a more equitable campus for all.”
BU spokesperson Rachel Lapal Cavallario said in a statement to the Globe that while BU is disappointed that residential life workers have chosen to strike while bargaining their first contract, school administrators are “committed to the negotiation process and hope it will bring the strike to an end quickly.”
The residential workers, who support students living in campus dorms, are demanding a wage of $15 per hour and an expansion of meal plans for their compensation; the school currently provides the workers free housing and requires resident assistants to maintain a minimum 2.70 cumulative GPA.
“ResLife workers at Boston University play a vital role in their community, offering essential support and guidance to our students as they navigate campus life,” said David Foley, president of SEIU Local 509, in the union news release. “As they join forces with graduate workers on strike, our union’s message is clear: we demand respect, fair treatment, and dignity in the workplace for all workers at BU.”
As part of the strike, residential life workers plan to not attend to their duties, which include running programming in their assigned halls, staffing the on-call office, enforcing residential life rules, and handling crises and conflicts that may arise, according to the release. Resident assistants can be either undergraduate or graduate students.
The union picked a strategic time to go on strike. BU has no classes on Monday for Patriots Day, which many students typically spend partying and celebrating the Boston Marathon, making it a crucial time for resident assistants to be present.