There are so many reasons to support forming a union, including pay increases, contract security, equity of service, and facility improvements. During these recent unprecedented times, I support the union because standing together we have a better chance at ensuring that the voices of faculty and staff are not left behind in the decision making process, particularly those voices most vulnerable among us. There has been a disturbing lack of clarity and transparency from the administration this past year as faculty and staff have feverishly worked overtime at costs and losses both personal and financial. Our workload continues to increase as we continue to train and prepare for more uncertainty. Our annual faculty activity reports have been expanded to include pandemic-related challenges. However, we were asked to only include issues that the Dean’s Office has not yet heard. If our concerns have been voiced but not addressed, do our voices really matter at all in the eyes of our superiors? Wouldn’t the administration want to know what issues remain unresolved and our ideas for remediating these challenges? Transparency and humane practices over profits are currently my motivation for supporting the union efforts. Will the administration follow the lead of other major institutions that are requiring Covid vaccinations among their communities, including the student body? If not, why? Are we going back to ‘normal’ in the fall and what does this even mean? It seems that the administration spent a lot of time and money on the branding and implementation of Flex@Pitt to discontinue it now and to do so without any other reassurances that they are doing everything they can to keep faculty and staff safe from a life-threatening virus. But, maybe this isn’t the case. Maybe we won’t be expected to return to normal in the fall. I teach in a digital lab in a basement with poor ventilation where the capacity limit was assessed at three people, including the professor. If we go back to face-to-face learning in the fall at full capacity, that number will likely increase over five times. If vaccinations aren’t going to be required, but my presence in the lab will be, I am being asked to put myself and my loved ones at continued risk to Covid exposure. My point is, we really don’t know what the real plan is and we are not being included in the decision making process. Maybe it’s not all that bad. But shouldn’t we know and shouldn’t we have a say in what that future holds? Or should we just have faith that our superiors will put our best interests over their profits? With a union, we can work together to make our voices heard and to make Pitt a much more equitable and humane place for all faculty and staff.
--Melissa Catanese, Studio Arts
--Melissa Catanese, Studio Arts