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Nearly 200 people gathered at a rally in front of College Hall on Tuesday to support graduate student workers’ continued efforts to secure a contract with Penn amid ongoing bargaining efforts.
The rally was hosted by Graduate Employees Together — University of Pennsylvania, Penn's graduate student union, to “demand prompt negotiations toward a contract that improves [the] compensation, benefits, and working conditions" of graduate student workers, according to an Instagram post from the group. According to the University, the next round of bargaining will take place on Jan. 29.
A request for comment was left with a University spokesperson.
Violet Ullman, a GET-UP representative and third-year Ph.D candidate at Penn, said that the rally is the next step in graduate workers "continuing to push back" and "get more movement at the table."
"We've been pushing for turnout since the new year, and since we got back," Ullman said. "I think it shows that there is a ton of graduate workers here ready to fight for this contract even in the cold weather."
Speakers at the rally emphasized the importance of “collective action” and “community support." Many of the speakers described their frustration with Penn’s “slow” response to their proposals and Penn’s response to their initial seven-page proposal — which a GET-UP representative previously described to the DP as being completely "redlined" by Penn administrators.
Throughout the rally, graduate students and community members chanted “dare to struggle, dare to win” and “the workers united will never be defeated” in support of their cause.
Peter Bailer, a Ph.D candidate and research assistant in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, spoke at the rally as a member of GET-UP’s bargaining committee.
“Even when Penn does recognize our proposals and respond to them, it is clear that they do not respect the rights we are fighting to protect,” Bailer said. “In response to our six page long proposed article … [Penn] crossed every single line out and replaced it with three lines of text and a link to their website.”
There was also an emphasis on achieving protections for international students, specifically under the current Trump administration.
Yajna Sanguhan, a sixth-year political science Ph.D candidate and an international student from the United Kingdom, said that international students are "not powerless anymore" with the protection of the union.
“With this new Trump administration, we are a uniquely vulnerable group, and the changes in the last week alone have scared us all,” Sanguhan said. “That’s all the more reason why we need this contract to protect ourselves.”
GET-UP first voted to unionize in May after the University unexpectedly delayed their election, and the workers formed their first bargaining committee in July. In December, over 1,300 graduate students came together to sign a petition asking the administration to "end the needless delays" and "commit to a fair contract."
According to the group's Instagram, the petition was hand delivered to Interim Penn President Larry Jameson at the University Council Open Forum in December.
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