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Service & Solidarity Spotlight: University of Maine Graduate Student Workers Win Union Certification

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our Service & Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

A majority of graduate student workers at the University of Maine signed cards in support of organizing with the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW). The Maine Labor Relations Board last week certified its union as University of Maine Graduate Workers Union-UAW. The new union will represent the 1,000 graduate workers across all campuses of the University of Maine System.

“Our work powers the educational and research mission of the university, and was instrumental in UMaine receiving the status of an R1 rated research university,” said Em Sowles, a research assistant in the physics department. “In short, UMaine works because we do.”