Grad students unionize after seven-year effort, reflect on organizing under Trump 

By Marissa Kelley, Senior Staff Writer • January 17, 2025

In November, graduate student workers voted to unionize with the United Steelworkers following longstanding concerns about low stipends, expensive health insurance and a lack of protections against discrimination.

A guide to ongoing negotiations between Pitt’s administration, campus union efforts

By Emma Hannan and Abby Lipold • February 23, 2024

Pitt union organizations are continuing their negotiations with the Pitt administration and Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board over labor rights issues.

‘Direct attack’: Health insurance hikes push graduate students’ budgets to the breaking point

By Jack Troy, Senior Staff Writer • September 5, 2023

Many students at Pitt who are hospitalized may hit their out-of-pocket maximum of $4,200 by the end of the academic year. That’s 21% of the minimum stipend for graduate workers — an unacceptable burden, students affected by the changes say.

Oakland news roundup

By Priya Ray, Staff Writer • July 25, 2020

With the fall semester beginning in just a few weeks, here is a guide to some of the biggest stories at Pitt.

Analysis: Comparing Pitt’s current Ballard Spahr spending with pre-unionization

By Neena Hagen, Senior Staff Writer • January 22, 2020

Since the graduate and faculty union campaigns launched in 2016, Pitt has paid more than $1.3 million to “union avoidance” legal giant Ballard Spahr — an average of $328,000 per year.

Pitt’s bill for ‘union avoidance’ law firm passes $1 million

By Jon Moss, News Editor • January 12, 2020

A “union avoidance” law firm continues to receive a large windfall of legal fees from Pitt, recently passing $1 million, according to University financial disclosure reports.

Grad union organizers hold demonstration on sky bridge

By Benjamin Nigrosh, Staff Writer • December 4, 2019

Grad union organizers pressed paper letters against the windows of the Forbes Avenue sky bridge Wednesday afternoon.

Editorial: NLRB unionization proposal is a step backwards

By The Pitt News Editorial Board • September 23, 2019

This new proposal is a bleak reminder of just how difficult unionization really is, and just how far we still have to go.

Labor official: Pitt website, department chair email involved in unfair practices

By Emily Wolfe, News Editor • September 19, 2019

Unless the board files an exception to Helmerich’s ruling — it has 20 days to do so, in accordance with PLRB regulations — graduate students will soon vote again on the union question.

PLRB rules Pitt committed unfair labor practices, orders new grad union election

By Janine Faust, Editor-in-chief • September 18, 2019

Hearing Examiner Stephen Helmerich said in his hearing that Pitt committed “coercive acts” leading up to the vote in April about whether or not graduate students should join the Academic Workers Association of the United Steelworkers, where the outcome was 675 for a union and 712 against.