Key Takeaways

• We asked the Administration to investigate a decision by some areas of the Department of Medicine to force remote workers to return to work on campus 3 days a week.

• We began the process of choosing the staff members who will work with the Administration to resolve questions surrounding inclusion in the bargaining unit(s).

• Status Quo issues of supplemental pay, promotions, and raises have been mostly resolved 

On February 26, 2025 we met the Administration for our fourth bargaining session. We spent most of the day dealing with an issue of urgent and critical importance. It was brought to our attention that some Department of Medicine employees with Flexible Work Arrangements (FWAs) are being ordered back to in person work. The communication these employees received said that this directive was done in agreement with the Union, which is completely untrue. We continue to assert that this decision would require bargaining with the Union, which has not happened. Despite our demands to bargain on this issue since November, the University Administration is now insisting that they can unilaterally require these staff members to return to in person work. We think this is outrageous, and we are concerned that this could happen to other staff with FWAs. Therefore, we are organizing a response to protest this. We will be in touch soon to provide further details.

In our previous bargaining session, we and the Administration agreed to the formation of a committee of representatives from both sides who will review positions for unit inclusion in a collaborative way. We began selecting the staff members who will serve on this committee, which will begin meeting in March. This is a complicated issue, but one of deep concern to many staff members. 

If you believe that your status as included or not included in the bargaining unit is not correct, please fill out the form here and our joint committee will look into it.

The Administration told us that most of the backlog of status quo issues such as supplemental pay, raises, and promotions have now been resolved, and any current delays are likely on a department or responsibility center level. For "exempt" staff, recent changes should be reflected in your pay at the end of February.  If you have an issue that has NOT been resolved in this pay period, please let us know at staffunionofpitt@usw.org and we will help.