Our union has submitted our financial proposals to OSU management. We were careful in researching the financial conditions of our graduate employee population, and this first proposal we believe is a straightforward and reasonable request for improving the quality of life for all.

The proposal includes:

• 4% salary increase (this provision will make up for the erosion of real wages through inflation)

• Pre-tax deductions for child care with the first $100 matched by the university (this provision will enable existing working parents better ability to afford their higher education while also enabling graduate employees who are planning to have a family more opportunity to make that decision)

• Creation of a Graduate Assistant position for researching and developing programs surrounding family issues. (this role will be beneficial for all graduate employee workers and have beneficial impacts for the surrounding Corvallis community)

• Establishment of a “Hardship Fund” to start January 1, 2019 with a baseline of $50,000. (This fund will enable members to apply for grants if they are experiencing a qualifying hardship. Many of our members suffer from housing and food insecurity, and this fund will be one small step in meeting their basic needs for survival.)

In our research, we learned that 56% of all graduate employees at OSU are living at or below the poverty line ($24,112/year).

The average 1-bedroom rental in Corvallis is over $700/mo. This figure has doubled in only 8 years!

The average cost for child care for one child in Corvallis is $6,600 a year.

The cumulative inflation amount from 2016-2018 in Corvallis is 3.7%.

(These figures use data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics,

the MIT Living Wage Calculator, and local reporting from Gazette-Times,

Daily Barometer, and Oregonian)

We anticipate collaborative and reasonable deliberations from OSU management in future discussions regarding these financial proposals.

Our final session for Winter term is Thursday, March 22, 12:00-1:00PM at Westminster House (101 NW 23rd St.) We will be providing personal testimony on our previous DACA proposal, and potentially will hear OSU management’s thoughts on our previous health care proposal.