Georgetown Grad Assistants Form Union

Graduate assistants at Georgetown University voted 555 to 108 to form a union affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers, the university and the union announced in a joint statement Friday. Approximately 1,100 students were eligible to vote. The American Arbitration Association conducted the election, as part of an agreement between Georgetown and the union to hold an election outside of National Labor Relations Board channels. Graduate students at other institutions have asked for similar election agreements in recent years, since the future of a major 2016 NLRB decision in favor of graduate student unions on private campuses is uncertain under a Trump-era board.