Letter to the Editor: On the CA Union

Dear Amherst Student Editors,

We would first like to preface that the following letter is written within the context of a student role, and represents our views as individuals. Our opinions do not speak on behalf of Amherst College, the Office of Community Living, or any other campus department.

On Nov. 22, we sent an email to the Amherst College administration requesting voluntary recognition of the Amherst College Community Advisors Union (ACCAU), citing the fact that 77% of the staff had expressed support for the ACCAU through union authorization cards signed electronically. This past Friday, we received a response from Dean Angie Tissi-Gassoway and President Michael Elliott. Our request for voluntary recognition was denied, due to a stated belief on the part of the administration that pursuing unionization through the National Labor Review Board (NLRB) “offers an opportunity for all community advisors (CAs) to learn about what representation would entail and to have their voices heard through a democratic voting process.” Tissi-Gassoway and Elliott then stated that “If you decide to move forward with an NLRB election, we are fully committed to supporting a process that is fair, transparent, and undertaken in good faith, and we will abide by the lawful outcome.”

This formal statement of support for pursuing unionization through an NLRB election and a commitment to respecting the outcome is an ideal result and gives hope for the future. To provide some context, there are traditionally two methods to pursue unionization: through either an NLRB election or voluntary recognition. We chose the latter this semester due to concerns that the Amherst administration would challenge the NLRB election, similar to what occurred at Clark University, where the college administration took advantage of the anti-union federal political climate to prevent student workers from unionizing. By seeking voluntary recognition, we hoped to avoid that situation while highlighting that our desire to unionize was not made out of a desire for retaliation, but out of a firmly held belief that unionizing would be to the benefit of CAs, the administration, and all residents and employees of Amherst College. 

While we disagree that the process thus far towards unionizing has not provided the opportunity for CAs to learn about union representation and to participate in a democratic process to form one, we are happy to move forward with an NLRB election to quell any doubts in the benefits that unionizing would provide and the desire of CAs to take this action towards bettering their lives and the lives of their residents. 

We have received some questions regarding the logistics of the unionizing process and the steps following unionization, specifically those surrounding contract negotiations. This process is long and at times complex, and organizers of the ACCAU have spent the better part of the last two years being trained by professional organizers, researching, and preparing to conduct this process as best we can. If insufficient information has been provided in response to those questions, rest assured that it is not out of ignorance or incompetency on the part of the ACCAU Organizing Committee, but rather because it is information we either cannot know at the time due to our need to wait for responses from third parties, or information that we cannot divulge in the interests of ensuring this process is allowed to be carried out to its full potential. Issues such as the possibility of union dues, the question of whether new CAs would be required to join the union upon entering the workforce, and the structure of the union itself are all issues that will be addressed during contract negotiations. They legitimately cannot be addressed until contract negotiations. Contract negotiations are an extremely collaborative process, and the details of the union will be democratically chosen by the CA workforce. Unions have been established at Amherst’s peer institutions for decades. There is an established process for unionization and many examples upon which to base our union structure, all of which are highly democratic and ensure that all voices are heard and heeded. Student-employee unions exist at fellow members of the Five College Consortium, namely Smith College and Mount Holyoke College, and their union structures have proven to be highly effective.

Now we wish to address the student body and alumni. We encourage you to reflect on what your CA(or residential advisor) has done for you. Perhaps they supported you in a time of emotional crisis, referring you to the right resource when you needed it most. Or perhaps they insisted on repairing a broken laundry machine or toilet, served as a friendly face in the hall, or were particularly proficient at planning the perfect programs. For those of you who feel neglected by your CA, we understand and apologize. But we also ask you to recognize that all CAs are held to a rigorous accountability process — they would not remain in their role if they weren’t doing their job. There are positive changes that can be made to the role so we can better support your wellbeing, but those changes must be made with CAs at the table, provided with the security to feel safe and supported in their position so they can in turn help you feel safe and supported in yours.

Amherst is a beautiful place — a bastion of thought, reason, and principle. In times such as these when long-held rights, such as the right to unionize, are being challenged, we count on places like Amherst to uphold the rights and values that have allowed employees to unionize in many other institutions of higher learning. We call on all those who believe in the values that the college stands for to hold this institution to those values and to expect nothing less than for our right to unionize to be respected when the NLRB election is complete, as the administration has committed to do.

Claire Beougher ’26 and the ACCAU Organizing Committee