FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Samantha Shewmaker, samantha.shewmaker@seiu668.org

102 Pennsylvania State Legislators Ask Penn State Administration to Exercise Neutrality in Union Organizing Efforts

(Harrisburg) One hundred and two state legislators, senators and representatives of the General Assembly, are publicly calling on Penn State University’s Administration to exercise neutrality toward faculty unionization. Senator Jay Costa, Minority Leader, sent the letter to Penn State’s Administration on behalf of the 102 signatories. In the last few weeks, the PSU Administration has increased its anti-union messaging, designed to divide and confuse faculty.

"We are urging Penn State’s administration to allow the faculty a free and fair process to form their union and to bargain collectively, without intimidation or threats. Faculty organizing and collective bargaining at Penn State will enable the university to join all other public institutions of higher education in the Commonwealth in providing a clear and transparent process for true shared governance," stated State Senator Lindsey Williams (SD-38). “Improved working conditions and opportunities for faculty to help charter the course of Penn State’s future will result in even stronger results for our students and our communities throughout Pennsylvania”.

The Penn State Faculty Alliance seeks a collaborative dialogue and collective bargaining to improve the quality of research, education experience, and working conditions for everyone in the Penn State community. “We are so pleased to announce the support and solidarity from so many elected leaders across our Commonwealth. We continue to meet with Penn State’s Administration and look to finalize an agreement for a mail-in ballot election later this Spring. Penn State faculty have been organizing for years, and we look forward to working with the members of the General Assembly to strengthen and preserve access to high-quality university education for students across Pennsylvania,” commented Andrea Adolph, Professor of English, at New Kensington and PSFA Faculty Organizer.

You can read the text of the letter and see the signatories here.