Frequently Asked Questions

A union is any group of workers who talk together and organize to improve their working conditions. Specifically, it involves workers who are not managers. The group of workers may be affiliated with a larger network of workers, in an established labor union (such as NewsGuild-CWA). Membership in an established labor union can provide significant support, guidance, and resources to help the group of workers (the union) negotiate with their employer to secure the things they need to improve their workplace.

The ‘CBA’ stands for the Collective Bargaining Agreement. This is the contract between the Union and Duke. The current CBA was ratified by the DUPWU on July 12th and signed by Duke on July 18th, 2024. After three years, negotiations and bargaining will begin again.

You can read the current CBA here.

See our mission statement for a more detailed answer to this question! Put simply, our goal is to make DUP a better place to work for everyone and to help it continue to publish the vital, cutting-edge scholarship it is known for.

US labor law protects our right as workers to come together in an organized way to negotiate with Duke University and DUP management over our workplace conditions.

We, the Duke University Press Workers' Union, believe that we deserve a work community that values justice, equity, and dignity for all DUP staff and that we are best equipped to determine our own needs and should have the power to meet them collectively. 

• The union represents everyone who works at DUP who is not in a management/supervisory role, an intern, or a confidential employee. This is called the bargaining unit.

• You and I will only enjoy the benefits of a union if everyone does! Everyone has worked very hard to make our workplace better, and your coworkers need your public support to ensure our collective success. The union is only as strong as its many members.

Union dues are worth the cost! With the raises guaranteed by our contract, joining the union has already been a net financial gain for us since union dues are a smaller percentage of our income. This also does not account for the monetary value of the other gains that we won in our contract. See the below FAQs for more detail. Members of unions across industries have higher incomes and better benefits than non-union members, making union dues well worth it, even from a purely financial perspective.

You can view our full contract on the About page.

Some highlights of the contract include:

• Raises

• Professional Development Fund

• Bereavement Leave

• Protection from overwork

Right-to-work laws essentially boil down to the fact that unions can’t require employees to pay dues as part of their employment nor can they require employees to be members of the union. That’s it! Functionally, right-to-work laws are designed to reduce a union’s ability to fund itself and thus reduce its ability to advocate for its workers in their workplace and in the broader political world.

Now it is more important than ever to have a union so we can advocate for our interests. A union contract not only improves working conditions but also guarantees security. Without a union, Duke can unilaterally freeze salaries, cut retirement benefits, and leave job positions unfilled, increasing work for everyone left. A contract can secure annual cost-of-living salary increases, set retirement and other benefits, and specify reasonable performance expectations so we don’t find ourselves overloaded in an already stressful time. During this most recent round of austerity measures, only Duke employees represented by unions retained their annual salary increases. It is also during times of crisis that having clear and equitable policies around medical, disability, and dependent-care leave becomes especially important.

If you are a DUP worker who would like to learn more or a community member interested in supporting our campaign, please email us at dupworkersunion@gmail.com.

Under Duke policy, hourly (biweekly) paid workers are entitled to 3 to 5 consecutive work days off for bereavement leave, depending on the relationship with the deceased. Salaried (monthly) paid workers must use sick leave to take time off to grieve. Under the contract, both groups are entitled to bereavement leave without having to use sick time. In addition, while Duke policy requires the leave be taken within consecutive calendar days, under the contract, we can take leave on consecutive work days – meaning you won’t waste bereavement leave if it includes a weekend, holiday, or other day you’re not scheduled to work.

Before signing the contract, many employees complained that Duke’s merit raise system was opaque and arbitrary. We could not depend on steady increases year to year, and the criteria for getting a higher raise based on PEP rating were unclear at best. Annual salary increases are now determined by the contract – in the first year, these were up to 8.7% for the lowest earners in the bargaining unit, and 5.2% for the median salary.

Thanks to our contract, Duke University will maintain a Professional Development Fund that’s available to employees of the Press. The Fund amounts to $15,000 per fiscal year. Each employee can draw from this fund up to $500 per fiscal year.  If you are a Press employee and would like to access these funds, submit a request to your manager and director. The request will be forwarded to HR who will then determine the validity of your request. Valid uses of the Fund include career development activities or materials, including conferences, technical training, networking events, etc.

Simply, a grievance is our mechanism for enforcing the contract. If you think your rights under the contract have been violated–or if you’re simply upset about something at work, whether that be a policy change, working conditions, how your supervisor or another employee treats you or your colleagues–talk to your steward! They are our resident experts on the contract, and they can help guide you in whether filing a grievance is appropriate. And even if it’s not, the union can help raise issues with management and make sure they’re aware that something needs to change.

If we file a grievance, the steps for resolving the issue are outlined in the contract. They may include mediation between you and your supervisor, meetings with upper management to come to an agreement, and if the problem can’t be resolved internally, moving to binding arbitration.

A union steward is a member of the union who represents and supports their co-workers. They can help you if you need to invoke your Weingarten Rights to file a grievance, and they’re also available to answer any questions you may have about the union. If you haven’t yet made contact with your steward, are interested in becoming one, or interested in learning more, please reach out to us at dupworkersunion@gmail.com.

This is the right of employees to have a union representative present during a meeting that the employee reasonably believes could lead to discipline. Weingarten Rights must be invoked by the employee, so it is important for you to know that you can request a union representative! This representative will be a union steward, and they are entitled to provide advice and assistance and may request critical information relevant to the meeting.

The Unit Council contains at least one unit Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Social Media Coordinator, and Event Coordinator.

• The Chair leads the unit as a whole, communicating with our designated Representative from the NewsGuild, serving as liaison on membership issues to the local, and organizing and running unit meetings.

• The Vice-Chair coordinates Unit activities, acts as secondary contact for stewards, local officers and DUP staff, and provides backup for the Chair when necessary.

• The Secretary takes meeting minutes, records quorum for general membership meetings, and generally ensures the unit has good record-keeping.

• The Social Media Coordinator maintains the unit website, calendar, and social media accounts.

• The Events Coordinator schedules and organizes events, to include socials, town halls, or any other form of unit-wide gatherings.

Just send us an email at dupworkersunion@gmail.com and we’ll get you a card to sign!

Please send us an email at dupworkersunion@gmail.com and we can get you signed up to our listserv, where we send out member-wide correspondence related to news, upcoming union events, etc. You can also come to our Office Hours which are every other Wednesday at Noon to speak over Zoom with members of the Unit Council. Please email us for the calendar and Zoom invitation.

Upcoming socials, office hours, and other events are listed on the Calendar and often shared on our instagram.