There’s a certain section of the population that knows what it’s like to deadlift 650lbs, or see the sunrise breaking over the mountains after a cold and rainy slog, or unknot the complexities of the perfect spice blend, the finished crochet project, or the last bug in the code. Yesterday, at our bargaining session, we got a taste of that feeling: the hell yeah.
Almost five years of collaborative organizing brought us to our 5th bargaining session, and in the last 15 minutes of that session, we reached a tentative agreement (TA) with management on our contract! But tentative is not final. We need your help, along with all Research Coordinators and Consultants (CoCos). The next step is a ratification vote, which is where we formally accept (ratify) the contract through an online voting process. Please be on the lookout for emails in the coming days on how to submit your vote! Having a large majority participation in the ratification vote will let UW know CoCos support this contract and will be actively enforcing our newly won rights and protections!
Here are some of the agreements we came to:
- 3.5% pay increase for all CoCos on November 1, 2025
- 1% pay increase for all CoCos on April 1, 2026
- Increased salary range minimums by 15% for lower pay grades (currently Research Coordinators/Consultants 6, 7, and 8) and 10% for higher pay grades (currently Research Coordinators/Consultants 9, 10/11)
- New job classifications that provide transparency on minimum qualifications and job duties for each Research Coordinator and Consultant pay grade, allowing for a clearer path to promotion
- The tentative agreement can be read in full here (all articles from the RSE contract that are implemented with current contract language) and here (all articles with modification for implementation)
We now have improved working conditions and better pay parity with our RSE colleagues. How did we make such significant movement since last Monday’s session? Perhaps UW’s been watching some of the videos that CoCos and supportive PIs made showcasing the important work we do and why we deserve to be compensated fairly. Or maybe they heard about our open letter (which had 320+ signatures and counting) demanding a fair contract and pay parity with RSEs. We owe incredible thanks to everyone who spoke up, spread the word, signed their name, and demonstrated what we can accomplish when we act together. This is what collective power looks like. And it is our intention to push even further next spring, when we can leverage the combined bargaining power of all the CoCos and RSEs 2,000 strong.
What’s next?
Over the coming week everyone will have the opportunity to vote to ratify the contract. We’ll hold a ratification party on Thursday, July 24th at 4 PM to celebrate this milestone!
Additionally, we are now eligible to sign up for union membership! Majority membership builds power to enforce our new contract. No membership dues are collected until ratification.
Thanks everyone. It’s been a long road but the clouds are breaking. Hell yeah.