February 4, 2021

Access to affordable housing is a long-standing problem for Student Researchers. For many, COVID-19 has exacerbated the issue. SRs are performing their research from home, oftentimes in overcrowded housing, a main vector by which the pandemic spreads. How has the housing crisis affected you?

My partner – a Postdoc at UCLA – and I both got sick in March. Ten months later, she is still sick and can’t stand for more than two hours at a time. We have medical bills, and if she can’t work we’re down to one salary. We live in on-campus housing at UCLA and the University charges me 75% of my salary as a Graduate Student Researcher for rent. As an F-1 visa holder, I cannot work beyond a 50% appointment even if I had the time. UCLA raised our rent again in July, threatened people with collections agencies, and is saying they will place academic holds on student accounts if we don’t pay.

The unions of Teaching Assistants (UAW 2865) and Postdocs & Academic Researchers (UAW 5810) at UC and the union of Postdocs, Research Assistants, & TAs at the University of Washington in Seattle (UAW 4121) are all circulating surveys to gather information on how the cost of housing is affecting Academic Employees on the West Coast. Give your input as a Student Researcher here.

This is a first step towards winning more affordable housing across our institutions. Adding the voices of over 10,000 SRs at UC to the voices of the tens of thousands of UAW Academic Workers taking action on housing will bring a new level of power to the issue. Can you help circulate union authorization cards to your friends and labmates? Reply to this email to get in touch with an SR on your campus who can help you get started.

Sincerely,
James Boocock
Graduate Student Researcher
Human Genetics, UCLA

PS – In January, SRU sent out an email encouraging SRs to submit comments in support of a more robust paid family and parental leave policy at UC. Over 100 SRs submitted comments! If you did not already comment, you can do so at this link. The comment period is open until February 8th.