October 15, 2025

UUP has taken an important step toward opening its negotiations with the state on a new contract, with the UUP Negotiations Committee’s unanimous approval of a list of conceptual proposals that UUP will bring to the bargaining table.

The Negotiations Committee unanimously approved the proposals Oct. 10 at the conclusion of a two-day meeting in Albany. The UUP Negotiations Team—which conducts the contract bargaining with the state—developed the list of conceptual proposals along with UUP President Fred Kowal.

“I came away super-enthused about the response we got,” said UUP’s chief negotiator, Bret Benjamin of the Albany Chapter, who led the meeting. “It was very positive—a great response by the committee.”

The conceptual proposals cover the top priorities upon which the union will base its bargaining. The proposals include revisions of existing provisions in the contract as well as new provisions the union seeks to add to the contract.

A democratic process

All three member-based UUP groups that play a role in the development of a new contract asked questions and offered suggestions at the meeting. The three groups, authorized by the union’s constitution, are the Negotiations Team, the Negotiations Committee and the Ad Hoc Advisory Committee—which helps gather input from UUP chapters on members’ priorities for the next contract.

Once the Negotiations Team reaches a tentative agreement with the state, the Negotiations Committee votes to accept or reject the proposal. If accepted, the agreement goes to UUP’s membership for a ratification vote.

Only UUP members can vote on a contract. Click HERE to become a UUP member.

The union has opened many channels so that UUP-represented employees throughout the bargaining unit can continue to ask questions and offer comments about contract negotiations.

More than 13,000 UUP-represented employees responded to a survey from the union about what matters to them in the next contract. Employees in the bargaining unit also had the opportunity to attend forums during the summer, and they can discuss their concerns with their chapter leaders at any time.

Employees with questions can also email the Negotiations Team at contract@uupmail.org

Important work at tough times

At the meeting, UUP President Fred Kowal reminded the gathering of the gravity of their task, especially at a time when thousands of federal employees in public-sector unions have had their contracts negated and their right to collectively bargain dismissed by the Republican-led administration—an action that federal courts have upheld. Unions face tough times, Kowal said.

“Day in and day out, in all the work we do, we forget the value of collective bargaining,” Kowal said before the committees began reviewing the final list of suggested conceptual proposals. “Without a union, without the right to collectively bargain, we’d all be on our own. The work that you’re going to start doing is so important—showing to your colleagues, and yes, the nation, what a union can do.”

Neither UUP nor the state disclose their proposals at this early stage. Once UUP and the state have exchanged their proposals, UUP expects to share them with the membership.

The list generally covers issues at the heart of UUP’s terms and conditions of employment: compensation; grievances; disciplinary procedures; appointments, evaluations and promotions; job security and paths to permanency for non-tenure-track faculty; retrenchment; work-life services and health insurance.

How to stay informed

The union does not have a date yet for starting negotiations, but Benjamin said the goal is to begin talks as soon as the state is ready. The current contract expires July 1, 2026, but the key provisions for terms and conditions of employment will remain in effect by state law, even if a new agreement has not yet been reached by the expiration date.

Look for updates on negotiations through the UUP Members Only section of the UUP website at https://uupunion.org/myuup/MembersOnly/ and also in the UUPConnect newsletter. If you are not receiving UUPConnect and would like to be added to the distribution list for this weekly update on UUP events and news stories, contact UUP Communications Director Mike Lisi at Mlisi@uupmail.org.