May 1, 2026
Photo credit: Natalie Bartel, The Loyola Phoenix
Thousands of union members at four higher education unions across the country will celebrate May Day carrying signs on picket lines.
They’ve gone on strike.
And two more unions, one representing about 400 unionized nontenure-track faculty at Loyola University and the other representing over 40,000 union members at the University of California, are set to strike on May Day (May 1) and May 14, respectively.
The unions voted to strike after their frustrated members became incensed over fruitless contract negotiations that have lasted months—and sometimes years.
While UUP can’t strike, UUP President Fred Kowal expressed strong support for union members on strike and those planning strike actions. UUP is negotiating a new contract with New York state; its current agreement elapses July 1.
“Even though unions have the right to collectively bargain, that does not guarantee that unions will negotiate fair contracts with their employers,” said Kowal. “Still, reaching agreement on a fair contract is at the heart of what organized labor is, and unions take that very, very seriously. We will do what it takes to get the best for our members and that sometimes means letting the other side know that you mean business.
“UUP urges our members to sign letters of support for their striking union siblings and to donate to strike funds to help sustain them while they are out of work,” Kowal added. “We stand with these unions and all unions fighting for better wages, job security and protections for their members.”
UUP members—and all state public sector workers—are prohibited from striking under the state’s Taylor Law. The Triborough Amendment to the Taylor Law requires public sector union contracts to remain in place until a new agreement is reached
The strikes started April 8 when AFSCME Local 1110, which represents about 350 janitorial, grounds and food service workers at Illinois State University, went on strike after five meetings with university administrators and a federal mediator.
You can read more about the strike HERE. You can sign an online petition supporting Local 1110 HERE and donate to its strike fund HERE.
On April 21, the 5,000-member Harvard Graduate Students Union (HGSU-UAW Local 5118) went on strike after 14 months of attempting to collectively bargain a new contract with Harvard University.
According to Inside Higher Ed, the union claims that administration has refused to negotiate cost-of-living adjustments, how the university will handle complaints of discrimination and harassment; and protections for noncitizen graduate workers.
You can sign HGSU’s online petition HERE. Click HERE to contribute to HGSU’s strike fund.
Graduate workers at the University of Illinois, represented by the Graduate Employees Organization Local 6297 (UIC GEO), initiated a strike April 27. The union, which represents more than 2,000 graduate, research and teaching assistants, has worked without a new contract since August 2025.
Read more about the strike HERE. Click HERE to donate to UIC GEO’s strike.
In Cambridge, Mass., the small but mighty Lesley University Core Faculty—82 nontenure-track faculty at Lesley University—initiated a two-day strike April 28 after nearly two years of negotiations for a new contract.
Part of SEIU Local 509, the union members, wants fair compensation, manageable workloads and a successorship clause to retain their union contract if the university is closed or sold. Read more HERE. Click HERE to sign an online petition.
In Chicago, Loyola Faculty Forward United is set to strike on May Day. Union members are demanding fair pay and raises that keep up with inflation, adequate parental leave and manageable workloads. Read more HERE. Click HERE to sign an e-letter to Loyola University Chicago administration.
AFSCME Local 3299, which represents service workers, patient care technical workers, skilled craft workers and others at the University of California’s 10 campuses, five medical centers, clinics, research labs and the UC Hastings College of Law, voted April 15 to go on an open-ended strike starting May 14.
The union is demanding livable wages that will attract and retain staff; affordable healthcare; housing benefits, job security and safe staffing levels. Read more about the upcoming strike HERE. Donate to the union’s strike fund HERE.
Meanwhile, two unions at Tufts University— United Labor of Tufts Resident Assistants, Office and Professional Employees Local 153 and members of SEIU Local 32BJ have begun contract negotiations with university officials.
Read more HERE.