The following letter was sent from Andrew McConnel Scott, vice provost for academic programs and Dean of the USC Graduate School.
Colleagues,
I am pleased to inform you that the university agreed to a tentative contract on Sunday with the union representing graduate student workers, after several successful negotiation sessions over the holiday weekend. The strike scheduled to begin tomorrow, November 28, has been called off.
I want to thank you for your patience and understanding during this process, and for the preparations you made in case of a strike. Faculty who made strike plans for classes or labs, such as modifying a final exam, assignment, or grading policy, are free either to revert to their original plans or to continue with the modification. Please communicate your decision clearly to your students and give them time to make any necessary adjustments.
The tentative contract we have agreed to provides graduate students with an industry-leading range of benefits and protections that reaffirm the university’s commitment to graduate education and ensures that they have access to one of the best funding packages in the country. If you have any questions about the tentative contract or next steps in ratifying the contract, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
You may read more on the terms here: graduateschool.usc.edu/uaw/
Thank you again, and all best wishes,
Andy
Andrew McConnell Stott
Vice Provost for Academic Programs
Dean of the USC Graduate School
Professor of English