SGWU Membership and Dues FAQ

Union Membership and Dues FAQ:

All PhD, Master’s (excluding MBA), and JD students (as well as students pursuing degree combinations that include PhD, Master’s [excluding MBA], and JD) who provide instructional and/or research services for the University in classifications including Teaching Assistant, Research Assistant, and Course Assistant, and students on fellowship who provide instructional services.
Specific exclusions are listed in the recognition clause of the tentative agreement, and listed at the end of this document

To become a current member of the Union, you must sign a membership card and pay monthly membership dues. The easiest way to do this is to fill out a digital membership/dues authorization form (link to our Broadstripes card). You must be a member to participate in the ratification vote.
If you were previously a member, to become a current member, you must sign a new digital membership card.

I am currently paying voluntary dues to SGWU-UE Local 1043 voluntarily–do I need to continue paying those dues?

We will stop collecting voluntary dues in the near future and institute dues collection as agreed upon in the tentative agreement.

Dues fund a strong union that can win better wages, benefits, and working conditions. Union dues go directly to SGWU-UE Local 1043 to fund the training, support, materials, staff and other resources we need to maintain an independent, democratic, rank-and-file union.

Union dues are 1.44% of our gross monthly stipend.
All graduate workers who receive the full benefits and protections of the contract, are required to either pay dues as union members with voting privileges or else pay equivalent agency fees to cover the costs of collective bargaining and contract enforcement. Our union constitution sets the amount for both dues and agency fees to be 1.44% of our pay.
Under California tax law, 1/3 of union dues can count as a tax credit beginning in 2025. After this tax credit, union dues will only be 0.96% of pre-tax income. This tax credit may be amended in the 2025-2026 budget, which is subject to final legislative approval.

If you are covered by our contract, you can either become a member of SGWU-UE Local 1043 and pay dues or, if you choose not to become a member, pay an agency fee to the Union. This fee, which is authorized by federal law, is equivalent to union dues and covers your fair share of supporting our effort to bargain collectively with our employer and improve and defend our working conditions. Non-member fee-payers forego all rights and benefits of union membership. Non-members can sign up to pay monthly fees through payroll deduction here.
Importantly, becoming a member of the union gives you the right to vote in union elections, run for union officer and steward positions, attend General Membership Meetings (GMMs), and participate in the decision-making and democracy of our union. Only union members are eligible to vote.

I am a fellow excluded from the bargaining unit, can I become a member of the union? Do I have to pay dues?

We welcome fellows to join our union. They have to sign the same cards as those in the bargaining unit to join the union and have voting rights and privileges. If you authorize payroll deduction for your union dues or agency fees while you are a fellow, these payroll deductions will only occur while you are in the bargaining unit. If the union requires dues to be in good standing, those rules will apply to fellows as well.

You will only pay dues via payroll deduction on the percentage of your paycheck that is bargaining unit work. If the union requires full dues to be in good standing, the remainder would need to be paid via the requirements for fellows should you wish to have voting rights and privileges.

The most convenient way to pay dues is by signing up for payroll deduction using the digital membership/dues authorization form. By filling out this form, your dues will automatically be deducted from your paycheck and forwarded to the Union.
If you would prefer not to use this convenient method of automatic payment, you may pay your dues directly to SGWU-UE Local 1043 on a monthly basis.

We will begin collecting dues after the contract is ratified, no earlier than March. We will send out an email informing you of dues collection 4 weeks prior to the first dues collection.

I have questions about union membership, dues or agency fees. How can I get answers?

Other exempt employees (including faculty or staff enrolled using University tuition benefit)
students who are not providing research or instructional services for any class listed in Stanford Explore Courses, including all other students on fellowship
all other students (including but not limited to the following students: MBA, DMA, JSD, MD, and undergraduate students [including undergraduates who are coterminously enrolled in graduate program], students not seeking Stanford degrees, and visiting students)
Office clericals, managers, guards and supervisors as defined in the National Labor Relations Act.