Representatives from proposed and official unions representing a broad coalition of faculty and students rallied near Tommy Trojan on Wednesday to pressure USC on a variety of fronts.

The rally combined efforts of unionized School of Cinematic Arts adjunct faculty, postdoctoral scholars, graduate student workers as well as the proposed union of research, teaching, practitioner and clinical-track faculty — also known as RTPC faculty. 

Demonstrators demanded that the University address several of the groups’ concerns, including undecided items in the ongoing contract negotiations between USC and postdoctoral scholars following their unionization in June 2024, as well as the University’s efforts to block the unionization of RTPC faculty. 

Yevonne Robertson, a field representative for California Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas — who represents USC’s district — delivered a message on behalf of Cuevas. Robertson said that Cuevas “stands in solidarity” with the unionizing workers, who she said were part of a “growing movement” for justice across the country. 

“These workers are the backbone of the world-class teaching and research that USC claims to champion. Yet, instead of supporting those who make this institution run, USC is choosing to follow the agenda of union-busting billionaires,” Robertson read from Smallwood-Cuevas’ statement.

Postdocs, RTPC faculty press USC on progress

USC Researchers and Fellows United – United Auto Workers, the postdoctoral researchers’ union, has expressed frustration at what it has said is a stalled progress of negotiations for its first contract with the University. Among the items left on the table, and a major demand of Wednesday’s rally, is an independent process to handle harassment reporting. 

Currently, postdocs must settle reports through USC’s Office of Civil Rights Compliance. Priscilla Chan, a postdoctoral researcher in the Keck School of Medicine of USC’s Department of Neurology and a member of URF-UAW’s bargaining team, said that is a “dangerous” system in a speech at the rally.

“USC ultimately gets to decide the timeline and outcome of claims without much say on our part,” Chan said. “USC is choosing, time and time again, to silence their so-called Trojan family.”

The University stood by its policy in a statement to the Daily Trojan on Aug. 21. 

“Our existing compliance policies and processes, including those specifically addressing all forms of discrimination or harassment, are best in class,” the statement read. “Those policies are mandated by federal law, were developed in consultation with the country’s leading experts and work to protect all members of our community.”

Several faculty members, postdoctoral researchers and graduate workers voiced their frustrations with the University at the rally and urged faculty to unite in opposition to what they said was unfair treatment.

Kate Levin, associate teaching professor of writing at the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, spoke as a member of United Faculty – United Auto Workers, a proposed union of more than 2,000 RTPC faculty from almost all of the University’s schools.

“It’s time for RTPC faculty … to sit down at the bargaining table and collectively bargain a strong union contract that lets us work with security and dignity,” Levin said during a speech at the rally.

UF-UAW filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board to form a union in December 2024, but the University challenged the effort, claiming that RTPC faculty positions are managerial roles that already have a voice in the Academic Senate and other forms of shared governance. Managerial positions are also not permitted to unionize under the National Labor Relations Act.

The University also challenged the constitutionality of the NLRB in its position statement, arguing its structure limited the removal of board members and permitted members to exercise executive, legislative and judicial power. Patrick Corbin, an associate professor at the Kaufman School of Dance, said the University was siding with corporations like SpaceX and Amazon, who accused the NLRB of being unconstitutional in 2024. 

Faculty members share speeches

Howard Rodman, a tenured professor at SCA, said at the rally that, while individuals hold limited power, if faculty — including tenure-track faculty, who are contractually prevented from unionizing — came together to support campus unions, they could secure more protections for all USC faculty.

Chan said she has been with USC since 2018, when she was a PhD student. She said she has garnered international attention through her research and became a valuable asset for USC’s marketing, but she didn’t feel respected by the University.

“Although it makes me feel like they value my research, their refusal to provide postdocs with the support we have been asking for in the past year makes me feel like they don’t value me as a postdoc or individual,” Chan said in a speech at the rally.

Achinta McDaniel, a part-time lecturer at Kaufman, said she received a revised employment letter from USC cutting her hours from 22 to 15 on Aug. 11. McDaniel said the revision had adverse effects on her course load, salary and health insurance, subsequently affecting her children’s health insurance and leaving her unsupported in the process.

“Without a union, you’re left alone. When we have a union, we’re protected,” McDaniel said. “We have a community. We have resources. We can side with each other. We can make our voices loud and heard.”