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Board of Aldermen backs graduate student workers at Saint Louis University
Summary
By unanimous embank and adoption, the board endorsed a resolution urging Saint Louis University to negotiate in good faith with graduate student workers, highlighting concerns about pay, healthcare and inability to hold outside work in some cases.
The Board of Aldermen on July 10 adopted Resolution 67 calling for Saint Louis University to engage in good-faith negotiations with graduate student workers. The sponsor, an alderman from the 7th, framed the measure around pay and working conditions for graduate students who teach, run labs and provide the labor of many university courses.
In remarks the sponsor noted graduate stipends of roughly $25,000 to $30,000 a year and compared that to a full living wage. "The average graduate student at Saint Louis University gets about $25,000 to $30,000 a year," the sponsor said, adding that some students are contractually restricted from outside employment and face high ER co-pays. The sponsor urged the university to negotiate and address healthcare and compensation gaps.
Several aldermen signed on as cosponsors and the board embanked the resolution — meaning all members placed their names as cosponsors — and then adopted it. The sponsor said the board’s support is intended to provide leverage to organizing students and urged continued engagement by the university.
Why it matters: The resolution does not impose a city policy on the university but signals municipal political support for graduate student labor concerns and could influence public conversations around university labor negotiations.
Next steps: The resolution is a formal statement of the Board’s position and does not mandate action by the university; organizers and students present in the gallery were acknowledged during the proceedings.
