What is a Graduate Assistant?

A Graduate Assistant is a student enrolled in a graduate-level academic program who is employed by their university to assist in teaching, research, or other duties related to their course of study. At the University of South Florida, GAs may teach, conduct research, or have other responsibilities that contribute to the student's professional development. All graduate assistants employed by USF work under a contract negotiated by Graduate Assistants United (GAU) and the USF Board of Trustees. The GAU is the labor union certified as the exclusive bargaining agent for graduate assistants at USF.

Who is eligible to become a GAU Member?

Graduate Students at USF who are employed by the university as Graduate Assistants (Job Code 9185), Graduate Teaching Assistants/Associates (Job Codes 9183 and 9184), Graduate Instructional Assistants (Job Code 9550), and/or Graduate Research Assistants/Associates (Job Codes 9181 and 9182) are eligible for USF GAU membership. If you are unsure of your eligibility, please send us a message and we would be happy to help you find your eligibility status.

What is Florida Senate Bill 256?

In 2023, the Florida Legislature passed CS/CS/SB 256, which directly affects public sector unions such as GAU. The law requires all public sector unions (except for police, fire department, and correctional officer unions) to obtain 60% membership of their collective bargaining units to retain certification, and dues are no longer allowed to be deducted from your paycheck but rather through a process known as eDues; this makes it much harder for public unions like ours to achieve and retain the respect and dignity that our members deserve. If we do nothing, our contract and all of the protections we have earned are at risk. Become a member today and/or sign a Statement of Interest Card to help us fight for our right to bargain for the protections, benefits, and compensation we deserve.

What is a Statement of Interest (SOI) Card?

An SOI Card is a card that a GA can sign that states that they are interested in keeping GAU as our labor union. It is not a commitment, and it does not sign you up for membership; it only expresses interest in keeping GAU around to fight for our rights at USF. If we are unable to reach 60% membership in the era of SB 256, we must collect SOI card from 40% of our bargaining unit (all GAs) every year to trigger a recertification election. During this election, GAs will vote whether or not we want to keep our union. For the past 2 elections, GAU has won with >97% of voters saying “YES” to GAU! However, this is not a long-term solution. It takes an incredible amount of work to collect these SOI cards and conduct these elections, the only long-term solution to keeping our union is to reach 60% membership.

How much are the USF GAU dues?

Dues payments are required to become a member of USF GAU. Our dues are 1% of each paycheck and are billed on your biweekly payday on either a 9 or 12-month schedule. For most Graduate Assistants, dues are typically between $7-12 , depending on your stipend level. We now use a system called eDues for all dues payments, which uses a software called Plaid to verify payment details during the membership enrollment process. If you have any questions about the eDues process or need help signing up, please send us a message and a representative will be happy to assist you!

Why is it important to be a member of my union?

Graduate Assistants United is the only group at USF fighting for our rights, benefits, and protections as employees of the University. Without a Union, we would not have an enforceable contract granting us rights and benefits, we would not have a minimum stipend or guaranteed health insurance (let alone subsidized health insurance), we would not have grievance representation, and we would not be able to collectively bargain to improve our rights, benefits, and protections or hold the university accountable to these terms.

Having a Union means having power, and our power comes from our people. The more GAs who join GAU to stand together and fight as one, the more powerful we are and the more we can accomplish together! Joining GAU means becoming part of a community of GAs building a better future together. GAU is an organization built by and for graduate assistants; all of our leaders are USF graduate assistants. Our dues payments directly and solely support GAU in bargaining for a better contract, hosting community events for GAs, providing legal support for our members, and fighting for the future we deserve.

Especially now, joining GAU is CRITICAL to make sure that we keep our union and that we can continue the fight for fair pay, better benefits, and a better life. SB 256 mandates that we have 60% membership of all GAs at USF, or we are at risk of being decertified. We do not currently have 60% membership, and while we have historically been able to collect enough SOI cards and votes in our recertification elections to stay alive, there has been a consistent effort in the Florida Legislature since 2024 to change the rules for these card drives and elections to a level that would be insurmountable for us. If this effort comes to fruition, we will be at a serious risk of losing our union and all of the necessary power that gives us to advocate for ourselves, our peers, and our students. Joining GAU means joining the fight to keep our rights, keep our dignity, and keep our union fighting for a better today and a better tomorrow. Join today.