According to the University of Oregon Student Workers Union, last week, UO charged resident assistants who chose to strike $2,400 to $5,000 for occupying their rooms while on strike.
According to RA and bargaining team member Ryan Campbell, this amount represented the price for their rooms for the entire term. According to UOSW media liaison Carolyn Roderique, these charges were rescinded to only include the days striking RAs are on strike following what Roderique called “sustained public outcry.”
UO confirmed it charged RAs for the entire term and then rescinded these charges. UO said RAs were also given the opportunity to move to “lower-cost room(s).”
“Resident assistant compensation includes room and board in addition to a stipend. The RAs who choose to withhold labor are responsible for the costs of their meals while on strike. The union and RAs were notified of these changes prior to the strike,” UO Spokesperson Eric Howald said.
According to Campbell and other RAs, on May 1, the university revoked the meal plans from striking RAs. Campbell said UOSW’s lawyer got involved due to this “retaliation,” and RAs’ meal points were reinstated the same day.
“The university essentially took these points and blocked RAs from accessing basic needs like food,” Campbell said.
The charges for room and board have left many RAs with difficult decisions, including a RA in Global Scholars Hall who talked on the condition of anonymity for fear of harassment or retaliation.
“I essentially decided not to go on strike because I found that the university was putting me between a rock and a hard place,” the GSH RA said.“I can’t afford my room, even if the union was able to afford our room and our food for while we were on strike, I honestly couldn’t trust the situation, so I decided to keep working and to keep my living situation.”
Campbell said he believes the charges are meant to scare RAs into not striking.
“It (charging RAs) is really just an intimidation tactic. That is kind of where we’re at,” Campbell said.
According to Campbell, if these charges become debt and not paid by May 19, RAs would likely not be able to register for summer and fall classes. Campbell said the union’s strike hardship fund could help students struggling financially, but some RAs are not ready to trust the system.
“It was hard to put my livelihood on the line in terms of whether or not they’d be able to fulfill their promise to pay us,” the GSH RA said.
According to UO, RAs could also avoid charges by fully moving out of their rooms. But for many residents, this is easier said than done.
“I didn’t want to be a burden to my friends sleeping on the couch or anything, so I wanted to ensure that I had ample space to still be a student, which is my first priority,” the GSH RA said. “It was a hard decision, but I needed to continue studying and doing my thing, so I ultimately have to choose to stay where I can where I have all my stuff.”
Lyra Wiggins, a RA in New Residence Hall, shares a similar predicament.
“We did a calculation, and it (the charge) is like my whole paycheck. I can’t afford that,” Wiggins said. “There (are) definitely some RAs who are from Eugene who are able to go back home, but I’m from Texas.”
The RAs are part of the larger Student Workers Union unit that covers nearly all student workers at UO, but part of the broader UOSW contract relates to RAs specifically.
For the last several months, the university has proposed dividing RA roles into Community Builder, Community Coordinator and Community Safety Assistant positions instead of the current all-encompassing RA role.
UO proposed 50% room and board compensation for the Community Builder role, 75% compensation for the Community Safety Assistant’s room and board and 100% of the Community Coordinator’s room and board, whereas UOSW’s proposal compensated 100% of room and board for all three positions.
On May 1, UOSW agreed to split the RA roles with modifications to allow for full compensation in certain scenarios.
“That (UOSW’s modifications) essentially allow a RA to make the choice if they didn’t want to work with one or the other of the split roles, the on-call one or the community builder one, but if they want to work both of those roles together and still find a 100% compensation, they can,” Campbell said.
During a rally on May 2, Oregon State Representative Lisa Fragala said she “does not believe that the actions that are being demonstrated by the University of Oregon represent bargaining in good faith.”
Campbell said that the way UO has been handling the situation and charging RAs could be considered retaliation, leading UOSW to file an unfair labor practice complaint, which is being processed by Oregon’s Employment Relations Board, according to Campbell.
