Faculty Union Basics

  • Our union gives us a voice at MSU and allows us to come together to advocate for our collective interests, including wages, benefits, and working conditions. We will elect our own officers and board, but that’s just the beginning. The more participation there is from everyone, the stronger our voice will be, especially as we enter into collective bargaining with the administration to negotiate our first contract. Together, we are the union.

  • Collective bargaining is the process through which we make our voices heard and win the respect and fairness we deserve. Most MSU employees already collectively bargain with the administration. By unionizing, we will join the majority and meet the administration as equals at the negotiating table.

  • If you are a tenure system faculty member at Michigan State University, click here to enroll as a UTSF member.

  • A strong union requires broad and democratic participation. Together, we are building an inclusive union for all tenure system faculty at MSU. To join the effort, please fill out this form to arrange a time to meet.

  • UTSF has engaged in a rigorous, democratic, and inclusive process, involving faculty from across campus, to draft our constitution and bylaws. You can review them here. Soon, we will begin the process of nominating and democratically electing officers and a governing body. It’s important to keep in mind that only UTSF members may run for UTSF office or vote for nominated candidates.

Unionization and MSU

  • Tenure system faculty will now be on equal footing with the administration. In accordance with our bylaws and constitution, UTSF will hold nominations and elections for officers and governing body. Together, we will form our bargaining team and identify our shared bargaining priorities. Then, we will go to the table to negotiate.

  • In accordance with the 2021 resolution of neutrality towards employees forming unions, MSU administration agreed on September 8, 2025, to formally recognize UTSF as the exclusive representative for tenure system faculty and librarians, following UTSF’s demonstration of support from an overwhelming majority of faculty. We now join with other MSU employees that are already unionized and who already negotiate their contracts with university. Collective bargaining is the norm at MSU, not the exception.

  • The Faculty Senate will continue to play an essential role in shared governance. A strong unionized faculty can enhance the power of the Faculty Senate in university governance. For example, MSU’s fixed-term faculty are unionized and highly active in the Faculty Senate. With both the Senate and our union, tenure system faculty will have greater power to elevate our voices and advance our collective interests.

    As it stands, MSU’s Faculty Senate is an advisory body; its decisions are non-binding. The university can decide to unilaterally impose decisions that ignore the will of the Senate. Unlike the Faculty Senate, our union will give us the power to collectively bargain and negotiate a legally binding, enforceable contract that MSU must follow.

    Historically, faculty governance systems became common in the 1950s, as university administrators sought to regulate faculty input at a time when faculty, like millions of other U.S. workers, were rapidly joining unions. Administrators hoped that by formalizing faculty input into the academic functioning of the university and by adopting the modern tenure system, faculty would remain non-union, giving administrators financial autonomy. Tenure stream faculty at MSU deserve more.