BU RAs Begin Strike as Move-In Winds Down

With the next bargaining session approaching with the 300-member Residence Life Union, disruption from walk-out appears minimal

Image: A collage image of BU's RA strike during Move-in. The top photo has two RA's handing out leaflets to people on the BU Beach. The bottom photo are a group of RA's standing on Marsh Plaza getting ready to march.

A group of about 50 resident assistants at Boston University participated in a strike on Saturday during BU’s annual Move-In.

University News

BU RAs Begin a Strike as Move-in Winds Down

With the next bargaining session with the 300-member Residence Life Union approaching, disruption from walkout appears minimal

August 31, 2024
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A group of approximately 50 members of Boston University’s Residence Life Union walked off their jobs on Saturday, protesting the lack of a new contract for their union, a job action aimed at disrupting students moving into campus for the start of the 2024-2025 academic year.

After the height of BU’s Move-in earlier in the week, approximately 1,700 students were expected to arrive on Saturday, with 1,200 more moving in Sunday and the final 500 on Monday. But it did not appear the strike had much impact on arriving students across most of campus. On West Campus, around Claflin Hall and Rich Hall, Move-in proceeded smoothly Saturday. 

Wearing their maroon RA shirts and holding signs that read, “We do this for you Warren [Towers],” “We do this for West,” and “Fight for You,” the group marched in several places around campus, from Marsh Plaza to the BU Beach to Silber Way, handing out leaflets that said, “ResLife United in the Fight for a Fair Contract,” and speaking to students. During their rolling walkout, they chanted, “Who are we doing this for? All of us!”

“We acknowledge they have a right to strike and we are giving them the space to do that,” Jason Campbell-Foster, University dean of students, told BU Today Saturday afternoon. “We rely on our community and the compassion of so many in Residence Life and beyond who are still showing up for students. We continue to provide this world-class experience at Move-in and to cultivate this sense of belonging and to just limit the disruption to students moving in. We are seeing the community band together to make sure there are happy faces greeting the students.”

The union, which is part of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 509, is made up of nearly 300 resident assistants (RAs), graduate resident assistants (GRAs), and graduate hall assistants (GHAs). The strike occurred after the ResLife union authorized a strike vote on Friday, with 90 percent of their members who voted approving it (it’s unclear how many of the 300 actually voted). 

“I don’t know much about the RA strike; I just got here yesterday,” said one new student, Jack Flaherty (ENG’28), who was observing the strike on Marsh Plaza. “But they can do whatever they want—that’s the whole point of a campus.” 

Because not all of the RAs were on scheduled shifts Saturday, it’s possible more of them could strike on Sunday and Monday. It’s unclear if the strike will last only through the long weekend or longer.

“We represent one of the most diverse groups on campus, from a lot of socioeconomic and racial backgrounds,” Jacob Leal (STH’26), a striking residence hall graduate supervisor, said. “We realized that there were issues within the job, and we wanted to do something about it. We decided to see how many people we could pull together, and this was the result of that.”

The members of the Residence Life Union are sophomores, juniors, seniors, and graduate students who were chosen for their ability to lead and build community. Their responsibilities include addressing residence hall rules and building a tight-knit community among the students in their respective dorms. When issues such as roommate problems, student conflicts, and campus crises arise, they are often the first line of response because they live in the dorms with other students. Their compensation includes free housing (worth approximately $11,000 to $20,000), while some also get free or discounted meal plans, which can be valued at an additional several thousand dollars.

The next bargaining session between the union and the University, which would be the 16th session since December 2023, is scheduled for Thursday, September 5.

“This strike comes at a time of significant importance for you as residents of campus housing, and our focus remains on ensuring that you receive a high-level of service and care as you settle into your community for the fall semester,” Campbell-Foster said in a statement emailed to BU students Saturday afternoon. “Despite this action by the union, move-in operations will continue as planned throughout the weekend, and programs designed to help you become acquainted with one another will be held.”

Despite this action by the union, move-in operations will continue as planned throughout the weekend, and programs designed to help you become acquainted with one another will be held.
Jason Campbell-Foster

“We are committed to fair, transparent, and respectful bargaining sessions that benefit both the University and our RAs,” he added in his statement. “Significant progress has been made during regularly scheduled sessions, and we are awaiting counterproposals from the union that are critical to reaching an agreement.”

Campbell-Foster referred students to a Frequently Asked Questions website about the progress of the talks. The site says that BU’s latest offer includes meal plans for all RAs (meals are currently provided only to RAs in dormitory-style accommodations); a $1,000 stipend per semester for all RAs, with an additional $500 per semester for GRAs with supervisory responsibilities; a new grievance and third-party arbitration provision to provide a formal process for employees to resolve workplace issues; and access to optional training for NARCAN and CPR administration, free of charge to all members of the bargaining unit.

Saturday’s strike, which occurred four months after the RA union authorized another four-day strike back in April, raised questions about the legality of what the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) refers to as “intermittent” strikes. According to the NLRB, “workers who engage in intermittent strikes, or strikes that involve ‘a plan to strike, return to work, and strike again,’ are not protected.”

The same issue has occurred with BU’s graduate students, who are in the midst of their own strike and contract negotiation with the University. BU officials say they are aware of the NLRB language around intermittent strikes and are looking into it.

The leaflets the union handed out say, “Welcome back, students and families! Did you know that ResLife workers have been in union contract negotiations with BU since December 2023? While we’ve secured some important contract improvements, we continue to fight for a strong contract we all deserve!” The leaflets note that RAs are still fighting for fair wages, solutions to health and safety issues, and workload protections. 

“This is a really important week for us,” said Melissa Taylor (CAS’24, Wheelock’24), a striking residence hall worker. “We, as RAs, are very disappointed to not get to be participating in Move-in, because we love the feeling of getting to see new freshmen come in and experience all the excitement. We are ready to get back to the job as soon as we can, as soon as BU shows up to the bargaining table with a fair offer.”

In closing his letter, Campbell-Foster noted that “our student employees are an important part of our residential community. Our attention remains on providing all of you with an exceptional living experience. Thank you for your patience while we navigate the strike period.”

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There are 5 comments on BU RAs Begin Strike as Move-In Winds Down

  1. This article is very insincere. It lists compensation as an issue forgetting to mention that RAs are restricted from getting outside jobs. What use is a kitchen if you have no money for food?

    It fails to mention one of the things RA’s are fighting for is medical leave. I imagine if god forbid any administer were to be hospitalized for an unforeseen medical emergency they why have peace of mind in the fact they won’t be fired for it or punished because of it. The fact that they are fighting so hard to ensure not all of their employees have the same peace of mind is outrageous.

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    1. Well, concerned mother, what would you suggest they do? Will you provide housing for them in the meantime? In fact, this is unironically a great idea: members of the community at large should consider sponsoring a striking student. At the very least, donating to a strike fund will help.

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  3. The striking members of Boston University’s Residence Life Union are not just a group of disgruntled student workers; they are the living, breathing contradictions of the capitalist university system. The university, which markets itself as a community-oriented institution dedicated to the holistic development of its students, is in reality a corporation beholden to the bottom line of tuition revenue. This contradiction is laid bare by the very nature of the strike. On one hand, the university touts its “world-class experience” and “sense of belonging” as integral to the student experience. On the other, it treats the workers responsible for cultivating that experience—those who are literally living with and among the student body—as disposable labor.

    The university administration’s response, with its polite acknowledgment of the union’s right to strike, reads like a PR exercise designed to maintain the appearance of concern while ensuring the machinery of the institution continues to operate smoothly. The strike, we are told, has not disrupted the carefully choreographed dance of Move-in Weekend, and the university remains committed to providing “an exceptional living experience.” But this framing conveniently obscures the power dynamics at play, reducing the strike to a mere inconvenience rather than a legitimate challenge to the exploitation of student labor.

    The RAs, GRAs, and GHAs are demanding fair wages, reasonable workloads, and basic safety protections—things that, in a just society, would not need to be fought for in the first place. Yet, in the capitalist structure of higher education, even these modest demands are met with resistance. The university’s offer—a stipend, meal plans, and some training—is presented as a generous concession. But the truth is that these are the bare minimum for the essential work these students do, work that the university cannot function without.

    Moreover, the strike occurs against the backdrop of Boston being one of the most expensive cities for renters in the U.S. The cost of living in Boston, as highlighted in recent reports, makes the already precarious financial situation of student workers even more untenable. The university’s offer does little to address the real economic pressures these students face, pressures that are only exacerbated by the high cost of housing, food, and other basic necessities in a city like Boston.

    The university’s stance is not surprising. The administration’s primary concern is to maintain the institution’s profitability, and the exploitation of student labor is a key part of that equation. The RAs are expected to perform labor under the guise of educational enrichment, but in reality, they are a cheap labor force that allows the university to cut costs while still maintaining the veneer of community and support. The strike is not just about wages and benefits; it is a challenge to the very system that treats education as a commodity and students as consumers rather than as full human beings deserving of dignity and fair treatment.

    The university’s reluctance to meet the union’s demands reflects a broader unwillingness to disrupt the status quo. To do so would mean acknowledging that the current system is not just flawed, but fundamentally unjust. The administration’s focus on minimizing disruption and continuing business as usual is, in essence, an attempt to defuse the power of the strike by reframing it as a temporary blip rather than a legitimate exercise of collective power.

    In the end, the university’s response is a testament to the power of ideology. By presenting itself as a benevolent institution committed to student welfare, it masks the reality of its role as a capitalist enterprise. The students on strike are not just fighting for better wages or safer working conditions; they are challenging the very foundations of a system that prioritizes profit over people. And in doing so, they are reminding us all that the fight for justice is never simply about the immediate demands, but about the larger struggle for a society in which human dignity is not a privilege, but a right.

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