A petition by Berea College students looking to form a labor union has been withdrawn from the National Labor Relations Board.
Students announced their intentions to organize a union last spring, alongside the Communications Workers of America. If the board approved, students would have been allowed to take a vote on whether a union would be allowed on campus.
Berea is a Work College, which means students are required to work 10 hours on campus each week as part of their service-based curriculum.
Union supporters said they were concerned with issues like better workplace safety, higher wages and a formal grievance system.
Those opposed said a union was incompatible with Berea’s “work college” model, and that students can’t be recognized as workers.
A statement from college president Cheryl Nixon says the organizing was a clear call for change on campus. She says she’ll speak with students on how to make those changes both immediately and in the long term.
“My promise to you is that we will move forward together, as one campus community, to find the best ways to honor our students and their concerns. We can now engage in open conversations about what can be done to improve our Labor Program within the parameters of the Work Colleges Act and federal regulations governing student financial aid,” the statement says.
The reason for the petition’s withdrawal is unclear, and a representative from the Communications Workers of America was not immediately available.
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