AFT vice president William Scheuerman was one of 76 unionists, including AFL-CIO president John Sweeney, who was handcuffed and led away from a sweltering noonday rally at New York University on Aug. 31. They were arrested for blocking a college building in protest over union busting at the private university.

Part of more than 1,000 supporters gathered in solidarity, the demonstrators blasted the university administration's refusal to negotiate a second contract with the Graduate Student Organizing Committee, the UAW affiliate that has represented NYU graduate employees since 2000. Last year, in a politically motivated ruling, the National Labor Relations Board reversed itself and said that graduate employees at private universities are students and therefore do not have the right to collective bargaining.

The rally drew supporters from all over the city and from as far away as the Midwest. First among them was the AFT's Union of Clerical, Administrative and Technical Staff. "We've been helping the TAs since 1996," says UCATS president Steve Rechner. "We were the university pariah until GSOC came along."

UCATS hosted AFT contingents from University of Illinois-Urbana, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Rutgers University/AAUP-AFT, the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University. In addition to the AFT-affiliated United University Professions/SUNY and the New York State United Teachers, local support came from Randi Weingarten, president of the United Federation of Teachers in New York City, AFT vice president Barbara Bowen, who heads the Professional Staff Congress/CUNY and Kathy Levine, vice president of the Association of Dowling Adjuncts.

They said they feared NYU's actions will embolden other university leaders to break existing campus unions and stonewall on organizing drives.

In blunt language, Sweeney said he was there "to express pure anger and disgust" at the NYU administration. "Union busting is for corporate criminals who have no values, not for an educational institution."

Others arrested included UAW secretary-treasurer Elizabeth Bunn, UNITE-HERE president Bruce Raynor and New York state Sen. Tom Duane, who represents the NYU area. Scheuerman, president of the UUP/SUNY, spoke for many when he shouted this parting comment as he was led away: "We'll be back!" [Mike Hirsh (UFT), Jack Nightingale, Barbara McKenna]

September 7, 2005