Grinnell College and the Union of Grinnell Student Dining Workers (UGSDW) are preparing for a return to collective bargaining sessions due to compensation changes for some student workers that the Union objects to. The first bargaining session will be held on Thursday, Sept. 25, which both sides say will be livestreamed for the campus community. After the bargaining session, the Union will host a rally starting at 7 p.m. at Kington Plaza.
The compensation changes began in the spring of 2025, when the College told Reunion and other short-term summer student workers that they would no longer receive complimentary room and board. In the fall of 2025, according to co-UGSDW President Morgan Smith `26, the College went a step further and moved to end shift meals for dining services employees and student tour guides. Smith said the meals are often “the only way that student workers are going to get food.”
On Sept. 8, UGSDW filed a grievance over the changes. The Union argues that the College violated the collective bargaining agreement, which came into effect April 2024.
“We filed a grievance on that matter under two things,” Smith said to The S&B. “One, the past practice of it … as well as a section of the contract [Article 3.10] that requires the College to provide us with notice whenever they make changes to materially alter the essential functions of any student worker position or a number of other things.”
Ellen de Graffenreid, vice president of communications and marketing, wrote in an email to The S&B that the College made these changes because of the College’s differing interpretation of Article 6.1 of the contract. The article establishes a universal wage for students but does not specifically provide for any other compensation, except for Community Advisors (CAs), covered in Article 6.2. As a result, according to de Graffenreid, “the College may not offer housing, meals or other additional compensation.”
De Graffenreid wrote that 2025 Reunion employees were initially told, incorrectly, that they would receive room and board. That was later corrected in a March email. However, the College ultimately did provide room and board that summer, which Smith cites as evidence the benefit remained in practice and should not have been withdrawn without bargaining.
De Graffenreid did not comment on shift meals, citing National Labor Relations Board rules that bar direct dealing with Union members. Reporters at The S&B are student workers represented by UGSDW. Negotiations between the College and the Union on bargaining are still ongoing. Smith said the College has only agreed to bargain if the grievance is dropped. As an alternative, the Union has proposed suspending the grievance.
“We are willing to temporarily suspend it,” said Smith. “But also, we’re not giving up the legal recourse available to resolve this issue.”
De Graffenreid wrote, “The College is happy to bargain when UGSDW is prepared to do so, subject to the availability of the College’s bargaining team.”
The College and the Union have agreed to livestream the bargaining, an idea the College originally proposed, but the Union fully supports.
“We want the public to be able to see both how we’re representing student workers and also how the College is responding to that, negatively or positively,” said Smith.
Smith said that they believe bargaining will happen in the next two weeks. The College did not comment on a bargaining timeline.
Editor’s Note: As student workers, all staff members of The S&B are represented by UGSDW. The S&B remains an independent newspaper and is committed to maintaining its integrity in reporting.
Update: This article has been updated to provide the date and time of the first bargaining session between the Union and Grinnell College’s bargaining team and to provide information on the rally the Union will hold.
