BRUNSWICK, Maine — A handful of student workers attending Bowdoin College are looking to form a union to negotiate better pay and compensation for their work as residential leaders on campus.
Sam Turrigiano is one of the many students employed with Residential Life "ResLife"— a student leadership program on campus — and works as a proctor in one of the dorms. As one of the ResLife representatives on his floor, he's almost always helping first-year students adjust to their new life on campus.
"There's roommate conflicts, there's negotiating how to find classes. It's a lot of, kind of, daily, weekly support," Turrigiano said.
Turrigiano said resident life workers are required to patrol buildings, host weekly floor dinners, plan community-building events, attend meetings, and more.
Although he enjoys his role helping within ResLife, he said it was late last year when a handful of his peers started to realize the disconnect between the hours worked and the compensation they receive back.
"They say we work nine hours a week, but I can confirm for you that I once spent nine hours one day, kind of providing emotional support for my first years going through tough times," Turrigiano said. "I'm totally happy to do that, but it just felt kind of frustrating to feel that other colleges, very similar to Bowdoin, are paying more."
Right now, student workers for resident life do not receive free room and board, a compromise many other universities and colleges offer across the country. In addition, Bowdoin students said the pay they do receive doesn't come close to covering room and board.
As a result, a handful of students approached university leadership for negotiation in pay and compensation but were told nothing could be shifted.
"What's the next step when the administration just says no? You know, like these are the things that, you know, is not a part of the student tool book," Eisa Rafat, a resident life proctor, said.
As a result, 82% of students part of the residential life staff submitted a petition to form a union with the Office and Professional Employees International Union Local 153.
They now are waiting until Friday for the college to recognize the union. Students said that although they do not have any hard or fast demands, they hope to sit down with the college to negotiate something that works fairly for everyone.
"[ResLife is] a really big piece of campus, and I think that for all of us if we could make a statement there, I think it really sends a message," Rafat said.
NEWS CENTER Maine reached out to Bowdoin College, and a representative said the college received materials from the union and will now take the time to consider the next steps.