Guest Post - Support Postdoc Workers at OHSU

We are Postdoc Workers United, a unit made up of PhD-level researchers at OHSU. We are approaching our second mediation session with OHSU on May 21, 2024. We entered mediation with a zero-cost economics offer and no improvements to our leave time and benefits. In our first mediation session, all OHSU committed to moving on was providing protected time for career development - a movement that costs OHSU nothing. This is insulting, considering that our work brings in $600 million in grants and $1.7 billion in state medicaid reimbursements. All we are asking is for OHSU to invest an additional 1% into supporting postdocs. 

Our key issues are: 

• Equitable tax reporting

• Parental leave

• Vacation/sick time commensurate with other employee groups

• Support for international Postdoc immigration

• Internal funding to improve retention of diverse Postdocs

• Wages adjusted for Portland’s cost of living and commensurate with our level of training 

OHSU made it clear they don’t think we deserve any adjustments to our current pay scale, which is based on NIH recommendations for national minimum salaries, and that they prefer to handle diversity initiatives institutionally. We are holding a 2nd informational picket on May 21st at noon because we know Postdocs deserve better. JOIN US!

OHSU is setting a dangerous precedent by refusing to invest in Postdocs, claiming we are part of their “labor-demic”. Postdocs are under-paid and overworked as they support OHSU’s mission to find disease cures. The real disease is the exploitation of our labor, and THE CURE WILL BE UNION MADE!