House Advisor Union Recognized

On Friday, October 27, the Union of Reed College Housing Advisors (URCHA) was officially recognized as a union represented by the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 11. 

Following Reed’s initial decision not to recognize URCHA as a labor union when they formed, the House Advisors (HAs) underwent an election through the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to determine their official status. The election was determined by a majority of ballots cast, out of a total of 44 HAs, 36 voted for unionization, 2 voted against it, and 6 did not vote, meaning that the unionization attempt was successful. 

Several HAs and OPIEU representatives were in attendance for the announcement of the election results. Vice-President of Student Life Dr. Karnell McConnell-Black and Director of Human Resources Heather Quinn-Barron were in attendance, as well as a handful of other administrators and staff members. 

Following these results, URCHA underwent a 5-day waiting period where Reed or OPIEU Local 11 could file a rejection to the election, but according to the Quest’s sources at this time, neither party did so. NLRB then certified the vote, making URCHA an official labor union.

Much of this information was first shared in an email sent to Reed faculty, staff, and students, by Dr. McConnell-Black. In said email, he clarified that to his knowledge, Reed did not plan to file a rejection of the vote. 

He continued, stating, “Once the election results are certified by the NLRB, we look forward to working with union representatives as we meet to negotiate a collective bargaining agreement in good faith. We look forward to working with union representatives as we meet to negotiate a collective bargaining agreement in good faith.”

Following the election, the Quest reached out to URCHA-Quest Liason and HA Lina Gamal Eid ‘26 for comment from the organization. “We’re pleased with the turnout and the results of the election, and we’d like to express our gratitude towards the students, staff, and faculty who stood by us and supported us throughout the process.”

She continued, “We are working to address any possible concerns raised by fellow HAs, and we encourage them to reach out if they would like to discuss any issues. We, the URCHA representatives, will do our best to support all Has in any way we can.”