University graduate students voted last week to form a student union and will vote next week on whether to affiliate with a larger professional union.
Forty-two College graduate students in attendance at the meeting voted unanimously to form the union, which has been under consideration since the beginning of the year.
"In the broad sense, the purpose is to give graduate students a voice in the decisions that affect their lives," fourth-year Graduate student Daniela Bell said.
Bell said that particular goals of the union will be to acquire guaranteed health care, adequate wages and office space for graduate students.
Three aspects of Virginia law weaken the union's ability to change University policy. The union cannot strike, collectively bargain or require graduate students to become members.
In addition, Virginia is a "right-to-work" state, which means unions cannot force individuals to join their organization in order to get a job.
"Because Virginia is this right-to-work state, a lot of what we can do is lobby the state legislature," Bell said.
Affiliating with a national union is one method the graduate student organizers will try to use to gain more clout.
The experience and monetary resources of a national union will help in this effort, she said.
Representatives from the Communication Workers of America already have visited with the graduate students twice. The American Federation of Teachers is sending a representative to give a presentation at a meeting Wednesday when the union will decide if it wants to join a national organization.
After the AFT representative presents, union members will vote between affiliating with the AFT or the CWA.
Though there is a consensus that the union in its present formulation has a legal right to exist, what tangible impact it will have remains a matter of debate.
"They have a right to organize like any other citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia," said Duane Osheim, associate dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
However, the union "probably won't change the way we make decisions," Osheim said.
Union members have not yet met with administration officials, Bell said.
The union also has not yet elected any formal leadership.
"It obviously is something that has to happen soon," Bell said.
At the meeting Wednesday, union members also will vote to determine the name of their organization. An e-mail message sent out by union organizers listed Graduate Union of U.Va., Graduate Labor Union and Graduate Labor Alliance as potential names.
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