UCW's Organizing Model

United Campus Workers (UCW) was founded in 2000 at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, when campus workers organized for a living wage and successfully ended the practice of forced overtime for custodial staff. Through collective action, workers won higher wages and a new overtime policy—laying the foundation for a union that continues to fight for fair pay, a voice in university policies, and to stop harmful policies like the privatization of custodial services.

In 2020, public higher education workers across Kentucky founded their own local—UCW Kentucky (UCWKY)—to fight for better pay, healthcare, and to fight for higher education as a public good. Since then, UCWKY has grown to over 900 members at institutions including the University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, Murray State University, Morehead State University, Eastern Kentucky University, and Berea College.

Today, UCWKY members are organizing on campus and in Frankfort to demand fully funded public universities that serve the common good. Together, members have led successful campaigns to raise wages and improve working conditions at UK and UofL. Statewide, UCWKY has played a leading role in opposing anti-DEI and anti-tenure legislation.

UCW Kentucky members are building our union from the ground up by developing campaigns to fight for better wages, benefits, and working conditions. Because Kentucky has weak labor laws, campus workers must engage in deep organizing to win real change. Our union is building a powerful, member-led movement with the resources needed to run effective campaigns and win on campus.

Building Structure

On every campus, workers are building a leadership structure called an Organizing Committee (OC)—a team made up of workers from across job classes who come together to learn organizing skills and lead campaigns. OC members grow the union by having one-on-one conversations, canvassing, and conducting surveys to better understand the issues their coworkers face. Through relationship and coalition building, UCW members build a strong base of organized workers ready to take action.

Running Issue Campaigns

Every campaign begins with union members talking to our coworkers about what matters most to identify issues that are widely and deeply felt. After identifying core demands, we gather broad support through petitions, worker stories, rallies, and other mass action tactics.

Once we’ve demonstrated strong support from the campus community, we petition university leadership for a meeting and engage in a good-faith process to win change. If administrators refuse to meet our demands, we conduct power research to map decision-makers and understand how power operates on campus. Then, we develop a new organizing strategy with escalating tactics to build pressure and win.

Funding Our Union

Every UCW member contributes a small monthly amount in dues to ensure our union has the resources to fight and win. By pooling our resources, we build the power to act independently of university administrations and push for change in ways that other campus bodies can’t. Member dues fund everything from lobby trips to Frankfort to full-time organizers.