Page 11 ith edn ^day, November 15, 2000 [>u A 'ay s settii Universal e rights MP3.C0H ^ percent, k Market, lount of tli{ 'en disclostL l fa|| s v ni ic 1870s, unions :ompanv v || crc established in the ■nited States to ensure ivith smallei itfecurity an d fair Ived but jpaiment for workers, reat toMP:® a iiy» employees who Jsiness, unions were differs fr, ase-pay workers at low- tlle-su.l-level jobs who relied J by Na: n|ie union group for their miK Bted financial security. Unions have tak- Niapsteo non a more complicated meaning today. v p\ they are not reserved to only the base- dia giant ftiay workers — unions have been formed in joinwithfi lllealms of employment. Unions are orga- embersh szed for educators, professional athletes, air system taftic controllers and anything in between, to artist' ixcept students. lastly gkAn Nov. 1, a precedent was set when the Bional Labor Relations Board (NLRB) |ifed that unions cannot exclude graduate tudents who teach or conduct research at irivate universities. Graduate students are $ Bgnized as workers, and therefore have j Bsame opportunity to organize and bar- Pip/jaliasaunion. ^ l vPlPrivate universities across the nation fear lis new mling will weaken educational Bidards, but educational standards should | be their only concern. Graduate students Iv have unlimited opportunities to “bar- ■n” with their “employers,” professors. JWhile unions once were a means of sur- 'XplOm, they have now become a luxury that * ■dents can abuse. Student unions will ex- of the tx® Jolt the academic world. Learning should was told:"^■the prime concern, but bargaining will be- we resMBne t 0 graduation. . warship®! According to ABC News, the decision es. Pentapmde. by the NLRB cannot be appealed, cific rules" 1 Sheldon Seinback, general counsel of the ers said iuBnerican Counsel of Education, said in a r iled a de-CNN interview, “It erodes a relationship be llowed. tween faculty and students, from grading, to have goftyho should graduate, to the curriculum that too far step \tudent unions frivolous, prone to exploit academic world their extensive labor be compensated. This will not only weaken educational standards, it will also threaten relations between teach ers and students. Professors, as employers, will be less likely to act as superiors when they obvious ly are. These professors were once graduate students with less-than-satisfactory working conditions and overwhelming expectations. These professors had no legitimate say as students, and therefore succumbed to those in authority. A graduate student’s purpose is not to take the place of the professor by teaching class and grading papers. To achieve a respectable degree, a certain amount of work is required. Most people accept that blue-collar labor ers and their supervisors can have difficulty reaching an agreement and therefore resort to unions, but one would expect a professor and a student seeking his master’s degree to reach a compromise without threats. This is the world of academia, where intellects should prevail. Scholars should not have to resort to unions when controversy arises. They should be able to evaluate the situation reasonably and decide what would best suit both sides. As John Beckman, New York Universi ty’s spokesman, has said, “These graduate students are first and foremost students. They are admitted as students — not re cruited as employees.” There is no justification in assuming gradu ate students are employees of the school. These are temporary positions where students serve as teachers to aid the professors and work to compensate for the financial burden of graduate school. Graduate student unions are unnecessary. There should be no collective bargaining in ' education, especially at the graduate level. Private universities should protest this mling and take it to the Supreme Court. In the world of academics, standards are set and curriculums are followed. Graduate school is a higher form of education that cannot with stand the effects of statutory rights. Unions will threaten the educational system and pre vent advanced learning from taking place. Cayla Carr is a junior speech communication major. federal < lent and ut down ME ;aii lifer KuM lingaboiiut' hooting two'i s.” leek w iccounts,c l! | lersofthesl e nd survey gfit be taught — they could all become jjectsof collective bargaining.” A union’s ose is to prevent a substandard work en- onment. Substandard work environments for duate students could result in low en- ce scores, insufficient pay and excessive duate requirements. Graduate students e not only been awarded the opportunity ispute their “less than satisfactory condi- one of tli'Ions,” they are now expected to insist that ie SuezC®! crew' ineifll 1 vho guid^ igitated'^ Yemeni M er reported nay have' sed throng Joined at Birth operation separating conjoined twins neccessary, best medical decision .nAug. 18, con joined doors »|n girls Mary letall# idJodie were iec | and fni in Man- ons be fester, Eng- ail-safeffukl. Their par- ; passeOMs, who are nt. pout Roman imendaWltholics, came to England from tional T^plta to seek medical assistance afety Bo