Frequently Asked Questions

What is DGSU?

The Duke Graduate Students Union is an organization of graduate students dedicated to improving our working conditions here at Duke. We have existed since 2016, and have won many improvements since then, including guaranteed dental care, stipend increases, protected gym access, and more.  In August 2022, after a yearlong campaign, we won formal recognition from the National Labor Relations Board, allowing us to formally bargain with the university towards an employment contract. We then bargained a contract (collective bargaining agreement) over 20 months, which we ratified on September 1, 2025. We are the largest graduate worker union at a private university in the south, and the second largest non-public employee union in North Carolina.

How is our union structured? 

With our first contract, DGSU is having an overhaul in structure in 2025. The voted 2025 Constitution restructured our elected officers and standing committees to carry out the work of our union. The committees include, Political Education and Solidarity; Organizing and Membership; Communications; and Events and Logistics Committees. Our union is maintained by the strong backbone—department stewards: PhD workers who have committed to represent our union to their peers, work to problem solve with their colleagues, and do the organizing work necessary to make ours a strong organization. The stronger our membership, the better we can enforce our protections and benefits from our contract and leverage for better pay and working conditions in the future negotiations.

All PhD students are welcome at any of our meetings and events, at any time. The meetings targeted at the most broad audience are our general body meetings, which generally happens on the last Wednesday of each month, unless specified otherwise. We also have a disorientation event at the beginning of the year targeted at all new students, and monthly trainings for department stewards. 

What does it mean to be a member of the union? What benefits do I get?

Being a union member means you have a voice in our organization, and a vote on the contract that we negotiate together. Our parent union SEIU has also negotiated access to significant discounts on airfares, rental cars, and more: if you are a union member, sign up here.

Are there dues associated with becoming a member?

In any union, dues are negotiated as part of the contract, which allow the union to sustain itself and continue to fight on behalf of workers. SEIU’s Southern Region has some of the lowest dues in the county, which are capped at 1.5% of salary or $50 per month, whichever is lower. Our current contract contains a historic 6.25% annual pay raise that covers the cost of our dues more than 4 times over.

Where do our dues go?

It took almost a decade for us to finally reach our first contract and begin collecting dues in 2025. Before then, our union relied on the contributions from dues from other unions—many in less privileged position than ours. Our union is built upon solidarity from others; so a portion of our dues give back to contribute to other workers across the nation who are fighting for their union recognition and contracts as well.

Breakdown of our $50 dues per member per month: $1.15 goes directly to our DSGU discretionary budget, $12.65 goes to our national parent union SEIU, and the rest goes to our regional parent union Workers United, Southern Region.

Our parent unions spend their portions of the dues on:

• Staff to help in organizing, bargaining, and legal questions—making sure they are paid living wage!!

• District and regional meetings of members from across our Union 

• Supporting organizing campaigns, such as other universities, industrial laundries, textile factories, coffee shops, climbing gyms

• “Lost time” for members - aka time off for union work for people who are not salaried

Furthermore, the economic package in our contract should cover the dues we are paying! Here’s where to access all these funds.

Why do I have to sign up? I thought I was already a union member.

In much of the South, corporations have heavily lobbied for so-called “right to work” laws, which require that every worker actively choose to join the union, instead of all workers being automatically enrolled. This is part of a concerted effort to weaken worker power. The only way to overcome their efforts is to ensure that we all educate each other about the importance of joining. The path to a strong contract is simple: staying united, with as strong of a membership base as possible.

I want X in a contract. How can I get involved in bargaining?

Let us know! Our current contract expires in 2028, but we are still soliciting feedback for the next round of bargaining.