Compensation and Benefits Overview

The initial Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between SEIU Southern Region and Emory University was ratified in September 2025. Effective immediately, the agreement establishes rates of pay, benefits, working hours, and other terms and conditions of work for Emory PhD students through August 24, 2027.

Click here for a PDF of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Bargaining Unit Definition

A “bargaining unit” is a group of employees who have common terms and conditions of employment that the union seeks to organize as one group. A union negotiates on behalf of the bargaining unit to establish collective terms and conditions of employment, such as salary and benefits.

Under the National Labor Relations Act, PhD students are currently considered “employees” due to the research assistance and teaching assistance services they provide.*

The terms of the CBA cover all PhD students enrolled at Emory University in the Laney Graduate School at its Atlanta, Georgia campus who provide instructional or research services for Emory University, including teaching assistants, research assistants, teaching associates, instructors of record, graders, and Biomedical Engineering PhD students whose advisor holds a primary appointment at Emory University and who receive all their funding from Emory University.

*(NLRB, Case 02–RC–143012, 2016).

PhD Union Contract Highlights

The initial collective bargaining agreement between Emory University and SEIU Southern Region includes 42 articles, which cover a large set of topics. Below are key points about compensation and benefits included in the agreement.

Base Stipends	As part of the PhD Student Union Collective Bargaining Agreement, eligible PhD students will receive an annual stipend of $43,260 for FY26-27. The annual stipend rate will increase at the start of each academic year by the same percentage provided to Emory employees as a part of the employee merit pool.
Health Insurance	Bargaining unit members have access to the Emory University Student Health Insurance Plan (EUSHIP). The University will provide 100% coverage of EUSHIP premia.
Support Funds	Bargaining unit members may apply for support from shared pools of accessible funds to support childcare, dependent care, international activities, medical needs and financial hardships, and medical insurance for students on leaves of absence. The total available funding across all pools is $400,000 per year. Funds have eligibility requirements and individual, annual caps. The funds roll over into the second year of the contract if they have a remaining balance.
Leave Provisions	Bargaining unit members have access to up to 10 days of vacation and 6 days of sick leave, annually. Members accrue both types of leave in the terms in which they hold appointments. Vacation and sick leave do not accrue beyond the annual maxima. There is no payout for unused vacation or sick leave. Bargaining unit members also have access to bereavement leave on the same terms and conditions as other employees of the University.
Professional Development Support Funds	Bargaining unit members may each receive up to $7,500 in professional development support (PDS) during their 5 years of guaranteed funding. This benefit is consistent with the existing PDS program managed by the LGS Office of Professional Development and Career Planning.
Continuity of Funding and Appointments	LGS PhD students are guaranteed five years of financial support, with one exception: students in the Nursing PhD program are guaranteed four years of financial support. Bargaining unit members agree to be available to be assigned to research or instructional support positions. Bargaining unit members may be assigned to a research support position in any term. Members may be appointed to instructional support positions up to four times without an adjustment to their compensation. This cap of four appointments does not include the first enrollment in one of the experiential learning courses in the Teaching Assistant Training and Teaching Opportunity (TATTO) program.