We would like to invite you and other organizations you work with to apply for an exciting community-labor convening taking place February 22nd- 24th on Bargaining for the Common Good in Higher Education! The convening will be hosted by a steering committee of representatives from labor, community and student organizations and convened by the Center for Innovation in Worker Organization at Rutgers University.  The convening will bring together leaders from higher ed and health care unions, student groups, racial justice and other community organizations from across the country to strategize about how to build the power to win and transform contract negotiations into broader community fights and how to wage inspiring common good campaigns that connect workers more deeply to their union and increase membership in preparation for the Janus decision.  We hope to build on the great work that many local unions and community groups across the country have done around Bargaining for the Common Good<https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bargainingforthecommongood.org%2Fabout%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cverasteg%40smlr.rutgers.edu%7Cac40ba123cad468928dc08d55214c7b2%7Cb92d2b234d35447093ff69aca6632ffe%7C1%7C0%7C636505171555510654&sdata=DsAIcy3ovpM89H8pZTzMcAigUgDvqeoOC84rmZzdEqI%3D&reserved=0>, and center the discussion on the unique challenges and opportunities facing higher education. The convening will also have a track for non-bargaining locals who want to run common good campaigns on their campuses or at the state level.  Check out our newest article about BCG for more information and examples of successful campaigns<https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnewlaborforum.cuny.edu%2F2017%2F12%2F05%2Fgoing-on-offense-during-challenging-times%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cverasteg%40smlr.rutgers.edu%7Cac40ba123cad468928dc08d55214c7b2%7Cb92d2b234d35447093ff69aca6632ffe%7C1%7C0%7C636505171555510654&sdata=%2B0x85QW9FUlnwmIHjzrIl545OD80uDKujeI1Bm4AcUY%3D&reserved=0>. Apply here for the convening! <https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdocs.google.com%2Fforms%2Fd%2Fe%2F1FAIpQLSdI8krk6mk7FQYIhmz_6weDB9DIrlB8u7sfV9yPZkolcOj5IA%2Fviewform%3Fusp%3Dsf_link&data=02%7C01%7Cverasteg%40smlr.rutgers.edu%7Cac40ba123cad468928dc08d55214c7b2%7Cb92d2b234d35447093ff69aca6632ffe%7C1%7C0%7C636505171555510654&sdata=bSJCNB0MAhra1CiXOu7OcqC4juBGHnYaIz67lAB1e9E%3D&reserved=0> The concept of Bargaining for the Common Good is about forming long-term community-labor partnerships around a common vision for the change we need to see in our cities, states, and country, and fighting for that change both at the bargaining table and in the streets. Workers' lives do not end when they leave the workplace, so unions should partner with community organizations to develop campaigns and bargaining demands that improve the broader communities that workers live and work in. This means using the tool of bargaining and campaigning to: 1. craft campaigns and bargaining demands that are in partnership between unions, community groups, and worker centers; 2. transcend the bargaining frameworks and norms that say that unions can only bargain over wages and benefits and reject them where they are not useful; and 3. build and maintain strong unions with high member engagement in the wake of a shifting legal environment. We are encouraging each university, college, or system to attend the convening as a “cohort”, with representatives from each local union, community organization, and student organization.  In your application, please state which partner organizations you hope to attend with.  Click here to fill out the application.<https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdocs.google.com%2Fforms%2Fd%2Fe%2F1FAIpQLSdI8krk6mk7FQYIhmz_6weDB9DIrlB8u7sfV9yPZkolcOj5IA%2Fviewform%3Fusp%3Dsf_link&data=02%7C01%7Cverasteg%40smlr.rutgers.edu%7Cac40ba123cad468928dc08d55214c7b2%7Cb92d2b234d35447093ff69aca6632ffe%7C1%7C0%7C636505171555510654&sdata=bSJCNB0MAhra1CiXOu7OcqC4juBGHnYaIz67lAB1e9E%3D&reserved=0>   We want this gathering to not just be a convening, but really a launching pad for innovative work folks can do together. Please apply to join us from February 22nd-24th, 2018 at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ!  We will get back to youwithin two weeks of your registration to confirm participation and logistics. From the BCG Higher ED Steering Committee, Patrick Nowlan, Rutgers AAUP/AFT Malini Cadambi, SEIU Liz Perlman, AFSCME 3299 Suzanne Wall, Massachusetts Teachers Association -NEA Tom Smith, United Campus Workers- CWA Elizabeth Parisian, AFT Stephen Lerner, Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor, Georgetown University Angela Peoples, Action Center on Race and the Economy Natalie Casal Alcaino, Responsible Endowment Coalition Rebecca Givan, Rutgers AAUP/AFT Troy Neves, United Students Against Sweatshops Chris Whalen, Health Professionals & Allied Employees- NJ Corrado Cotumaccio, Health Professionals & Allied Employees- NJ Molly Gott, LittleSis Trina Scordo, New Jersey Communities United Sean Noonan, Cook County College Teachers Union Local 1600- AFT Marilyn Sneiderman, Rutgers SMLR Center for Innovation in Worker Organization Marilyn Sneiderman, Professor and Executive Director Center for Innovation in Worker Organization Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations Web: http://smlr.rutgers.edu/content/center-innovation-worker-organization-ciwo Marilyn.Sneiderman@Rutgers.edu<mailto:Marilyn.Sneiderman@Rutgers.edu> 202-330-1373