Contact ACE
Are you experiencing an issue in your workplace, a contract violation, or workplace safety issue? Please let us know! The ACE committee is composed of fellow student employees who have a working knowledge of our contract and it’s enforceability. We want to help you navigate these issues and reach a resolution that keeps our coworkers safe, happy, and healthy.
How does ACE work?
ACE is an entirely student-employee run group dedicated to resolving workplace issues, representing our coworkers, and ensuring that hard-won workplace rights are maintained for all employees. We can support employees dealing with all workplace issues, including disciplinary cases, workplace harassment, safety concerns, and general questions about our contract.
We represent all student employees at WWU regardless of membership in WAWU, and we work closely with grievants in every case that arises to ensure that issues are resolved in a way that respects our grievant’s wishes. Please reach out to us at ace@wawu-union.org if you have any questions
Student Employee Resources
Contract Fundamentals + Workplace Orientations
Do you have questions about our contract or a situation that you’re not sure is a violation? Feel free to check out our contract at wawu-union.org/contract or email ace@wawu-union.org!
If you’re curious about what WAWU is and want to hear more, please reach out to contact@wawu-union.org to ask questions, or wawu-orientations@wawu-union.org to request a workplace orientation!
Just Cause Protections
Under our current contract, Student Employees at Western Washington University are guaranteed just cause protections for all disciplinary / termination actions. Any disciplinary actions taken against student employees must meet the 7 Tests of Just Cause:
- Reasonableness of Rule:
Is this a normal rule for a workplace of this type? Policies must be standardized and reasonably within the employer’s control. It is reasonable to expect employees to show up on time, it is not reasonable to control how employees get to campus. - Adequate Warning / Fair Notice:
Employees must be warned of consequences and progressive discipline steps must be followed. Supervisors must utilize low-level discipline including verbal and written warnings before moving to severe discipline such suspension or termination, except in extreme cases - Completeness of Investigation:
Was the situation investigated fully before discipline was pursued? Were all avenues exhausted, or was the employee unfairly targeted? Are elements of the situation disputed by either party? - Objectivity of investigation:
Was the investigator biased? Did they have a reason to target the grievant?
Note: Most formal investigations at WWU are handled by HR to ensure objectivity - Proof of Infraction:
Is there significant evidence against the employee, or just their supervisor’s claims? Does the employee dispute part or all of their supervisor’s claims, and can they support that? - Proportional Discipline:
Is the discipline being taken reasonable and proportional to the alleged offense? It’s generally not fair to fire someone for being five minutes late, but a no-call-no-show may permit termination under specific circumstances - Uniformity of Rule Application / Prior Enforcement:
Has everyone who broke the rule / participated in the alleged violation been disciplined equally? Are there extenuating circumstances to justify different discipline, or is the supervisor biased? Is there a pattern of disproportionate enforcement of policies?
If you or a coworker have been disciplined or terminated, please email ace@wawu-union.org. We want to investigate these cases fully to ensure that our member’s rights are being respected, even if the situation is not disputed.
Progressive Discipline Procedures
Disciplinary action can take many forms according to the following discipline ladder (14.5). Discipline must start at a low level and progress to more severe actions if the behavior persists, and any action taken by the Employer must be in reasonable proportion to the alleged offense.
1 – Verbal Warning
2 – Written Warning
These should be dedicated conversations with the Employee and Supervisor, noting the problematic behavior, required steps to resolve the situation, a deadline, and a clear outline of the consequences of continuing the behavior.
Western Academic Workers United and the Employee MUST be notified of any disciplinary actions in writing and provided two weeks to request a conference with the supervisor to discuss the discipline prior to the reprimand being placed in the Employee’s file (14.6)
3 – Suspension Without Pay
4 – Internal Transfer
5 – Termination
Serious disciplinary actions may only be taken in proportion to alleged offenses, and only after other avenues to resolve the behavior have been exhausted.
Western Academic Workers United and the Employee MUST be notified of the contemplated action regarding suspension or termination in writing (14.7.1), including
– A statement of reasons for the contemplated action
– The nature of the alleged violation
– The level of discipline contemplated
– Notice of a right to a pre-disciplinary meeting at least 3 business days after the notice is provided
– Notice of the right to Union representation
Under the NLRB v. J. Weingarten (1975) Supreme Court decision, organized employees have the right to union representation during investigatory interviews that they reasonably believe could lead to disciplinary action.
During investigatory interviews, union representatives must be given the opportunity to ask questions, offer additional information, and counsel the affected employee (Article 14.8.2).
Committee News + Updates
2026 Longevity Pay Implementation Errors
After conducting an initial audit of longevity raise implementation for student workers at Western, we’ve found approximately 230 student workers who have been improperly denied their longevity raise, representing approximately 12% of our membership. We are working directly with our Labor Relations Partners in HR to get these raises implemented for our student employees, and have filed two grievances over longevity raise implementation at this point. If you were found to be eligible in this audit, you should have received an email today.
Longevity raises are a new benefit under our 2026-2028 Collective Bargaining Agreement, which is an extra 2% raise applied on top of the across-the-board 2% raise, for a total of 4% increase effective September 16th, 2026. Hourly Student Workers are eligible for raises if they worked at least three consecutive academic quarters in the 2025-2026 School Year, and have remained in the same Department in the same Job Title for Fall Quarter 2026.
Hourly Minimum rates for the life of our contract are as follows:
| Job Level | Hire Year | Old CBA Rate | Sept 16th, 2026 | Sept 16th, 2027 | Sept 16th, 2028 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2025 | $19.79 | $20.58 | $21.40 | $22.26 |
| 1 | 2026 | — | $20.19 | $20.99 | $21.83 |
| 1 | 2027 | — | — | $20.59 | $21.41 |
| 1 | 2028 | — | — | — | $21.00 |
| 2 | 2025 | $21.29 | $22.14 | $23.03 | $23.95 |
| 2 | 2026 | $21.27 | $22.58 | $23.49 | |
| 2 | 2027 | $22.15 | $23.04 | ||
| 2 | 2028 | $22.59 | |||
| 3 | 2025 | $22.79 | $23.70 | $24.65 | $25.64 |
| 3 | 2026 | $23.25 | $24.18 | $25.14 | |
| 3 | 2027 | $23.71 | $24.66 | ||
| 3 | 2028 | $24.18 |
2026-2028 Hourly Rate Schedule
Note: “hire year” in this table assumes you work a full three quarters. Workers who do not work three consecutive quarters are not eligible for 4%, and will receive a 2% raise (equivalent to moving one “hire year” up on this table)
We’re seeking retroactive pay for all student workers who were improperly denied their raises, back to the date of eligibility, September 16th, 2026. If you are determined to be eligible, you will see retropay show up as an additional line item on your pay stub. Retroactive raise amounts are calculated based off your individual wage discrepancy and number of hours worked. We will provide updates once a timeline for retropay disbursement is agreed upon. Please reach out to us at ace@wawu-union.org if you have any questions or concerns, believe you have been improperly denied a raise and haven’t been contacted by us, or have any other workplace concerns!
In Solidarity,
Jase Kaeberlein
Western Academic Workers United, Advocacy & Contract Enforcement
How To Get Involved?
Anyone who’s interested in learning more about the contract is welcome to attend an ACE training with no committment! Email ace@wawu-union.org to find out about trainings coming up, or to schedule one that works for you!
ACE meets weekly to review ongoing cases and keep up to date on admin work, and as needed to support each other as cases progress throughout the week. Prospective members are required to complete a training on confidentiality + general operations to attend committee meetings. All committee memebers must sign the ACE Code of Conduct prior to serving as a union representative for WAWU-UAW 4929