WASHINGTON — Teachers at Howard University called off plans to go on strike for better pay after reaching an agreement with the administration early Wednesday morning.
The Howard Teaching Faculty Union, which is represented by SEIU 500, consists of part-time adjuncts and full-time non-tenure lecturers and instructors. They announced the agreement was reached at 3:26 a.m., according to a tweet from the union. In the tweet, the union called it a "historic victory."
The union had announced its intention to strike at Wednesday morning in a 1 a.m. tweet, but just hours later, announced the strike would be called off.
Dr. Aisha Bonner Cozad said 23 professors and a lead negotiator from SEIU negotiated with Howard administration and university lawyers.
If the strike had moved forward, teachers told WUSA9 they had planned to not teach classes, give lectures or write recommendations until an agreement was reached.
Details of the agreement have not been made public.
The strike originally came about because some faculty said they were not being paid enough. Bonner Cozad said many adjunct professors at Howard University must rely on second jobs to support themselves because they are not paid enough for their services on campus.
On March 18, Howard University President Wayne Frederick released a statement regarding labor negotiations at the university.
"Howard University faculty serve a vital role in our community and we respect the right of temporary faculty to bargain collectively through union representation,” he said. “We remain committed to good faith efforts to reach an accord that benefits Howard instructors, but also prevents the erosion of tenure and potentially negative impacts to the fundamental research mission of our University."
Now that a tentative agreement has been reached, it is subject to a vote of ratification by union members, which is will be scheduled in the coming weeks, the union said.