become a member
WE ARE UAKU
UAKU is a democratic, member-run union. Our membership gives us the strength we need to win the improvements and protections that faculty and academic staff deserve. Together we can make KU a place where workers, students, and the mission of higher education can thrive.
Members of UAKU:
- Set the priorities that we will bargain over in contract negotiations.
- Elect the bargaining team members and officers of our union, or become leaders themselves.
- Participate in the actions that demonstrate our strength and win concrete change at KU.
- Contribute the resources that sustain our powerful organizing.
- Stand in solidarity with each other, and colleagues across campuses.
Click the card to sign up online. A confirmation email will be sent to your KU email address after you submit your filled-out card. Please check your email and click the provided confirmation link to complete your membership.
who we are
We, the United Academics of the University of Kansas (UAKU), advocate for the rights of faculty and academic staff in the creation and dissemination of knowledge for the public good. The promise of a workplace guided by equity, fairness, transparency, and fully realized shared governance is essential to building a better KU. We are committed to high-quality public education, academic freedom, and critical inquiry, and support all campus workers in their rights to fair labor practices. We seek to champion all voices, believing that diversity is—and must be—our strength. We join together to form a union that will speak and act democratically in defense of our interests, in service to our students, and for the betterment of our community.
We aim to:
- Advance academic freedom and shared governance
- Ensure job security and safe and equitable working conditions
- Secure just and contractually guaranteed compensation, due process, and improved benefits, including family leave
- Foster a supportive environment in which we recruit and retain outstanding, diverse faculty and academic staff
- Advocate for the resources to pursue excellence in research and teaching
- Protect the health and well-being of our students, co-workers, families, and community
The lands on which the University of Kansas stands are centuries-old sites of teaching and learning. UAKU acknowledges the Indigenous inhabitants, educators, and caretakers of this land and is committed to supporting and collaborating with the Indigenous peoples of our community.