Become a Union Member!

Any faculty member in the UFF-UF bargaining unit can join, including faculty in tenure-track, instructional, clinical, and research positions. If you’re not sure whether your position is part of the bargaining unit, reach out to ask us.

The bargaining unit includes Arts; Business; Counseling and Wellness; Design, Construction and Planning; Education; Engineering; Hamilton; Honors; Health and Human Performance; International Center; Journalism and Communications; Liberal Arts and Sciences; Libraries; Museums; Office of Research; PK Yonge Developmental Research School; Student Life; Student Success; and Whitney Marine Laboratory. The units that make up the UFF-UF bargaining unit are specified in Appendix A of our contract.

Union dues are 1% of our base salaries. They are paid through the Florida Education Association’s eDues system, which is similar to the system you might already use to make automatic payments for things like home utilities. We can no longer deduct dues from our paychecks since Florida outlawed this option in 2023.

UFF-UF members can choose one of three dues payment schedules. Please choose the schedule that aligns with your appointment, so that dues payments only occur on days when your paycheck arrives. When you fill out your UFF-UF membership application: 

• Select ACH-18 if you are on a 9-month appointment
• Select ACH-26 if you are on a 12-month appointment 
• Select ACH-21 if you are a PK Yonge faculty member (or other 10-month appointment)

Need help? Reach out to the Membership Team and we’ll walk you through the enrollment process.

No. Because Florida is a “right to work” state, you need to actively choose to become a union member by completing the UFF-UF membership application and paying dues.

You should join UFF-UF as soon as you are hired to guarantee your right to union representation, have a say in union governance, and access union member benefits. High membership makes our union strong.

The most important benefit of membership is ensuring that we keep our contract and our rights, which are at risk due to recent union-busting laws in Florida that threaten to decertify any union with membership below 60%.

Dues-paying union members are also entitled to union representation if the university infringes upon their rights. In fact, only dues-paying members can get help from the UFF-UF Grievance Team. By contrast, going through legal proceedings on your own can easily cost tens of thousands of dollars. 

By becoming a UFF-UF member, you also become a member of our parent unions, each of which offers its own suite of benefits. For example, as an affiliate member of NEA, you get $1M in liability insurance if you are sued in connection with your job.

Retired faculty members can join the statewide UFF Retired Chapter to stay plugged into the faculty labor movement. We also have several retired UF faculty members who still help us organize on campus!

Faculty outside of our bargaining unit (like in IFAS, Health Sciences, and Law) are not protected by our collective bargaining agreement, but can still join UFF as at-large members and receive membership benefits from our parent unions. 

Faculty outside of the bargaining unit are also always welcome to join us at UFF-UF events to build faculty solidarity across campus.

Yes! Graduate students should join Graduate Assistants United (UF GAU). Staff and adjunct faculty should join United Campus Workers of Florida (UF UCW). 

We believe that every worker should have a union.