Temple withdraws free tuition for grad students on strike and gives them until March 9 to pay

Temple University made good on its threat to withdraw free tuition from its graduate student assistants on strike.

Students on strike must pay their spring tuition in full by March 9 or they will face a $100 late fee and a financial hold on their account, preventing them from registering for more classes, said a notice from the Temple bursar’s office. Tuition remission is worth up to $20,000 annually, depending on where the students are in their studies.

The notice, which was posted on Twitter by striking student Madison Ingram, a Ph.D. candidate in history, drew harsh words for Temple.

“Horrendous,” wrote one doctoral student from the University of California San Diego.

“Such a ridiculously inane, awful response,” wrote another.

» READ MORE: National union and political leaders rally for striking Temple graduate students, while school issues warning

The move comes amid the second week of a strike by the Temple University Graduate Student Association, which represents about 750 members, although Temple maintains that more than 80% of graduate student teaching and research assistants are continuing to work. That would mean fewer than 150 students are on strike.

However, Matt Ford, lead negotiator for the union and a doctoral candidate in sociology, contended that at least twice that number are on strike and more are joining.

The two sides began mediation this week but appear no closer to settling a contract.

Fliers are circulating calling for a campuswide student walkout Feb. 15 in solidarity with TUGSA.

“Join the picket line and rally,” it says. “Spread the word in your dorms, classes and on social media.”

American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten and some local political leaders rallied on campus in support of the students last week.

» READ MORE: With negotiations at a stalemate, Temple graduate students go on strike

Temple maintains it’s within its legal rights to withhold tuition reimbursement for striking students.

“In accordance with Pennsylvania law, those TUGSA members who have chosen not to work are no longer entitled to their compensation and work-related benefits, which include tuition remission, when they are on strike and not performing work for the university,” the school said in a statement. “Because striking workers are not entitled to tuition remission, they have been notified of their obligation to make arrangements to pay their tuition, consistent with how the university treats other students who have unpaid tuition obligations.”

The university noted that graduate students are part-time, temporary employees who work nine months out of the year and 20 hours a week on average,

» READ MORE: Penn awards largest one-time pay increase to doctoral students, while Temple remains in negotiations

Bethany Kosmicki, a member of the negotiating committee and past TUGSA president, said that while employers legally have to dock pay in a strike, cutting off benefits is a choice.

“Temple has made the egregious and immoral choice to cut these benefits during the strike,” she said.

The university also has begun deactivating students’ health-care accounts, she said.

“We have had people who have been turned away from doctor’s appointments and who have had to pay out-of-pocket for prescriptions,” she said. “We are working on solutions to get people access to health care again.”

The union went on strike for the first time in its history after more than a year of negotiations failed to produce a contract. The students teach core undergraduate courses and assist professors with research.

The two sides remain far apart, particularly on pay. The average pay for a teaching and research assistant at Temple is $19,500 a year, and the union has sought to raise it to more than $32,000, which it said is a necessary cost-of-living adjustment. The university’s offer of 3% raises over the four-year contract gets the average pay to about $22,000 in 2026.

Health care is another area of dispute. While Temple pays for graduate students’ health care, their dependents are not covered. The union wants that changed. The two sides also are apart on paid parental leave and other benefits.