Montana
University of Montana graduate students from new union, one of largest in state • Daily Montanan
Graduate students at the University of Montana in Missoula have formed a union after two years of organizing, and with more than 400 eligible members, it will be one of the largest in the state.
The Department of Labor and Industry certified the UM Graduate Employees Union last week, according to the Montana Federation of Public Employees.
“Our organizing message was simple,” said Colette Berg, an organizing lead and UM graduate employee, in a statement from MFPE. “Graduate employees’ wages, benefits, and working conditions aren’t keeping up with Missoula’s cost of living or honoring our roles in research, teaching, and learning. Everyone realizes we’re a lynchpin for UM, and we look forward to bargaining collectively with UM’s leadership to collaboratively address the challenges GEU members face.”
The labor movement has been active in the U.S. in recent years, including in Missoula, where the cost of housing has far outpaced wages. However, the proportion of workers who belong to a union has generally declined in the country during the last couple of decades.
Graduate students are especially difficult to organize because they are spread across a campus and work on different contracts that can range from two to five years, according to the Montana Federation of Public Employees.
According to the Montana State University Graduate Employee Organization in Bozeman, they’re also not easy to sustain. The Graduate Employee Organization counts 169 members.
MSU Graduate Employee Organization President M Wittkop said a graduate student union has challenges that are different from other locals. That’s because a campus union is made up of students — whose members by definition are constantly graduating and moving on.
MSU graduates formed their student union in 2015, according to the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education. Bozeman also has notoriously high housing costs.
A report from an April 2024 graduate union assembly in Bozeman said the local will need new members in order to avoid dissolution. However, Wittkop also said the union has driven significant wins for its members, including in 2023.
“We got one of the biggest raises across the board for all graduates,” Wittkop said.
The increase amounts to roughly $100 more a month for the minimum allowable stipend a graduate student can be paid, or currently $760 a month, they said. The minimum will go up another $100 on Aug. 1.
“We also put in more strict limits on how many classes a TA (teaching assistant) can be assigned and changed language around work environment to protect students against ‘PI abuse,’” Wittkop said.
(That’s the potential abuse of power a thesis advisor or PI, a principal investigator, might enact over a student, they said.)
The graduate union also completed a cost of living survey, which among other things, showed 45% of respondents had skipped “necessary medical care” to save money, and 46% had skipped meals or eaten less to save money.
Additionally, the survey found 57% of graduate students needed second jobs, such as pet sitting, while in school. Of 826 graduate assistants, 184 responded to the 2024 survey, according to the union.
Wittkop said they believe the union has the potential for longevity if it can find new members, but the current challenge is broadcasting its existence.
“We’re going to have to really put in the work to find these people,” Wittkop said.
The Montana University System already counts 23 collective bargaining agreements covering roughly 2,374 people of an estimated 9,000 total employees, according to the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education. That doesn’t include the new union at UM.
Faculty at the Bozeman campus formed a union that was approved in 2011 but then decertified in April 2013, according to the Commissioner’s Office.
At UM, a faculty union and classified staff union have long been active, and MFPE President Amanda Curtis said the organization looks forward to supporting the new graduate student union as well. Berg could not be reached for additional comment.
“We are so proud of the graduate employees at UM who have now organized and certified Montana’s largest new union in years,” Curtis said in a statement. “Their commitment to ensuring graduate employees have a strong voice in their working conditions and wages is what unionism is all about.”
A couple of years ago, the Missoula Tenants Union formed in the Garden City, and nurses at Providence St. Patrick Hospital recently — and visibly — renegotiated their contract; signs advocating support for the nurses popped up across the community.
The Montana Federation of Public Employees said collective bargaining at UM has been marked by a respectful and fair relationship between union members and university leadership for decades.
In an email, UM spokesperson Dave Kuntz said the university worked with the Department of Labor and Industry and the Commissioner’s Office throughout the process — clearly defined in statute — with graduate students.
“Graduate students are critical to UM,” Kuntz said in an email. “Their scholarship, research, and teaching help to advance our entire state and address many of the most pressing issues facing society.”
The labor movement has been historically strong in Montana. Last year, roughly 13% of workers were represented by a union compared to roughly 10% of those in the U.S., according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The news release from Montana Federation of Public Employees said the state certified the new Graduate Employees Union at UM on June 25, and it is MFPE’s newest local with “full collective bargaining rights to secure a fair contract.”
Although newly minted GOP candidates for the U.S. House and U.S. Senate have garnered heavyweight endorsements, the Montana Republican Party said Thursday it won’t throw its support behind any candidates for federal office in the primary.
“The Montana Republican Party (MTGOP) stands behind its deep bench of qualified candidates seeking to represent Montanans and supports a competitive primary process to let voters pick their preferred candidates,” the Montana GOP said in a news release Thursday.
Monday, U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke announced he was retiring due to health concerns once his term ends, and he immediately tapped talk-show host Aaron Flint as his preferred successor in Congress.
Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen and Flathead County Republican Central Committee Chairperson Al Olszewski also filed for the U.S. House as Republicans, as did Ray Curtis of Bonner.
Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines withdrew, and in a statement the same night, announced an endorsement of former U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme, who had filed the same day.
In the Senate, Lee Calhoun and Charles Walking Child also filed to run in the Republican primary.
Endorsements for Flint and Alme cascaded. U.S. President Donald Trump endorsed both candidates, and U.S. Sen. Tim Sheehy and Gov. Greg Gianforte threw their weight behind Flint and Alme.
Late on Wednesday, the Montana GOP did not immediately have comment on the news Daines, Montana’s senior U.S. senator, had resigned, but Thursday, the party thanked Zinke and Daines for their service.
A news release said the party would not endorse any candidates in the federal primary and would leave the job in the hands of voters.
“The party hopes every candidate will make their case to the public, contrasting their Republican policies and principles with those of Democrats — as well as phony ‘Independents,’” the news release said.
Former University of Montana President Seth Bodnar announced a run for the U.S. Senate as an independent this week.
A tension within the Republican party has emerged in recent years between hardline conservatives and more moderate members, and some legislative primaries illustrate the split.
This week, the state GOP said the number of primaries for state legislative seats shows a high interest from Montanans who want to serve the state and pass Republican policy, and the MTGOP “is glad to see so many Republicans being called to public service.”
In a brief call, MTGOP spokesperson Ethan Holmes said the party had not ruled out endorsements in legislative primaries.
In the news release, however, the MTGOP offered its view of the larger political debate.
“Montana voters know that beyond the primaries, there is a clear choice between Republican and Democratic governance; one path leads to lower taxes, less crime and stronger families, and the other leads to higher taxes, more crime, and social decay,” MTGOP Chairperson Art Wittich said in a statement.
The news release also said the state GOP is working “tirelessly to deliver a Bright Red Future” at both the state and federal level and looks forward to help candidates whom voters select win in November.
The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 4, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from March 4 drawing
07-14-42-47-56, Powerball: 06, Power Play: 4
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from March 4 drawing
33-38-39-47-51, Star Ball: 07, ASB: 02
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from March 4 drawing
01-07-08-27, Bonus: 12
Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from March 4 drawing
05-10-26-53-59, Powerball: 06
Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Montana Cash numbers from March 4 drawing
03-04-06-08-10
Check Montana Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 4 drawing
12-13-36-39-58, Bonus: 03
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
- Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Montana Cash: 8 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Great Falls Tribune editor. You can send feedback using this form.
The search for a new University of Montana president has drawn more than 60 applicants, according to a spokesperson for the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education.
“We do not have an exact count at this time, as several applications are still being completed and additional submissions are expected,” said spokesperson and Deputy Commissioner Galen Hollenbaugh in an email earlier this week.
In January, then-UM-President Seth Bodnar announced his resignation to pursue other public service. Wednesday, the final day of filing, he announced he was running as an independent for the U.S. Senate to try to unseat Republican incumbent Steve Daines.
Commissioner of Higher Education Clayton Christian earlier said that with the advice of AGB Search, a firm that’s helped the Montana University System conduct other executive searches, he would undertake an expedited process to appoint a new president.
Christian has been providing brief updates on a website dedicated to the search. Last week, he said he and AGB Search are reviewing applications, and the pool of candidates was “strong and diverse.”
The commissioner also announced he was convening a small working group to assist in the search, members who “represent a variety of perspectives to assist in vetting and narrowing this field of exceptional candidates.”
In an email this week, Hollenbaugh identified the members of the working group who are assisting Christian with application review as:
- Community member and former Regent Joyce Dombrouski
- Faculty Senate Chairperson Valerie Moody
- Staff Senate President Dominic Beccari
- Administration Representative John DeBoer (Vice President of Academic Affairs)
- ASUM (Associated Students of the University of Montana) President Buddy Wilson
Hollenbaugh declined to comment on the way the rest of the process would unfold or the role the working group members would play.
Christian earlier said he anticipated an appointment within one to three months, or as soon as early this month.
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