Cornell grad students file discrimination charges over alleged harassment by unions

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GLOBAL INDUSTRY NEWS

William L. Messenger Vice President and Legal Director (2023-Present) | NRTWLD&EF, Inc

By Sky Industry News

Jun 19, 2025

Two graduate students from Cornell University have filed federal antidiscrimination charges against the Cornell Graduate Student Union (GSU) and its parent, the United Electrical (UE) union. The students, David Rubinstein and Louie Gold, allege that union officials are unlawfully harassing graduate students who submit religious objections to paying union dues.

Rubinstein and Gold, both Jewish, assert that supporting the UE unions conflicts with their religious beliefs. They have filed their charges with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), receiving legal support from National Right to Work Foundation attorneys.

The charges claim that UE union officials engage in illegal practices by harassing religious objectors instead of adhering to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination based on religion. Rubinstein and Gold report receiving questionnaires from union officials demanding intrusive information about their religious practices.

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The students argue they have fulfilled their legal obligations by informing the union of their objections through letters. Federal law mandates that union officials provide a religious accommodation for such objections. This often allows objectors to redirect an amount equivalent to dues to a nonprofit charity.

“Both nationwide and on the Cornell campus, the UE, CGSU, and their other campus affiliates have been at the forefront of demonizing Israel," read the charges. "The unions had no objective or bona-fide reasons to doubt the basis for my accommodation request or to question my sincerely held religious beliefs.”

New York does not offer Right to Work protections, meaning UE and Cornell GSU require graduate students to pay dues as a condition of employment. However, Title VII provides exceptions for those with sincere religious objections like Rubinstein and Gold.

Since 2023, National Right to Work Foundation attorneys have supported numerous Christian and Jewish graduate students nationwide in defending against forced-dues demands from unions. In 2024, Jewish graduate students at MIT secured accommodations allowing them to donate dues-equivalent amounts to pro-Israel charities instead of the UE union.

“This situation at Cornell again shows students and the public at large exactly what GSU and UE union officials’ priorities are: radical political mobilization," said National Right to Work Foundation President Mark Mix. “Union bosses may not like it, but federal law is clear that they must comply with valid requests for a religious accommodation."

Mix added that broader reforms are needed so individuals can opt out of objectionable union support based on political, religious, financial grounds or otherwise.