During her tenure as vice president of UAW's district 65,[5] Kushner advocated for clerical and technical workers at Columbia University.
[12] The effort for the UAW to represent Columbia's clerical workers took five years,[13] including a contentious representation election held in May 1983.
"[17] In 2000, as a subregional director for UAW, Kushner worked to form a union of postgraduate researchers at New York University.
[20] During Kushner's tenure as a subregional director, the UAW represented adjunct faculty at New School University, as well.
[27] Prior to campaigning for political office, Kushner was co-chair of the Connecticut Working Families Party for eight years.
[26] Kushner announced that she would run for reelection in January 2020,[34] and defeated Susan Chapman in the general election.