For a summary of some of the most notable provisions in [...]]]> Below are links to contracts won by graduate employee unions around the
country. These contracts were negotiated by graduate employees for graduate
employees. They guarantee basic rights and a powerful voice in the decision
making process on each of the campuses. This is what GEO is fighting for!

For a summary of some of the most notable provisions in these contracts,
see our Contract Comparison page.

Many of the contracts are viewable on your current web browser. Some
are PDF files that require the free Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you do not
have Acrobat® Reader, you can download the latest and most appropriate
version for your computer here.

Oregon State University
Coalition of Graduate Employees/AFT

http://www.peak.org/%7Ecge/about.html

Rutgers
Rutgers AAUP

http://www.rutgersaaup.com/who_are_we/Services/Agreement/agreement.html

SUNY
Graduate Student Employees Union/CWA

http://www.gseu.org/contract.htm

University of California (8 campuses)

http://www.uaw2865.org/contract.html

University of Florida
Graduate Employees Union/AFT/NEA

http://www.ufgau.org/NewPageBeta2/Document%20Dump/2005contract.htm

University of Iowa
Campaign to Organize Graduate Students/UE

http://www.cogs.org/contract.html

University of Kansas
Graduate Teaching Assistants’ Coalition/AFT

http://www.kugtac.org

University of Massachusetts at Amherst
Graduate Employees Organization/UAW

http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/%7Egeo/gp/contract.html

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor
Graduate Employees Organization/AFT

http://www.umich.edu/~umgeo/contract/index.html

University of Oregon
Graduate Teaching Fellows Federation/AFT

www.gtff.net

University of Wisconsin at Madison
Teaching Assistants Association/AFT

http://www.taa-madison.org/contract-info.html

University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee
Milwaukee Graduate Assistants Association/AFT

http://www.mgaa.org/documents.html

Wayne State University
Graduate Employees Organizing Committee/AFT

http://www.gradschool.wayne.edu/assistantships/ContractPage.html

]]> http://www.uigeo.org/2005/12/20/graduate-employee-union-contracts/feed/ 0 http://www.uigeo.org/2004/08/12/faq/ http://www.uigeo.org/2004/08/12/faq/#comments Fri, 13 Aug 2004 03:38:00 +0000 admin http://new.uigeo.org/2004/08/12/faq/ General Questions about GEO

What is the Graduate Employees’ Organization, and what are its goals? Why should I join the GEO? Who is allowed to be a member of the union? Are there other universities with graduate employee unions?

Contract Questions

Did we already have the protections stipulated in the contract? What do I do if the contract has been [...]]]> General Questions about GEO

• What is the Graduate Employees’ Organization, and what are its goals?
• Why should I join the GEO?
• Who is allowed to be a member of the union?
• Are there other universities with graduate employee unions?

Contract Questions

• Did we already have the protections stipulated in the contract?
• What do I do if the contract has been violated?

Unionization and Its Effect on Assistantships and Duties

• I’m an international student. If I join the Union, will the University retaliate against me? Will I be in danger of losing my assistantship or deportation?
• If I join the Union will I be forced to go on strike?
• Won’t a graduate employee union just cost the University more money and lead to a decrease in the number of assistantships?
• I’ve got a good relationship with my advisor and the professor I work under for my assistantship. Will a union damage that relationship and simply be an unnecessary, intrusive third party?

Effect of Unionization on Pay

• I work in the sciences and I am well-paid already. Will the GEO try to raise the stipends of poorly-paid employees by cutting or freezing the pay of well-paid employees?

Dues and Fair Share

• What are dues?
• How will the GEO spend members’ dues money?
• Will the cost of union dues wipe out any increases in pay and benefits we may get?

GEO’s Affiliation With the Illinois and American Federation of Teachers and the AFL-CIO

• The GEO may be okay, but why is it affiliated with national labor unions? What do they know about graduate employees?
• Does the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) control the Graduate Employees’ Organization?

---

General Questions About the GEO

Question. What is the Graduate Employees’ Organization, and what are its goals?
Answer. The GEO is a democratic member-run union for all graduate employees. Furthermore, the GEO is the official venue through which TAs and GAs can negotiate with the University administration over our healthcare, wages, and other working conditions.
Over the last decade UIUC graduate employees, through the GEO, have pushed for and won better stipends, improvements in health insurance, and other benefits (for a more in depth history of the GEO, see A Brief History of the GEO).
GEO bargains with the university administration in good faith toward mutually agreeable improvements to employment policies and benefits for graduate employees, including a grievance policy for work conflicts, employer-paid health insurance, and smaller classes and paid training for TAs. But most importantly, we want a strong voice in making changes to employment policies and benefits. For more details see our Statement of Mission and Goals.
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Q. Why should I join the GEO?
A. There is strength in numbers. Through a strong and active membership the GEO has made significant improvements in graduate employee working conditions. The most significant improvements include increased stipends, dental insurance, vision care, a full subsidy of the McKinley Fee, a partial subsidy of student insurance, and strong protections against overwork, discrimination, and arbitrary discipline (see the contract summary for more info). Continued demonstration of unity will help enforce the contract we have now and help win improvements in heathcare and working conditions in the future. Furthermore members, and only members, run the GEO. Becoming a member empowers you to have a voice in your union and your working conditions.
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Q. Who is allowed to be a member of the union?
A. All graduate students are encouraged to become members of the GEO. As an organization, the GEO is committed to representing the interests of all graduate students with assistantships. In 2002, GEO won collective bargaining rights for most Teaching and Graduate Assistants through direct actions. Unfortunately the University remains steadfast in denying RAs and PGAs the same rights that TAs and GAs now take for granted. All members in good standing of the GEO may vote regardless of current employment status. RAs and PGAs are encouraged to join so that GEO can more effectively ensure that the economic benefits won through the contract are extended to all graduate employees.
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Q. Are there other universities with graduate employee unions?
A. Yes. There are over 30 campuses with unions bargaining contracts for graduate student employees, including the Universities of Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, California, Oregon, Massachusetts, SUNY, and others. Graduate employee unions have been around since the 1970s. (For links to other graduate employee unions, see our Links page or see the Coalition of Graduate Employee Unions web site.) You can find out more information on what some of these other graduate employee unions have won by visiting our Contract Comparison page.)
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Contract Questions

Q. Did we already have the protections that are stipulated in the contract?
A. No. Many of the procedures and protections resemble current university policy or practice while some protections are new. A recurring problem prior to the contract was that policies were only enforced when it was convenient for the administration to do so. The contract is legally binding and has a built-in procedure to enforce the contract that ends in third-party binding arbitration. This means that a body other than the University administration decides whether the contract has been violated.
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Q. What do I do if the contract has been violated?
A. Contact the GEO immediately! The contract incorporates both informal and more formal methods of filing grievances and also let the individual grievant decide which method is most appropriate for his or her particular grievance. GEO has a lot of experience helping individual graduate employees with grievances. Also, see our Grievance Help page.
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Unionization and Its Effect on Assistantships and Duties

Q. I’m an international student. If I join the union, will the university retaliate against me? Will I be in danger of losing my assistantship or deportation?
A. No. Every international graduate student, regardless of national origin or type of visa, has the right to join a union. Your right to belong to a union is protected by the right to freedom of association guaranteed in the United States Constitution. The University’s own Preamble to the Students Rights section of the Code of Policies and Regulations Applying to All Students states that students "have at least the rights and responsibilities common to all citizens." This statement is not exclusionary of international students — it applies to all of us. The University’s non-discrimination statement also says that they cannot discriminate against someone because of their "national origin."
That discrimination exists against international students, however, is clear. This is even more of a reason that international students should join the GEO and help fight for more protections. Only with a union, independent of the University administration, can you be assured that if you are subject to discrimination by the administration that there is a group that will stand behind you and will help to defend you.
In fact, international graduate assistants have many reasons to join the union. First, the union can provide a voice and advocacy for international graduate students who don’t always know the U.S. university system. Second, the union can help ensure that departmental hiring practices are clear, open, and fair so that international graduate students don’t miss out on work opportunities. Third, since U.S. law prohibits international students from being paid for more than 20 hours per week, the need for a insuring that the minimum stipend guarantees a decent living standard is even more critical for them. Fourth, better and more affordable benefits, a fair and enforceable grievance procedure, higher wages, a voice in our working conditions, and respect as employees are things all assistants and their families deserve.
(For more information on your rights as an international graduate employee, call the GEO office at 344-8283, write us at geo@uigeo.org, and check out our web page on the GEO and International Student Rights.)
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Q. If I join the Union will I be forced to go on strike?
A. No. A work action can only be authorized by a vote of the union’s membership. A strike can only work if people support it of their own accord. The GEO’s Constitution ensures a member’s right to dissent through protections of the freedom of speech, protections against discrimination on the basis of political beliefs, and guarantees against limitations on an employee’s right to choose the time and manner of his or her work. Nowhere in the Constitution is the union’s leadership authorized to fine or discipline members for non-participation in a strike or for any other reason.
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Q. Doesn’t a graduate employee union just cost the University more money and lead to a decrease in the number of assistantships?
A. Not necessarily. The data from UIUC shows that there is little correlation between providing good pay and benefits to grads and decreasing the number of assistantships. In 2002, prior to grads winning the bulk of the economic benefits, the University of Illinois greatly reduced the number of TAships available. The evidence from unionized campuses like the Universities of Wisconsin and Michigan shows that fair pay and benefits do not result in a decline in the number of assistantships. University of Wisconsin graduate employees bargained union contracts between 1970 and 1979, but the UW administration refused to bargain from 1979 to 1987. UW Teaching Assistants and Project Assistants won union rights again in 1987 and have bargained regular contracts since 1988. Since 1988 the number of assistantships at the UW has actually gone up at the from 2,373 to 2,839. At University of Michigan TAs and Staff Assistants won their first contract in 1975 when there were 1,200 employees. In 2000 there were 1,650 assistants.
Budgets for assistantships are not fixed. They are dependent on undergraduate enrollment (demand for teachers) and graduate enrollment (supply of teachers). Budgets at state universities are also very political. We can have a greater impact on the political process if we are organized than if we have to rely on the good will of the legislature.
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Q. I’ve got a good relationship with my advisor and the professor I work under for my assistantship. Will a union damage that relationship and simply be an unnecessary, intrusive third party?
A. No. There are over 30 campuses in the United States and Canada where graduate employees have chosen to unionize and there is no evidence that collective bargaining has damaged relationships between graduate employees and their advisors. In fact, a survey by Gordon Hewitt (a researcher at Tufts University) found that graduate student unions tend to create a positive environment on campus. Hewitt surveyed almost 300 faculty members in the liberal arts and sciences at universities with recognized graduate employee unions including the University of Massachusetts, SUNY Buffalo, the University of Florida, the University of Michigan and the University of Oregon. A faculty member at one of the universities said, "The graduate student union [on] our campus has had a positive impact on the working and, in turn, studying and research lives of our grad students. For our department, the contracts negotiated to date have helped regularize hiring, working and disciplinary procedures in positive ways." Graduate student unions don’t get in the way of good relationships between faculty and students because that’s not what their membership wants. The union’s purpose is to intervene when abuses occur. For a more information on this issue, read the article concerning Hewitt’s study in the January 2000 edition of "The Organizer."
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Effect of Unionization on Pay

Q. I work in the sciences and I am well-paid already. Will the GEO try to raise the stipends of poorly-paid employees by cutting or freezing the pay of well-paid employees?
A. No. The contract only stipulates minimum raises and stipends.The union is about “leveling up,” not down, and has stated on many occasions that, as a matter of principle, it will not seek to freeze or cut anyone’s pay to fund pay increases for others. In fact, the GEO constitution prohibits bargaining for pay caps or limits to employees’ rights to choose the time and manner of their work.
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Dues and Fair Share

Q. What are the dues?
A. Every graduate employee covered by the contract is required to pay a "fair share fee" or "representation fee" (2% of the paycheck) to the union. Graduate employees who join the GEO pay the same amount. While membership is optional, the dues are mandatory. Under state law a union is required to represent everyone in the bargaining unit in contract negotiations and disputes. Therefore everyone who benefits from the union is required to fund the services. Membership dues for individuals outside the bargaining unit are currently set at a flat $3 per month.
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Q. How will dues be spent?
A. Running and effective union requires many expenses including staff, office space, computers, office equipment, mailings, supplies, etc. Also, as an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers we pool money together with other locals to pay for legal support, legislative campaigns, trainings for members, and advisors to help us bargain and deal with grievances. Elected officers allocate the GEO’s local budget, and GEO has delegates who help determine how pooled resources are spent. With a financially healthy union we can enforce the contract and gain strength for the next contract fight. For more information, see a summary of the current GEO Budget.
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Q. Will the cost of union dues wipe out any increases in pay and benefits we may get?
A. No. Dues have been set in such a way that everyone covered by the contract has benefits that far outweigh dues. For example, a TA in Chemistry with a 50% appointment would pay around $35/month in dues. However, that employee would take home and additional $122/month in 2005-6 due to the contract! This is even more impressive when you factor in past victories (such as fully subsidized vision and dental) and non-economic benefits and protections grads now enjoy.
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GEO’s Affiliation With the Illinois and American Federation of Teachers and the AFL-CIO

Q. The GEO may be okay, but why is it affiliated with national labor unions? What do they know about graduate employees?
A. As professionals working in higher education, graduate employees share much with the other members of our state and national affiliates. The GEO is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), a 1,000,000-member organization that represents graduate employees at the Universities of Wisconsin (Madison and Milwaukee), Michigan, Kansas, Florida, South Florida and Oregon, Temple, Wayne State, Michigan State, the City University of New York, Oregon State, Florida A&M, as well as college professors, K-12 teachers and other public employees. Our state affiliate, the Illinois Federation of Teachers (IFT), with over 85,000 members, represents professors at Eastern, Western, and Northern Illinois Universities as well as professors at many community colleges in the state, K-12 teachers and other public employees. Within the AFT we are part of the Alliance of Graduate Employee Locals (AGEL) that helps to coordinate policy for the AFT. The GEO is a very large local within the IFT and sends delegates to the IFT and AFT conventions, which set policy and oversee budgets at the state and national level. Through our affiliation with the national AFL-CIO we are part of a network of unions across the country that are fighting for workplace and economic justice just as we are. The AFL-CIO provides valuable resources and knowledge that benefits us in our drive for recognition and that will help us as we move into negotiations with the administration. Besides providing solidarity in our struggle, they also lobby in Washington DC on behalf of working people and for policies that enhance our rights as employees.
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Q. Does the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) control the Graduate Employees’ Organization?
A. The Graduate Employees’ Organization (GEO) was formed in 1988 by Teaching, Research, and Graduate Assistants on this campus with an eye to improve their own salaries, health care, and workload. In 1995, after much research and discussion, the GEO membership voted to affiliate with the Illinois Federation of Teachers (IFT) and its parent union the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). The AFT has proven experience with higher education: it represents graduate employees at the universities of Wisconsin, Michigan, Kansas, Oregon, and Temple, as well as college professors across the country. On these campuses graduate employees run their own unions by electing their own officers, filing their own grievances, and bargaining their own contracts. The most important factor in choosing to affiliate with the AFT was that they offered us a network of support and resources without threatening the autonomy of our union as a democratic organization, which has always and will always be run by us and for us — its graduate employee members. This full organizational autonomy is guaranteed by our constitution. In short, the “outside” voices the administration fears are really the “inside” voices of graduate employees in a strong, democratic union.
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]]> http://www.uigeo.org/2004/08/12/faq/feed/ 0 http://www.uigeo.org/2003/12/19/summary-of-graduate-employee-union-contracts/ http://www.uigeo.org/2003/12/19/summary-of-graduate-employee-union-contracts/#comments Fri, 19 Dec 2003 18:36:09 +0000 staff http://new.uigeo.org/2003/12/19/summary-of-graduate-employee-union-contracts/ The following summary was compiled from several graduate employee union contracts. The contracts cover a range of universities, from ones with older and more established unions to those with more recent unions and from large to small universities. Listed below are some major highlights from these contracts. The links included below will take you to each union’s home page. For [...]]]> The following summary was compiled from several graduate employee union
contracts. The contracts cover a range of universities, from ones with
older and more established unions to those with more recent unions and
from large to small universities. Listed below are some major highlights
from these contracts. The links included below will take you to each union’s
home page. For links to the various contracts, go to our Contract
Links page or surf each individual union’s site.

1. Academic Freedom:

• At the Florida institutions represented by the Graduate
  Assistants United/UFF/AFT the local has negotiated an academic freedom
  provision. This section of the contract provides appropriate freedom
  for teaching assistants to "give their own interpretations of instructional
  materials used by them — whether self-chosen or prescribed by the teaching
  unit — within the bounds of knowledge and methodologies appropriate
  to the disciplinary field." It also encourages research assistants
  to "exercise creativity and sound judgment in carrying out the
  theoretical, conceptual, and methodological design of the research under
  the guidance of the research supervisor."

2. Anti-Discrimination:

• Many grad unions (such as the GTFF
  at U of Oregon) have included language in contracts that bind universities
  to providing detailed information on hiring practices and statistics
  to ensure compliance with non-discrimination and/or affirmative action
  policies.
• The GEO at
  U of Michigan and the TAA
  at U of Wisconsin (Madison) won contract language that requires
  departments to post jobs in a fair and open way.
• Most union contracts have anti-discrimination clauses that often include
  sexual harassment as a prohibited act. Having these in a union contract
  allows individual grad employees to use the grievance procedure to fight
  discrimination and they allow the union to take these issues up in meetings
  with the administration.
• The GEO at
  U of Michigan negotiated to create a University committee that acts
  as a watchdog for affirmative action and anti-discrimination. This committee
  produces yearly public reports on the status of affirmative action on
  campus.

3. Grievance Procedure/Protection:

• All union contracts provide a clear, formal grievance procedure that
  balances the needs and rights of graduate employees, faculty, and the
  administration. They allow for a timely and fair resolution of disputes
  that arise. Most specify strict time limits, end in independent third-party
  arbitration, and allow the right to a representative.
• GEO’s contract at the U
  of Michigan specifically bars discrimination based on union activity.
  If discrimination does occur, an individual can then use the grievance
  procedure to resolve the problem rather than go through unfair administrative
  procedures or pursue costly legal avenues.
• Many contracts also specify ways of resolving group grievances (similar
  grievances shared by more than one person).
• Many grad union contracts require the employer to keep personnel files
  on employees. The employee is allowed to dispute the contents of her/his
  personnel file. This protects employees from malicious administrators
  or faculty. All disciplinary action and evaluations are marked in the
  personnel file.

4. Healthcare:

• Many graduate employee contracts provide for University-paid health,
  vision, and dental benefits.
• GEO (at Michigan)
  successfully negotiated to allow grads to choose between 8 different
  plans. Most of these plans are fully paid for by the administration
  (including family coverage)! Furthermore the majority of contracts allow
  grads to add dependents (and domestic partners on some campuses) free
  of charge, add summer coverage, and/or purchase dental and life insurance.
• U of Oregon
  pays into a trust fund that finances a health insurance program for
  grads. The fund is run by the union with only one non-voting member
  of the administration on the fund’s Board!

5. Hours:

• Hours are usually specified in grad union contracts in such a way
  that it maintains flexibility throughout the course of the appointment
  yet guards against abuse.
• The TAA contract at the U
  of Wisconsin (Madison) requires departments and grad employees to
  agree on work requirements and peak times prior to the start of an appointment.

6. Leave:

• At the City University
  of New York, U of
  Iowa, and U
  of Michigan employees have paid vacation, sick leave, family illness
  leave, bereavement leave, jury duty leave, and federal holidays.
• The U of Wisconsin
  (Madison) contract ensures that employees are allowed to observe
  their own religious holidays even if these days are not federal holidays.

7. Pay:

• Many grad unions have won provisions in contracts that incorporate
  regular raises, cost of living increases, and require the University
  to cover the cost of job related activities (ie: photocopies, books,
  etc).

8. Undergrad Education/Teacher Training:

• GEO’s (Michigan)
  contract "encourages" departments to have grad representation
  on curriculum committees and "encourages" employees to give
  feedback to the department on courses. Furthermore, the union won the
  establishment of a University committee to study pedagogy and offer
  recommendations to the Administration. Grads play an equal part on this
  committee.
• U of Michigan’s
  contract ensures paid teacher training and additional training for employees
  who use English as a second language.
• U of Oregon’s
  and U of Wisconsin’s
  (Madison) contracts require departments to have ongoing evaluation
  of (and feedback for) the graduate teachers. In addition, UW-Madison
  has departments conduct their own trainings for teaching assistants.
  These trainings include diversity training. In fact, in order to get
  to the "experienced" pay tier a teaching assistant must participate
  in an additional diversity training.
• Many grad union contracts require departments to provide suitable
  places to hold office hours, a phone, and desk space to teachers, and
  sufficient materials for the TA to do his/her job.

9. Workload:

• U of Michigan’s
  contract ensures that grads have a say in determining the departmental
  class size limit and that each department comes up with a procedure
  on allowing (or disallowing) individual undergraduate students to enroll
  over the class size limit.

10. Workplace Safety:

• Many grad union contracts have workplace safety clauses. For example,
  the GSEU at the State
  University of New York negotiated for a workplace safety committee
  that includes grads to oversee workplace safety issues. Also, the GTFF
  at the U of Oregon
  negotiated for paid training on equipment that poses a safety hazard
  for grad employees.

Other benefits of having a union include:

• RESPECT as employees who the university can’t ignore.
• BETTER COMMUNICATION between the administration and graduate employees.
• A CAMPUS-WIDE ORGANIZATION bringing grads together from across campus
  and disciplines.
• A powerful, DEMOCRATIC VOICE in the decisions that affect grads as
  vital campus employees.
• Improved environment for UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION.
• An INDEPENDENT ORGANIZATION run and supported by its members — not
  the administration. You are the union!

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