GEO Homepage

Five Ways You Can Help Secure a Tuition Freeze at UIUC

1. Email State Senator Mike Frerichs (senator.frerichs@gmail.com) and State Senator Martin Sandoval (sandoval@senatedem.state.il.us) and express your support for the work they are doing to ensure that the University remains accessible to working-class and middle-class people. Tell them to keep the pressure on the Board of Trustees!

2. Come to the Illinois Student Senate on Wednesday, May [...]

GEO Disputes Administration Budget Claims, Releases “UI Budget Myths and Facts” Document

UC UNITED RALLY FOR AN ACCESSIBLE, DIVERSE, AND DEMOCRATIC UIUC: March 4, 2010 – assemble at Alma Mater at noon, march at 12:15, rally in front of Swanlund 12:30-12:50.  Electronic versions of flyers and posters can be downloaded here.  RSVP here, and see the event website here.  A copy of the UC United Press release [...]

AFT On Campus covers the GEO strike

The article, titled “Tuition Waivers Protected in Illinois: Graduate employees stand up for essential provision”, can be found on page 2 of the current issue of AFT On Campus.

Also, an article and photo covering to the GEO’s pre-strike contract negotiations and demonstrations can be found on page 12 of the Nov/Dec issue, which is also [...]

Champaign News-Gazette: Cuts likely for UI’s union, civil service employees

The GEO contract prevents bargaining unit members from being furloughed. The administration may seek to furlough other unionized campus workers, however, including academic professionals and civil service employees. Julie Wurth’s full article is available from the News-Gazette. The following excerpt includes a statement from GEO Communications Officer Peter Campbell:

Union officials also raised questions about the [...]

Video Coverage of our rallies!

Here is some great coverage of the GEO!

This link has coverage of our 11/12 demonstrations in Springfield and Champaign – courtesy of iresist.org:

http://www.iresist.org/GEO_11-12-2009.html

Also check out some great press coverage from the News-Gazette and WICD:

http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2009/11/14/geo_ui_resume_negotiations_saturday

http://www.wicd15.com/newsroom/top_stories/videos/wicd_vid_1354.shtml

GEO speaks out against Daily Illini editorial

To the editors:
In an October 15th editorial entitled “GEO request: Good idea, rough timing,” the Daily Illini Editorial Board argued that while a living wage is wholly deserved, the current budget situation makes asking for it illogical. Respectfully, the GEO begs to differ.
While the editorial correctly evaluates the importance of Teaching Assistants (TAs) by noting [...]

Links

A lot of labor related stuff can be found at AFL-CIO. The American Federation of Teachers an 87,500-member national union, which represents graduate employees at universities across the country including the Universities of Michigan, Wisconsin, Oregon, and Kansas, is also present on the web, as well as the Illinois Federation of Teachers. For links to [...]

Bargaining Begins!

Our Bargaining Team met for the first time with the Administration’s
team on Tuesday, April 21.
Ashley Howard (History) presented our proposal. Other members of our
team are: Erin Heath (English), Ingbert Floyd (GSLIS), Kerry Pimblott (History),
Damien Mathew (BioPhysics), Anna Kurhajec (History), Carolina Sternberg
(Geography), Dave Bates (History), Dave Beck (GEO staff), and Jon Nadler
(IFT Field Service Director).
Our next [...]

bargaining update

Currently, bargaining updates can be found at our bargaining website at http://www.geocontract.org/. Please check out that site for the latest bargaining news and information!
November 2008
Contract negotiations are just around the corner. The results from this survey will help the GEO Bargaining Committee develop a set of priorities which will become our Bargaining Platform. [...]

Rally News!!

Congratulations to All for a successful rally!
Check out news coverage from the DI – “UI workers rally on Quad”.
Their numbers are way off though. GEO staff physically counted nearly 200 people at the rally at one point – which didn’t even include those that came later or left early.
It seems that Chancellor Herman has already [...]