LEARN MORE: Watch the video below or go to our special “FAA Tuition Waivers” page.
TAKE ACTION: Use this template (or a modified version) to send an email to UIUC administrators. (Contact info listed.)
Bargaining
As outlined in the following press release, the University of Illinois at Chicago Graduate Employees’ Organization has voted overwhelmingly to call a strike against the Board of Trustees at the University of Illinois. Members of the UIUC GEO are taking a van of supporters up north on Tuesday, April 6, at 7 am – currently we have space for four additional members, and possibly more. If you are interested in going up north to support our sisters and brothers in the UIC GEO and would like space in the van, you need to contact Amy Livingston at amy.l.livingston by 4 pm TODAY, Monday, April 5th.
Gina Gemmel
Phone: 773-413-0349
Email: gmgemmel@gmail.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GEO, UNION REPRESENTING 1400 TEACHERS AND RESEARCHERS AT UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-CHICAGO, OVERWHELMINGLY VOTES TO STRIKE
Over the last two days, 84% of the Graduate Employees Organizations (GEO) members voted to call a strike against the University of Illinois Board of Trustees. GEO members will hold a rally on Monday, April 5, in support of their last scheduled federal mediation session with the UIC administration.
The GEO’s first agreement expired in August 2009, and GEO members have been negotiating a new contract since April 2009. After a year of negotiations, GEO members are on the verge of a strike because the UIC administration refuses to secure tuition waivers or address tuition differentials.
“All TAs and GAs currently receive a tuition waiver,” said Charles Moss, GEO President, “so the fact that the university wants the freedom to discontinue this benefit is unacceptable.”
Many GEO members earn less than $15,000 per year, but because of “Tuition Differential Fees,” imposed by UIC, pay up to $11,000 per year in fees back to the university. “We are being gouged by TD fees which increase every year without warning,” said Sarita Heer, Teaching Assistant in Art History. “All we want is to have input and know why these fees keep increasing. Isn’t it fair for UIC to tell us where our money is going?”
The GEO and the university will hold their final scheduled contract negotiation session with the help of a federal mediator on Monday, April 5, and will hold a rally outside Student Center East, 750 S. Halsted, Chicago, IL at 8:00 AM.
“So far, organizations at UIC representing more than 25,000 students and dozens of faculty have issued statements of support,” said Gina Gemmel, Teaching Assistant in English and GEO Communications Chair, “so we expect Monday’s rally to be massive, and we remain committed to reaching an agreement on Monday which includes tuition waiver security and gives us a say in Tuition Differential fees.”
The Graduate Employees Organization, AFT local 6297, AFL-CIO, is the labor union representing more than 1400 Teaching and Graduate Assistants at UIC who teach undergraduate classes, grade papers, work in offices, design websites, maintain databases, and perform other work crucial to the teaching and research missions of the university.
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 available.
Chair Kennedy’s response to a letter written by Bob Naiman of Jobs With Justice includes the following statements:
I have a great respect for the GEO and understand its members play an important role at the University….
We set parameters with the negotiating parties and provided overall guidance to the University administration, expressed in terms of a range of our tolerance for certain changes, but the Board stayed out of day-to-day negotiations and did not become mired, publicly or privately, in the discussion….
I want to thank those members of the GEO who attended the Board meeting on November 12, 2009, and met with me as well as others. The concerns expressed at that time were heard and considered. I especially thank those who attended the Board meeting for their attention during the meeting and courtesy.
This ad is just one of the ways that we’re reaching out with gratitude to those who stood with us for accessible public higher education and just working conditions in November.
Kerry Pimblott, the GEO’s lead negotiator during this year’s contract negotiations, appeared on the Illinois World Labor Hour radio program on November 21. The Labor Hour, hosted by David Johnson, airs every Saturday from 11 am to noon on WEFT 90.1 FM, a community radio station broadcasting from downtown Champaign. The GEO segment with Kerry’s interview begins at 32:30 in the hour long show.
(If the above link to the interview does not work, you may also access the audio file here.)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – UIUC GEO MEMBERS VOTE TO RATIFY TENTATIVE CONTRACT AGREEMENT WITH UI BOARD OF TRUSTEES: STRIKE OFFICIALLY OVER
GEO STANDS IN SOLIDARITY WITH STUDENTS AND WORKERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AND UIC IN THEIR ONGOING STRUGGLE FOR FAIR EMPLOYMENT AND ACCESSIBLE PUBLIC HIGHER EDUCATION
GEO TO CONTINUE WORKING AGAINST PRIVATIZATION AND CORPORATIZATION OF PUBLIC UNIVERSITY SYSTEM
URBANA-CHAMPAIGN (November 23) – The members of the Graduate Employees’ Organization (GEO), American Federation of Teachers/Illinois Federation of Teachers Local 6300, AFL-CIO, The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), have voted to ratify the tentative contract agreement reached between the GEO and University of Illinois (UI) Board of Trustees bargaining teams in Urbana on November 17. With the ratification, GEO members have also officially voted to end the GEO strike against the UI Board of Trustees that began on November 16. The contract will now be forwarded to the Board of Trustees for their signatures.
The GEO’s tentative agreement achieved gains across all four “pillars” of its original contract platform as presented to the UIUC administration at the beginning of bargaining on April 21st. In addition to winning protection for tuition waivers through the strike, the GEO secured an additional two weeks of unpaid parental leave, increases to the University’s contribution to health care premiums (reaching 75% in the third and final year of the contract), and raises on the minimum salary, totaling ten percent over three years. The GEO also succeeded in removing several regressive proposals from the new contract, including furloughs, “in-kind” payment, a recision of grievances related to discrimination, and a “scope of the agreement” clause that would have prevented the GEO from re-opening bargaining in the event of a change to employment conditions for graduate employees at UIUC.
GEO members have been back at work since Tuesday evening, and the GEO looks forward to continuing to work with the UIUC administration toward the goal of making the University of Illinois a truly accessible institution of public education consistent with the U of I’s mission as a land grant university.
While the GEO’s current contract negotiations are over, GEO members will continue to use their organizational strength to work for labor rights and higher education that is accessible to all regardless of economic standing. The GEO stands in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in the University of California system, who have just completed a three day strike over drastic and unprecedented tuition increases. The GEO also stands in solidarity with our sisters and brothers at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) as they continue contract negotiations with the UI Board of Trustees, and with other union locals on the UIUC campus who will shortly begin their own contract negotiations.
The tentative agreement between the GEO and Board of Trustees bargaining teams represents a major victory for labor in the state of Illinois and the United States. The timing of the GEO victory was especially sweet given that it fell during the “Education is NOT for $A￡€!” Global Week of Action, which was organized from Germany and included demonstrations and teach-ins across Europe, in Africa, and in the United States in support of public higher education. The GEO stands with higher education labor unions across the nation opposing the ongoing corporatization and privatization of our public higher education system.
The GEO is a labor union representing all teaching and graduate assistants (TAs and GAs) on the UIUC campus. With over 2600 GEO members, and over 2600 graduate employees represented in the bargaining unit, the GEO is one of the largest higher education union locals in the United States. The GEO strike was the first strike by a recognized union local at UIUC in over 10 years, and the first open-ended strike at UIUC in over thirty years. Over 1,000 GEO members participated in the strike.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: Peter Campbell, GEO Communications Officer, odell.campbell@gmail.com, 253-222-5861, or the GEO office at geo@uigeo.org, 217-344-8283, 1001 S. Wright Street, Champaign, IL, 61820. Information about the GEO can also be found on our website at www.uigeo.org.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: GEO STRIKE COMMITTEE VOTES TO OFFICIALLY SUSPEND STRIKE
TEACHING AND GRADUATE ASSISTANTS AT UIUC RETURNING TO WORK PENDING CONTRACT RATIFICATION VOTE
URBANA-CHAMPAIGN (November 17): On Tuesday, November 17, at 7:00 pm, the Strike Committee of the Graduate Employees’ Organization (GEO), AFT/IFT Local 6300, AFL-CIO, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), officially and unanimously voted to suspend the two day strike that brought major portions of the University campus to a standstill. During a General Membership Meeting which began at 5:30 pm, the GEO bargaining team facilitated a discussion of the tentative agreements that it had signed during this morning’s negotiation session with the administration bargaining team. Afterwards, in a simple up or down vote, the 450 members present unanimously recommended to the strike committee that it accept the agreement and suspend the strike. The strike committee met immediately afterwards and took its decision.
With the strike suspended, GEO members are back at work, effective immediately. Teaching assistants will conduct their class sections tomorrow, and graduate assistants will carry out their duties at facilities across campus, including libraries, health and recreation centers, theaters, and specialized academic units.
The GEO coordinating committee will meet tomorrow to determine the schedule for a strike ratification vote to take place over the course of two days. Should the GEO general membership ratify the contract, it will then be submitted to the University of Illinois Board of Trustees for their signatures. That would officially conclude the current round of negotiations.
The GEO’s tentative agreement achieved gains across all four “pillars” of its original contract platform. In addition to winning protection for tuition waivers through the strike, the GEO secured an additional two weeks of unpaid parental leave, increases to the University’s contribution to health care premiums (reaching 75% in the third and final year of the contract), and raises on the minimum salary, totaling ten percent over three years. The GEO also forced the administration to drop their regressive contract proposals, including furloughs, “in-kind” payment, a recision of grievances related to discrimination, and a “scope of the agreement” clause that would have prevented the GEO from re-opening bargaining in the event of a change to employment conditions for graduate employees at UIUC.
Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers, stated in a letter of support for the UIUC GEO strike that “the AFT has long held that universities should provide tuition waivers as a condition of employment for graduate employees.” Increased security for tuition waivers is vital to the mission of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as a public, land-grant institution. Tuition waivers are also central to the UIUC’s ability to remain competitive with other Big 10 and Research 1 institutions in that they are necessary to attract the highest level of graduate employee and student talent. On November 17, the Collective Bargaining Congress Executive Committee of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) stated that “a decision to eliminate tuition waivers in selected fields or for out of state students would…undermine the ability of the university to attract high quality graduate students in a wide range of fields.” The tentative agreement works to maintain UIUC’s competitiveness by giving the GEO increased ability to resist the apparent goal of the UIUC administration to erode tuition waivers at UIUC. As AAUP President and UIUC Professor of English Cary Nelson stated on November 16, given that the administration had already eliminated them for research assistants in the sciences, there was good reason to fear administration interest in cherry picking humanities or social science sub-disciplines for similar treatment.”
The tentative agreement between the GEO and Board of Trustees bargaining teams represents a major victory for labor in the state of Illinois and the United States. The timing of the GEO victory is especially sweet given that it falls during the “Education is NOT for $A￡€!” Global Week of Action, which is being organized from Germany and includes demonstrations and teach-ins across Europe, in Africa, and in the United States in support of public higher education. The GEO especially stands in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in the Graduate Employees’ Organization at the University of Illinois Chicago campus, whose negotiations with the Board of Trustees continue. The UIUC GEO also stands in solidarity with higher education labor unions in California, who will be engaging in a three day strike to resist major tuition hike for both undergraduate and graduate students. The GEO stands with higher education labor unions across the nation opposing the ongoing corporatization and privatization of our public higher education system. Public higher education must be accessible to all, regardless of economic standing.
The GEO is a labor union representing all teaching and graduate assistants (TAs and GAs) on the UIUC campus. With over 2600 GEO members, and over 2600 graduate employees represented in the bargaining unit, the GEO is one of the largest higher education union locals in the United States. The GEO strike is the first strike by a recognized union local at UIUC in over 10 years. Over 1,000 GEO members participated in the strike.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: Peter Campbell, GEO Communications Officer, odell.campbell@gmail.com, 253-222-5861, or the GEO office at geo@uigeo.org, 217-344-8283, 1001 S. Wright Street, Champaign, IL, 61820. Information about the GEO can also be found on our website at www.uigeo.org.
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http://www.uigeo.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/aft-president-support.pdf
Dear UIUC Faculty,
Greetings from GEO! We are writing to you today to ensure that you are
aware of the rights of international students and employees to
participate in activities related to collective bargaining. Most
especially, we want to emphasize to you that international graduate
students who are members of GEO and are employed in the GEO bargaining
unit have the full legal right to participate in GEO’s strike against
the University of Illinois.
aware of the rights of international students and employees to
participate in activities related to collective bargaining. Most
especially, we want to emphasize to you that international graduate
students who are members of GEO and are employed in the GEO bargaining
unit have the full legal right to participate in GEO’s strike against
the University of Illinois.
As University Spokesperson Robin Kaler has made clear in numerous
public statements, the legality of the GEO strike is not in question.
Under the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act (IELRA), GEO
members who are employed in the GEO bargaining unit therefore have a
clear right to strike. In this matter, citizenship status is
irrelevant, as every person in the United States has the right to join
and participate in a union under the First Amendment’s guarantee of
freedom of association.
Furthermore, the IELRA in Section 14(a)(1)-14(a)(3) specifically
prohibits the University of Illinois or its agents from engaging in
any action which would tend to interfere, coerce, or restrain
employees in their exercise of their legitimate collective bargaining
rights. Therefore, were you to discourage an international graduate
student from participating in the GEO strike, you could be in
violation of the law and subject to an Unfair Labor Practice charge.
We hope that you support GEO in our struggle to guarantee that
graduate employees will not lose their tuition waivers. However,
regardless of your position on that issue, we expect and insist that
you refrain from any activity or communication which might have the
effect of intimidating or otherwise interfering with international
graduate employees who wish to exercise their right to participate in
collective bargaining.
Sincerely,
The Graduate Employees’ Organization