Urbana Champaign, IL – After two days of mass picketing that shut down hundreds of classes at the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign, the strike by the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO) has scored an amazing victory. On the morning of Nov. 17, management tentatively agreed to keep tuition waivers intact and retreat from threatened furlough days. In response, pickets were suspended and a GEO general membership meeting was scheduled for the evening. There, the 450 members present unanimously recommended to the strike committee that it accept the agreement and suspend the strike.

The center of the campus was a carnival atmosphere both days of the strike, as crowds of more than 700 grads and supporters shouted out their slogans: “Who are we? GEO? Are we gonna back down? Hell, no!” Not even the rain could dampen the enthusiasm of the strikers.

The strike was a blow to an administration that has been pounded with negative publicity this year as a result of a 'clout scandal' in which both the president and the chancellor were forced to resign. The scandal involved the children of the wealthy and politically connected gaining admission despite low grades and test scores.

The threat against the tuition waivers was the issue that seemed to capture the mood of the graduate workers. Illinois has the second worst state budget crisis in the country, after California. The politicians and officials have come up with one attack after another to balance the budget crisis on the backs of those least able to afford it. Going after tuition waivers backfired, as even the American Association of University Professors weighed in to warn the university that they were undermining their attraction to high quality grads. But it was the fighting spirit and creativity of the GEO that made this strike happen.

The terms of victory were more than just defending the tuition waivers and included two weeks of unpaid parental leave, more money from the school's contribution to health care premiums, and 10% in raises over three years. The victory serves as a bench mark and an inspiration especially for union workers employed by the state.

The union included in their press statement support for their “sisters and brothers in the Graduate Employees' Organization at the University of Illinois Chicago campus,” and for other higher education workers. They concluded, “Public higher education must be accessible to all, regardless of economic standing.”

The strike was also only the fourth strike nationwide of more than 1000 persons in 2009. Most of 'Big Labor,' with its billions of dollars of assets and six figure executive salaries refuses to fight. Examples like the GEO, the Republic Windows and Doors workers and the SK Hand Tool Workers all show that unions can beat back attacks if they dare to struggle.

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Urbana Champaign, IL – At 8:00 a.m., Nov. 16, hundreds of teaching assistants rallied in a cold, driving rain on the campus of the University of Illinois. The members of the Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO) set up pickets in front of all doors of the four main lecture buildings on campus. Natalie Havlin, co-chair of the GEO steward's council, said 1000 people joined in the spirited circles.

Despite the weather, the fired up crowds drummed and chanted, “T-U-I-T-I-O-N! Waive it and we'll teach again!” The union had been pushed to strike by attacks on their tuition waivers, which make it possible for working-class students to afford higher education. Their demands also included a minimum salary, set at the university’s own estimate of a living wage.

One department head warned grads against participating in the strike. In the face of this intimidation, all 17 employees there voted to join the pickets.

The strike is set to continue on Nov. 17 while the two sides return to the bargaining table. Rich Potter, communication committee member, spoke passionately to a rally on the steps of the administration building at the end of the day. “Refusing to negotiate language to guarantee tuition waivers is an attack on access to higher education for all.” He called on the crowd to return the next morning just as strong and they roared their approval.

Amber Cooper, of the Network to Fight For Economic Justice and University of Illinois Chicago Alumni states that the GEO has asked for the following support:

1. Send statements of solidarity to Miriam Larson
2. Send people to join those on strike on the picket lines at buildings around the UIUC campus
3. Call and email the U of I Board of Trustees and tell them how you feel.
4. Join the GEO facebook fan page for updates

#UrbanaChampaignIL #StudentMovement #strike #UniversityOfIllinois #NetworkToFightForEconomicJustice #GEO #GraduateEmployeesOrganization

Over the course of a three-day vote, an overwhelming 92% of participating GEO members chose to authorize a strike against the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. With the vote, GEO members have given the strike committee of the GEO a clear mandate to call a strike at any time. The Graduate Employees' Organization, American Federation of Teachers/Illinois Federation of Teachers Local 6300, AFL-CIO, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, is a labor union representing all teaching and graduate assistants on the UIUC campus. With 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 has been negotiating with UIUC administrators for over six months. The GEO seeks a contract that will set the minimum salary for a 50% nine-month appointment at the university's estimate of a living wage for a graduate student in Urbana-Champaign and protect tuition waivers for teaching and graduate assistants. While the GEO presented the administration with a full contract proposal on the first day of negotiations, the UIUC administration declined to offer a counterproposal until Aug. 11, just four days before the GEO's previous contract expired.

The UIUC administration's initial contract proposal sought to freeze GEO wages for three years, reserve the right to furlough and lay off graduate employees in good standing and to count 'in-kind' compensation such as housing or meal vouchers toward the minimum salary mandated in the contract.

The GEO understands that the state of Illinois is in dire economic straits, but as university administrators pointed out in their fiscal year 2010 budget request, this is the result of long-standing deficiencies in state level budget prioritization and not a sudden result of the recent economic recession.

Instead of championing the university's historic land grant mission, UIUC administrators have embraced the national tendency toward the corporatization of the public higher education system. Their consequent failure to secure adequate state funding leaves the social science, humanities and fine arts especially vulnerable. Worse, it jeopardizes access to higher education for many who have the capacity and desire, but not the financial resources to attend the university. If increased state funding is also necessary to providing at least a living wage for all campus employees, then the GEO expects the UIUC administration to forcefully make that case to the Higher Education Appropriations Committee, other state legislators and the governor.

Instead of advocating on the behalf of students and workers, administrators were granting costly favors to state politicians. The former Chancellor diverted $450,000 of discretionary funds to provide jobs and scholarships for politically well-connected but undeserving student applicants.

Hundreds of GEO members have participated in three major rallies. GEO members have also lobbied the Illinois House of Representatives Higher Education Appropriations Committee, spoken with state legislators from Champaign, actively informed campus community members about the issues and maintained a constant presence in Urbana-Champaign print, radio and television media. The Illinois Student Senate has passed two resolutions in support of the GEO and the decision to authorize a strike and GEO supporters in the faculty senate are working to pass a similar resolution. GEO members and allies will hold a rally at the University of Illinois Board of Trustees Meeting in Springfield, IL on Nov. 12.

As with any labor negotiation, however, the most effective pressure has been the threat of a strike. Only after GEO members at a general membership meeting voted unanimously to file an 'intent to strike' notice did the university administration offer their first compromise proposals. Accordingly, the Coordinating Committee and Steward’s Council of the GEO voted unanimously to hold a strike authorization vote from Nov. 4-6.

By voting to authorize a strike, GEO members have taken a vital step in holding the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign administration accountable to its stated commitment to excellence in research and undergraduate education.

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