Bargaining Session 15, International Graduate Worker Townhall & Halloween Party!
Table of Contents:
Attend Bargaining Session 15!
[Image description: A flyer with a purple background and an image of a megaphone with waves of sound in the upper right. Black and white text with black highlights reads, FULL CONTRACT BARGAINING SESSION #15 10/20/22. In a paragraph below, smaller black text reads, On Thursday, October 20, GEO’s Bargaining Team will be negotiating with university administration on topics of access and justice, wages and waivers, and health and safety in our contract. The bargaining session will be from 2-5pm, and the bargaining team will caucus with members before and after the session from 1:45-2pm & 5-5:30pm. To the right is a white logo with the letters “GEO” inside. At the bottom, black text reads Illini Union Ballroom. Please wear a mask if attending in-person! Childcare, food & coffee provided. Online option available as an accommodation for public health concerns. Email officer1@uigeo.org by October 19th at 11:59pm.]
The next bargaining session will be held on October 20 from 1:45-5:30pm in the Illini Union Ballroom! We’ve brought a new package proposal to the administration and are waiting to hear their response. We need you there so we can work together to decide where we go next in bargaining. It’s been 63 days since our contract expired, and over 7 months since we started bargaining, but we’re going to continue to show up for one another until we get a fair contract. We need you there, whether it’ll be your 15th bargaining session or your first, to demonstrate that support.
Come to the session for as long as you can. If you can’t attend in person, you can attend online by emailing officer1@uigeo.org for the link by October 19 at 11:59pm. We will caucus before and after the session to answer any questions members have about bargaining, and get everyone’s take on the bargaining process. The pre-session caucus will go from 1:45-2pm, and the post-session caucus will go from 5-5:30pm. Show up and bring a friend!
International Student Worker Townhall
[Image description: An orange flyer with a background of rows of chairs in a library. A black and white circle GEO logo is in the upper left, next to the text Graduate Employees’ Organization and the title, International Graduate Workers. Questions in white boxes underneath read How is the union protecting international workers? My partner is on F-2 visa. How can the union advocate for dependents? Why am I required to show my language proficiency to teach? A larger white box with bold text reads, Town Hall Meeting open to members and non-members, followed by text, International graduate workers are invited to a townhall to discuss their working conditions as graduate students. Topics of discussion will include international student fees waived, English language proficiency for TAs, dependent care subsidised, overwork protections, and much more. Underneath a column on the left lists the date and time: Monday 24th/10/2022 5pm-7pm, Location: GEO office, GEO, 809 S. Fifth St., Champaign. There is a QR code on the right, and a link to register at the bottom: https:/tinyurl.com/3ccna49e.]
GEO is hosting an International Graduate Worker Townhall on Monday, October 24 from 5-7pm to discuss issues of concern surrounding to international graduate students! We’ll discuss:
Waiving the international student fee
English language proficiency requirements for TAs
Subsidizing dependent care
Protecting against overwork
Register here to join: tinyurl.com/3ccna49e. The townhall will be held at the GEO office (in the McKinley Foundation, 809 S. 5th St. in Champaign). You can also join online: email Essam at officer3@uigeo.org for the link or if you have any questions.
GEO's "The Night of the Living Wage" Halloween Party
[Image description: A black flyer with spooky magenta trees, graves with crosses, spiders, and pink and yellow bats in the background. Black text on a yellow smear of paint reads The Graduate Employees’ Organization Presents. The date and time are in yellow underneath: Saturday, Nov. 5th, 8pm-12am. A pink and yellow dancing Dracula with large horns looms over white text that reads, Night of the Living Wage, A Grad Student Halloween Party. Pink text underneath reads, Costume Contest (With Prizes), Dancing & Games, followed by black text on a yellow smear reading, Free Food and Drinks. The location is listed at the bottom: Independent Media Center, 202 S Broadway Ave., Urbana. A black and yellow circular GEO logo is in the bottom right over a yellow triangle accompanied by the website link: uiucgeo.org.
Yes, you’re reading this right! GEO is having a halloween theme party on Saturday, November 5th at the Independent Media Center (202 S Broadway) from 8pm-12am. We will have free drinks and beer for all our members along with great dance music, games, and prizes! Join the Facebook event here.
Grads can sign a membership card at the door to join the fun! Special prizes for best costumes (particularly those attires resembling admin including the one and only, Robb Craddock). We need your help in inviting your Department Grad association and your TAs/GAs friends to increase our membership with over 100 cards! Use this template to invite your grad friends and colleagues.
The stronger our Union the stronger our contract will be! Let’s make exploitation a ghost of the past. For more information on how to mobilize your department for the party please contact Grace and Clara, Stewards co-chairs at sc@uigeo.org.
Voting & the Workers' Rights Amendment
[Image description: Text on a blue background with light blue diagonal lines reads, The Labor Movement The Folks Who Brought You Workers’ Rights, Collective Bargaining, Sick Leave, Equal Pay, Workplace Safety, Health Care, Retirement Benefits. In a vertical line, letters in that list are colored in orange to spell out RESPECT in an acrostic. A rectangle with a dog-ear turned over in the corner reads, Vote YES 4 Workers. The O in workers is a circle with a checkmark. There is a link to a website in the bottom right corner: IFT-AFT.org/WRA.]
Midterm elections are coming up, and one of the items on the ballot is the Workers Rights Amendment, formally known as “Senate Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 11.” This amendment will formally incorporate the right to unionize and bargain collectively in the Illinois Constitution, which would prohibit anti-union laws (also known as “right-to-work” laws) that undermine collective bargaining from being passed in Illinois.
To find out more about this amendment, check out the IFT website: https://www.ift-aft.org/wra
To check your voter registration, request a mail-in ballot, and find polling locations, go to the Champaign County Clerk page: https://champaigncountyclerk.com/elections. You can request a vote by mail ballot up until November 3. In-person early voting is ongoing, and you can also vote in person on Election Day, November 8.
Join the Solidarity Committee!
[Image description: A group of people and two dogs stand together ready to march in the CU Pride parade. They're holding a yellow and blue sign reading Graduate Employees Organization. Individuals also hold up multicolored signs in blue, pink, green, yellow, and purple reading I March for Trans Rights, We celebrate the rights we have won we fight for the rights we don't have we speak up for those who cannot, and I am marching today for the brave LGBTQ+ people of Afganistan.]
Join the Solidarity Committee and help build our connections and power across the CU community! The Solidarity Committee works on creating and strengthening connections between the GEO and other unions and social justice-oriented people, collectives and organizations at UIUC, within the CU community, and internationally! What is great about this committee is that undergrads and the general CU community can become members. We have exciting projects underway and we need people to collaborate with! We are planning to team up with other organizations and collectives to do a political education series that includes movie nights about union organizing and workshops on allyship. We are also planning mutual aid/ resource distributions and skills sharing events for the entire CU community. We would love to hear your ideas and collaborate with you on these projects!
We meet every other week on Wednesdays, virtually or in person. Our next Solcomm meeting is on Wednesday, October 19th at 4pm. If you, your students, or your friends in the CU community are interested in joining, please email solcomm@uigeo.org.
JOIN A GEO COMMITTEE!
We are a member-run union; we depend on the commitment of our members to stay as strong as possible. You can find details about what each committee does and how to contact them on our website. No special knowledge is required. You can also follow the calendar of events on our website for the date and time of upcoming meetings. Meetings are open to membership, and coming to a meeting does not commit you to joining a committee.
Upcoming schedules:
Communications Committee (Contact Megan and Savannah at commcomm@uigeo.org) - Monday, October 31, 4-5pm. Meets online every other Monday from 4-5pm. Google Meets link: https://meet.google.com/vej-hmah-tks
Work Action Group (WAG) (Contact Davut at officer2@uigeo.org) - Monday, October 17, 7-8:30pm. Meets every Monday from 7-8:30 in the GEO office and online. Google Meets link: https://meet.google.com/nky-novo-xjc
Solidarity Committee (Contact Jessennya at solcomm@uigeo.org) - Wednesday, October 19, 4-5pm. Meets online and in-person in the GEO office every other Wednesday from 4-5pm. Google Meets link: http://meet.google.com/snh-zzei-sni
Bargaining Team (Contact Sam at officer1@uigeo.org) - Monday, October 24th, 10:45am-12:45pm. Regular fall meetings will be every Monday from 10:45am-12:45pm. Online and in the GEO office, contact email for the link. Interested in joining BT? Nominate yourself or a friend: https://tinyurl.com/jointheBT.
People First Cancel Debt Committee (Contact Karla at cc@uigeo.org) - Monday, October 24, 6-7pm. Meets online and in-person in the GEO office every other Monday from 6-7pm. Contact email for the link.
Grievance Committee (Contact Dante at grievance@uigeo.org) - Tuesday, October 25, 4:00pm-5:00pm. Meets every other Tuesday from 4-5. Online and in the GEO office, contact email for the link.
Stewards’ Council (Contact Grace at sc@uigeo.org) - Thursday, October 27, 5:00-6:30pm. Meets every other Thursday from 5-6:30. Online and in the GEO office, contact email for the link.
RA/PGA Working Group (Contact Bram at bram.osterhout@gmail.com) - Contact email to get involved.
Disability Caucus (Contact Grace at GEOdisabilityUIUC@gmail.com) - Friday, November 4, 3pm holding a Disability Identity Discussion meeting. RSVP here: https://forms.gle/9vVMjeo1pNwCBV7G9
In Solidarity,
Graduate Employees’ Organization
809 S. 5th St., Geneva Room
Champaign, IL 61820
Email: geo@uigeo.org