Graduate Employees' Union Organization at UIUC
GEO Local 6300 IFT/AFT AFL-CIO at The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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Member Communications

Campus Labor Coalition COVID-19 Open Letter and Mutual Aid

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Table of Contents:

  • Announcements

    • Campus Labor Coalition Open Letter

    • Mutual Aid Working Group

    • Local Resources

  • JOIN A GEO COMMITTEE!

  • CONNECT WITH GEO!

Campus Labor Coalition Open Letter

On April 1st, the Campus Labor Coalition (CLC) sent an open letter to Chancellor Robert Jones, the Provost, and the U of I Board of Trustees. The CLC is a forum for solidarity between unions and representation groups for workers on the UIUC campus: representatives meet monthly to share news and discuss local labor issues. Member organizations include NTFC, SEIU, AFSCME Local 698, AFSCME Local 3700, AAP, CFA, and of course, the GEO Local 6300. The CLC has begun to meet more regularly in response to changing working conditions on campus due to COVID-19, and drew up the following joint-statement on crucial, general needs of our constituent memberships during the pandemic. 

As always, the GEO works through membership engagement: officers and volunteers welcome your feedback and suggestions as we continue to bargain and organize around the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on campus. Express your support for the letter by adding your name to this Google Form. 

Dear Chancellor Robert Jones, Provost Andreas Cangellaris, and University of Illinois Board of Trustees,

The Campus Labor Coalition respects and applauds many of the recent decisions made by the University Administration to keep the community safe and ensure quality education to students in the midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

However, many of these decisions have resulted in uncertain, unfair, and unsafe working conditions for university employees. With the shared aim of the economic, physical, and mental well-being of university employees in mind, we are asking that the University Administration commit to the following calls for action. These demands are in line with similar calls for action at Harvard University, Washington University, Indiana University, and Purdue University. 

General

  • Guarantee nondiscrimination in all policies to be enacted at the University so that no individuals or groups in our community are targeted (e.g. racial profiling), by forms of harmful discrimination that often come with public health emergencies.

  • Immediately comply with the now-active Families First COVID-19 Response Act. Doing so will provide immediate economic and risk relief to university employees.

Paid Sick Leave

  • Immediately grant paid sick leave to all university employees in accordance with the stipulations of the Families First COVID-19 Response Act. This leave should not count against any accrued unpaid time-off or paid time-off benefits. 

  • Ensure that employees’ requests for time off are considered with utmost seriousness and entail no form of reprisal or compromise their possibilities for employment with the University in the future.

Working Conditions

  • Provide options for reduced workloads for those employees now facing increased child and family care needs, in accordance with the stipulations of the Families First COVID-19 Response Act.

  • Immediately provide Hazard Pay--either in the form of pay raises or weekly sums--to those still working on campus. 

  • Provide adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for all employees still working on campus.

  • Provide adequate equipment and resources to complete work under the work conditions mandated by the University and the State in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including: access to computers, software, high-speed internet connections, appropriate resources online, and other materials essential to workers’ job functions

  • Communicate clearly and in a timely manner (a minimum of thirty days’ notice) any intent to layoff university employees. 

Housing

  • Provide free summer housing options, i.e. at Orchard Downs, for international and other graduate employees who cannot return home for the foreseeable future and may not have legal employment options over the summer break.

  • Provide free housing for anyone displaced from housing because of reductions or loss in employment with the University, for the duration of the pandemic.

Healthcare

  • Provide free testing for coronavirus to all University employees regardless of insurance status.

  • Waive fees for healthcare, dental care, and vision care to all employees through the summer period, including access to quality medical care and specialized/medical referrals for all regardless of the ability to pay. Ensure healthcare, dental care, and vision care for all employees. 

  • Revoke immediately the recent decision to increase the costs of healthcare premiums for students in the 2020-2021 Academic Year.

Immigration Status

  • Ensure that international employees are able to maintain their visa status as courses transition online and hourly work is reduced, and provide legal support for employees who face visa status changes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Sincerely,

The Campus Labor Coalition

Mutual Aid Working Group

You might have heard about local communities engaging in mutual aid to support each other during these difficult times. Mutual aid has been defined as “cooperation for the sake of the common good. It’s getting people to come together to meet each other’s needs, recognizing that as humans, our survival is dependent on one another” (see this Mutual Aid 101 Toolkit from organizer Mariame Kaba and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for more information). For examples of mutual aid in the Champaign-Urbana area, see this CU COVID Mutual Aid Wiki Page. 

If you are interested in helping build a mutual aid network among graduate employees and other workers on campus, please add your name and email address to this Google Doc!

Local Resources

In light of COVID-19, we know that a lot of the ways in which graduate employees have been getting by have changed. As such, GEO members have been compiling resources to be shared generally.

Wesley Food Pantry

The Wesley Food Pantry will continue to be open and available to students every Thursday evening from 5-7pm. While we are advertising the distribution as a drive-through in our parking lot, students can walk up and we will take care of them as well. In addition to typical canned good staple items, we have fresh fruit and dairy products almost every week. 

Resources for International Workers

The New American Welcome Center at the University YMCA is putting together a list of resources for international folks in the CU community. see their Resources Guide for Immigrants in CU 

Central Illinois Mutual Aid MetaGuide

This is a crowdsourced document compiling information for several Central Illinois counties, spanning sites for new updates to financial concerns to food and supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

CU Mental Health Resources

GEO members from the Psychology department have put together a mental health guide during COVID-19. See their COVID-19 Mental Health Resources

Local Business Operations During COVID-19

This is a spreadsheet of local business operations in CU during COVID-19. See the C-U Local Business Operations during COVID-19 Outbreak here.

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: http://uiucgeo.org/calendar. Meetings are open to membership, and coming to a meeting does not commit you to joining a committee. 

Upcoming meetings:

Healthcare Working Group (health@uigeo.org) - Contact email for more 

Stewards’ Council (sc@uigeo.org) - Tuesday April 7, 5:30-6:30pm

Finance Committee (treasurer@uigeo.org) - Contact email for more

Solidarity Committee (solcomm@uigeo.org) - Friday April 10, 4:30-6pm

Grievance Committee (grievance@uigeo.org) - Thursday April 9, 9-10am 

Communications Committee (commcomm@uigeo.org) - Thursday April 9, 5-6pm

Coordinating Committee (cc@uigeo.org) - Monday, April 13, 4-5:30pm

RA/PGA Working Group (geo@uigeo.org) - Thursday April 16th, 6-7pm

Bargaining Team (barg@uigeo.org) - Contact email for more

International Students Working Group (geo@uigeo.org ) - Contact email for more


Note: Due to COVID-19, all meetings are now held online. Contact by email or check the calendar for more information on how to join remotely.

CONNECT WITH GEO!

Have comments about the GMM? Other kinds of feedback for us? We want to hear it! Reply to this email or use our anonymous google form. You can also get in touch through our website and social media:

Website: www.uiucgeo.org

Twitter: @geo_uiuc

Facebook: @uigeo @geosolcomm

Instagram: @geo_uiuc


In Solidarity,

Graduate Employees’ Organization

809 S. 5th St., Geneva Room

Champaign, IL 61820

Email: geo@uigeo.org

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