Statement in Support of Faculty and Academic Support Specialists at GSU

Monday, April 17, 2023
Graduate Employees Organization Local 6300

GEO Statement in Support of Faculty and Academic Support Specialists at GSU

The Graduate Employees’ Organization (GEO) at UIUC, IFT/AFT Local 6300, is firmly in solidarity with striking faculty and academic support specialists at Governors State University (GSU). The 270 faculty and academic support specialists have been negotiating with the university administration for 10 months and have been working without a contract since August 2022. They are negotiating for wages that take into account the recent inflation and reasonable workloads. As it stands now, academic advisors see hundreds of students and can’t always dedicate the amount of time necessary to guide them through their academic programs hence the demand for reasonable workloads.

At GEO we are all too familiar with the fight for a living wage and better working conditions. We understand that our working conditions are our students’ learning conditions. We condemn the GSU administration for forcing their workers to go on strike and for their unwillingness to negotiate a fair contract that includes living wages and reasonable workloads. We offer our support and unwavering solidarity to our fellow workers at GSU. We highly encourage everyone to donate to their strike fund and share their strike fund far and wide.

Solidarity forever!
Graduate Employees’ Organization
809 S. 5th St., Geneva Room
Champaign, IL 61820
Email: geo@uigeo.org

The Graduate Employees’ Organization, AFT/IFT Local 6300, AFL-CIO, at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, represents approximately 3,000 Teaching and Graduate Assistants on the UIUC Campus. In November 2009 and in February 2018, over 1,000 GEO members and allies participated in a strike to secure a fair contract and more accessible UIUC campus. With an active presence in the community, the GEO continues to work for high-quality and accessible public education in Illinois.

For more information, please contact geo@uigeo.org. More information can also be found on GEO’s website at www.uiucgeo.org.

Twitter: @geo_uiuc
Facebook: @uigeo @geosolcomm
Instagram: @geo_uiuc