Steeerike! (Maybe)

The last of the four unions at SIUC voted to strike yesterday, if a contract isn't negotiated by Nov. 3.  Negotiating theory indicates that agreements are more likely to be reached with the pressure of a deadline in place, so we will see what happens.  If there is a strike and the graduate student strikers don't get some financial support from the other three groups, my bet is they would be the first to come to terms with the university, simply because most graduate students don't have the financial underpinnings that members of the other three unions do.

GA Strike Vote

According to the DE, the Graduate Students United voted today to authorize a strike after this Thursday..  From the article, it appears that the union tail is wagging the graduate assistant dog.  Of the 1700 graduate assitants on campus, only about 130 of them actually are members of the union, meaning that less than 10% of of the graduate assistant are determining the fate of the other 90%.  Of those 130 or so, 88%, according to the article, voted to go out on strike.  Since they have the union representing them, for better or worse, if I was a graduate assistant at SIUC, I'd join up with GA United, just so I would have a say in events like this. 

It will certainly be interesting, given how few of them joined or voted, how many graduate assistants cross the picket lines should a strike be called.  I'd bet the vast majority will opt to report to work as ususal, given how few of them appear to have any interest in the negotiations.

Strike on Facebook

For those wanting to follow the discussion on the possible strikes at SIUC, the pro-strike faction has a Facebook page here.

Show Me the Money Tour

Several SIUC faculty and staff organizations will host a tour of campus buildings this Friday, starting at noon.  Each stop will focus on the building's relationship to the university's mission and its place in campus funding.  Needless to say, since the Graduate Assistants Union and Faculty Association are among the sponsors and have a tense relationship with the university at best, I'd bet the speakers indicate that the ways in which the university spends its money is not the best use of available funding.