The IGWC said they have “no confidence” in President Pamela Whitten and announced plans to explore a strike.
(Courtesy of David Garner)
The union representing Indiana University grad students voted “no confidence” in President Pamela Whitten and are exploring a strike after their demands went unanswered.
The Indiana Graduate Workers Coalition (IGWC-UE) requested higher pay and union recognition in a letter, asking for a response by Jan. 29. The requests went unanswered, coordinating committee member Sabina Ali said, and the group wasn’t surprised. The group is considering a strike to win its demands.
“The points in our ‘noconfidence’ resolution impact the whole university,” Ali said. “If we don't stand up for this university, and the integrity of these things that we value — like academic freedom, shared governance, all these things — then no one will.”
The group has 1,300 card-carrying members this semester.
IU spokespeople did not provide a comment by the time of publication.
Ali said the union’s department leaders will work one-on-one with members to gauge their interest about striking. The group has never gone on strike without full membership approval.
The union is also working to educate members on what a strike would mean for them and understand threats they may face, Ali said.
“Through this kind of system, we're really able to figure out how our members feel, and if a strike is something that is viable, and is the best thing to do at this moment,” Ali said.
The IGWC has campaigned for union recognition since 2021.
The calculator estimates living wages based on full-time work. Grad workers fulfill Student Academic Appointee duties while conducting research and pursuing their degrees full time. Ali said they are expected to not have another job, and some students — such as international students — are forbidden from having other jobs.
"This means that we are expected to live off of our stipends, which are far below the living wage in Bloomington,” Ali said.
Before the union sent their January letter to Whitten, the Dean of Bloomington’s Graduate School David Daleke announced a new minimum stipend of $23,000 for a half-time, 10-month SAA appointment.
In 2022, about 1,000 members went on strike for union recognition and the removal of fees. In August 2022, the Whitten and Provost Rahul Shrivastav announced IU waived mandatory fees and raised the minimum SAA stipend by 46 percent to $22,000.
The IGWC said in a press release living wages in Bloomington should be about $28,000 for 10-month contracts and about $34,000 for 12-month contracts.
Ali said the union was told it would be impossible to eliminate fees for graduate workers by faculty and administration before their strike.
“What that told us is this continuous failure to take responsibility and admit that administration has the power to fundamentally change the way things are funded, the way things are structured and governed at the university,” Ali said. “It’s just going to take a lot of courage for them to actually do it.”
Only IU’s Board of Trustees can authorize union recognition.
Ali said she thinks IU’s upper level of administration has been handing off the issue, saying it’s not in their power to do anything. But Whitten, the board and Provost Rahul Shrivastav all share power and influence, she said.
“We're kind of fed up with this kind of, either complete silence or pretending like they can't do anything about it,” Ali said.
Aubrey is our higher education reporter and a Report For America corps member. Contact her ataubmwrig@iu.eduor follow her on Twitter at@aubreymwright.
This story was updated to include Sabina Ali's comments about graduate workers' duties.
