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In the wake of our court victory, grads hit the picket lines with renewed energy and conviction on Tuesday. Pickets continued across central and north campus, and crafty grads held a second knit in at Haven Hall. The mood was both victorious and determined. As Kelsie, a Middle East Studies grad, put it, “the denial of the injunction is great news. It gives a lot of power to what we’re doing. It goes to show that our organizing efforts so far are working. What the University and the powers that be are trying to do is not sticking. It’s not working. People are realizing that what the University is doing is messed up, and that they’ve got to change. If they actually claim to care about their students, about DEI issues and equality on campus, they’ve got to do something about it. They can’t just keep sitting around.”
Progress at the bargaining table remained slow today. With nearly 100 workers in attendance, grads passed back our harassment protection proposal in response to HR’s counter last week. Despite progress at earlier bargaining sessions, an agreement on gender affirming remained elusive. Lina, a PhD candidate in Art History, says “this shows that even with the victory in court, we need to keep up the pressure.”
Picket Line Dispatches
Marcel, Neuroscience
“UMich is one of the top universities in the country. They have all this money, and it’s completely unreasonable that they don’t even pay us enough to live in Ann Arbor. We shouldn’t have to commute 40 minutes here. That’s kind of silly. We should be able to afford to live nearby, so we can come and do the research we’re being paid to do. It’s nonsensical! We deserve to be paid a living wage and to be able to live in the city that we work in. “
Annabel, Undergrad
“Undergrads deserve teachers that can live their lives as full human beings beyond the classroom. If our GSIs can’t pay their rent, if they’re stressed about their healthcare, they’re not going to be the best teachers. GSIs want to teach us and be there for us, and we need to be there for them. It’s really important for undergrads to show the university that they can’t divide us. We have power when we’re together, and we’re going to stand strong with our grad workers.”
The Fight Continues: Pickets + Wednesday GMM
GEO members will come together to decide how to move forward at a general membership meeting on Wednesday, 4/12, at 7pm. We have the wind at our backs, now it’s time to bring it home. Sign up for picket shifts at
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