University administrators and the Graduate Employees Organization are one step closer to an election that will decide if certain graduate assistants on the Urbana campus want to be represented by a collective bargaining unit.
In accordance with a decision by the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board, the university provided the labor board and the GEO by Oct. 1 with a listing of all graduate students holding appointments to graduate teaching assistantships and graduate assistantships for the fall semester 2002.
Based upon that list of names, the labor board will render a final determination as to which students will be eligible to vote on unionization. The labor board then will set a date for the election, which could occur as soon as this fall.
In a Sept. 20 e-mail message to deans, directors and department heads, Associate Provost Kathleen Pecknold outlined the provisions of Illinois Education Labor Relations Act, which governs interactions between supervisors and bargaining unit employees during the pre-election period.
According to the provisions of the Act, supervisors and administrators are prohibited from attempting to influence the elections outcome through any intimidating, coercive or discriminatory activities or behaviors aimed at graduate students included in the bargaining unit.
Grad students to vote on union
By Sharita Forrest, Assistant Editor (217) 244-1072; slforres@illinois.edu
