Ember McCoy, Outgoing Vice President of the Graduate Employees Organization at the University of Michigan (AFT-MI 3550), joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to talk about the graduate workers strike at the University of Michigan. McCoy also talked about creating a safe workplace and campus for graduate workers and allegations the University’s administration forced its staff to commit academic fraud.
GEO Local 3550 has been in negotiations with the University of Michigan since November. However, Local 3550 has seen little progress. The graduate workers are asking for a 20 percent payhike to make their wages a livable wage, and transition payment for any worker who reports harassment or abuse and needs to seek new employment. The university has not come close to matching what the workers want, and that is why they walked out in March.
There also have been multiple issues with sexual harassment and abuse found by the University during a recent campus-wide questionnaire. There is also a current pending case against a professor that has caused public outcry, due to the lack of due process by the office in charge of reporting and investigations, McCoy said. This lack of due process has contributed to a lack of reports being filed on campus, as most students and workers don’t feel they will receive a proper investigation after filing a report. This contributed to the demand for transition payments by graduate workers, as they believe they shouldn’t be tied to a university-based reporting system.
When the graduate workers walked out in March, many of the administrators were at a loss for how to fill their roles. Instead of working on a proper contract with the graduate workers, the administration decided to commit academic fraud, said McCoy. There were several cases of incorrect grades being submitted as a final grade due to the striking graduate workers, McCoy said, including an entire course receiving all A’s as their final grades. The total number of incidents is still being researched, as there are still ongoing investigations into the matter by the University’s accreditation organization.
Listen to the entire episode to learn more.