Florida State University's graduate assistants hold rally to air compensation grievances

Florida State University’s Graduate Assistants United marched from the Integration Statue to Strozier Library on campus Tuesday afternoon, rallying about a lack of sufficient pay, the rights of international students, high healthcare premiums and required student fees among graduate workers.

While the assistants shouted out chants such as “FSU works because we do,” they held up posters with phrases like “overworked and underpaid” written in bold.

“All graduate assistants are paying to work, and that’s not right,” FSU-GAU Organizing Chair Lee Robertson said, using a microphone amplifier as they spoke to students in front of Strozier Library.

“Stuff like this that we can get out and do without fear is really important,” she added, referring to the rally.

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Even though the union's graduate assistants are not satisfied with the pay the university currently gives them, which is an annual stipend of $16,250, progress has been made over the years to get to where they are now.

FSU-GAU Chief Negotiator Jordan Lenchitz – who has been a part of the union for four and a half years – was making about $13,000 five years ago when he started teaching at FSU as a graduate assistant.

Lenchitz believes the union’s advocacy played a role in the pay increasing by about $3,000 over the years.

At the same time, the union hopes to have a successful contract negotiation in the spring as it pushes for $20,000 annually – close to the average $21,300 that the University of Florida’s graduate assistants currently make each year.

“It's not like they don’t have the money, so they should be able to spend more of it on graduate assistants,” said Lenchitz, who works in FSU’s College of Music.

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Tuesday’s rally came after a previous one held during the fall semester in October, and FSU’s graduate student workers are not the only ones who have been taking action for their rights recently. Graduate workers as well as other university employees across the nation have been doing the same, but in more drastic measures.

Workers at the University of California Schools system, which include teaching assistants and researchers, took part in one of the country’s biggest strikes in recent years by walking off the job for higher pay in mid-November, leading to some classes forcefully being cancelled, according to an article in The New York Times.

On top of better wages being a similar concern of FSU’s graduate assistants, another intention of the labor union that fueled their commitment to rally is representing international students who are also graduate workers.

“We have low membership among international students because many of them are afraid of retaliation,” FSU-GAU Interim President Chandler Blount said, “because in addition to losing their job, they fear losing their ability to be in the United States.”

Health care remains an ongoing concern for the assistants, along with the fees they are required to pay each semester. While the university’s health care plan covers 79% of the graduate assistant’s insurance instead of the union’s desired full coverage, the students also pay between $700 to $1,200 every semester as a part of fee requirements.

“When we say student fees have got to go, we mean student fees have got to go from being paid by grad students to being paid by FSU,” Lenchitz said.

Despite the union’s complaints, the university looks forward to working with collective bargaining teams next year, according to an FSU spokesperson.

Contract negotiations for FSU’s graduate assistants begin on March 1, and the union already plans on having more rallies in February ahead of the process. They also plan on attending FSU’s upcoming Board of Trustees meeting on Feb. 24 to continue airing out their grievances.

“We’ve already circled the date on our calendar,” Lenchitz said ahead of the trustees’ next meeting, “and we hope they’re prepared for some public comments.”

Contact Tarah Jean at tjean@tallahassee.com or follow her on twitter @tarahjean_.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida State University's graduate assistants rally over pay